Also, two Anchorage-area restaurants and an art boutique have closed.
Open & Shut: Anchorage gets new eateries — Polynesian, Mexican and American with global twists — as well as a game board cafe and a cannabis shopis an ongoing series looking at the comings and goings of businesses in Southcentral Alaska.
If you know of a business opening or closing in the area, send a note to reporter Alex DeMarban at alex@adn.com with “Open & Shut” in the subject line.Jedidiah Stewart, holding a seafood combo, and his wife, Jamie Stewart, holding a garlic shrimp plate, are photographed March 19 inside Suka's Polynesian Cuisine restaurant, which they opened in December at 302 W. Fireweed Lane. Jamie and Jedidiah Stewart tested their plans for a Polynesian restaurant during the pandemic, to spend more time with their kids. Selling dishes like Spam musubi and breaded katsu chicken from a food truck, they realized a restaurant would be more profitable than working in the North Slope oil fields. It went so well that they recently opened their second Suka’s in Anchorage, in part to serve the city’s Polynesian population with dishes from Hawai’i, American Samoa and elsewhere. They make seafood platters, poke bowls, pulled pork plates, garlic shrimp and other dishes. Beverages include smoothies like poi fala, a traditional Samoan drink made with fresh pineapple and coconut cream. There’s house-made pineapple-mango tea, and desserts like the pineapple blast with vanilla ice cream and pineapple puree. On Sundays, they focus on traditional Polynesian food, such as the luau with steamed taro leaves wrapped around meat and coconut milk.The main dishes come in big portions, from individual to the “colossal” combo, she said.Suka’s is named after Jamie Stewart’s late uncle, Suka Suka. He mentored her as she grew up in American Samoa, and stayed close after she came to the U.S. on a college volleyball scholarship. He died in 2021.in Fairbanks. They plan to bring the Suka’s food truck to Anchorage this summer for events where Polynesian people gather, like cricket, rugby and volleyball games. They’ll also be at celebrations for American Samoa flag day, commemorating the first U.S. flag raised over the islands in 1900.Josh Picasso launched this Mexican diner in South Anchorage in part to give customers a simpler version of the Serrano’s Mexican Grill restaurants he founded nearly two decades ago. Gustavo Romo prepares a burrito to go at Burro’s Tacos and Stuff on March 3. Burro’s Tacos and Stuff is located at 11108 Old Seward Highway in South Anchorage. It’s like a Chipotle Mexican Grill. The service is quick and customers often get the food to go. Taste and freshness are key, he said. “Nothing that you eat here is cooked the previous day,” he said.In the early days at Serrano’s, she helped guide his cooking, calling him on video chats to give advice in the kitchen, he said.Customer favorites at Burro’s include the burritos and rice bowls, especially the Chile Colorado or the smoky chicken chipotle, he said. The cilantro lime rice bowls are popular, too. Beverages include creamy horchata made from rice and cinnamon.Mario Hernandez launched this coffee house and restaurant in South Anchorage earlier in March since sales were strong at his other restaurant, Harley’s Old Thyme Cafe.Mario Hernandez recently opened Borealis Coffee House & Restaurant at 1921 W. Dimond Blvd. Photographed on March 19. is located off Dimond Boulevard near Minnesota Drive in a remodeled space that housed Little Dipper Diner, which closed last fall,But there are global influences: “We have French plates, American plates, Mexican plates.” Borealis serves brunch items such as artisan waffles topped with chicken, tiramisu French toast and Cuban sandwiches. There’s traditional American fare like chicken-fried steaks, plus omelets and the Borealis eggs Benedict with chorizo, avocado and bacon. Lunch and dinner items include the spicy chicken burger and Madame Croquette sandwich, with ham, mozzarella and a sunny-side egg, topped with jalapeño white sauce. Desserts include creme brulee French toast and golden banana waffles.bought: Chris Morlang launched this board game cafe in January partly to attract people suffering from internet fatigue. Chris Morlang opened The Side Quest in January and has 306 board games, with Monopoly being the most popular. Photographed on March 17. He’s built a collection of 300-plus board games after the Alaska Small Business Development Center advised him against starting a coffee shop — too much competition. The games include classics like Axis and Allies, involving World War II strategy; Diplomacy, a game of negotiation set in World War I Europe; and the Chinese tile game mahjong, which has seen a rise in popularity in recent years.He grew up in small-town Kansas loving games like Clue and moved to Alaska about a dozen years ago, working at the KTUU television news station in production. He got the idea for the venture on a trip to South Korea a few years ago, where the cafes are popular, he said. Side Quest is near Putters Wild indoor mini-golf, off the Seward Highway near 68th Avenue and Homer Drive. The address is 1300 E. 68th Ave., No. 102. Morlang serves snacks and prepackaged drinks, and individual K-cup coffees. He plans to upgrade to an espresso machine. The all-day cover fee — $12 for adults and $6 for kids — is half-price when people bring their games. It’s $2 less on the 20th of each month, when guests can roll a 20-sided die for an added discount. Chris Morlang practices playing Japanese mahjong on March 17, in The Side Quest, a board game cafe he opened in January. The Side Quest is open Monday through Thursday from 3-11 p.m.; on Fridays from 3 p.m. to midnight; and on Saturdays from noon to midnight. It’s closed on Sundays.Chris Owens and James Stevens opened this cannabis shop with a passion for Alaska’s backcountry and the “marijuana lifestyle,” Owens said. The High Country recently opened cannabis dispensary at 520 W. Sixth Ave. in downtown Anchorage. Photographed on March 18. “They’re two distinct lifestyles that work very well together,” said Owens, a former owner of the Chugach Powder Guides heli-skiing company. The business partners have enjoyed strong sales at their other establishments, including the Denali Fire company that sells marijuana and items like distilled vape products, Owens said. The store sells items like hoodies, hats and T-shirts, some with the High Country logo, for shoppers who may not want cannabis products, he said. The shop is built with wooden beams and shiplap from a historic cannery in Kenai, he said. Alpine and skiing gear adorn the walls.In the heart of the shop behind a glass door, customers can buy cannabis deli-style, where its weighed and packaged, or as pre-rolled joints.The High Country co-owners Chris Owens, left, and James Stevens recently opened a new cannabis dispensary at 520 W. Sixth Avenue in downtown Anchorage. Photographed on March 18. It’s open from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday to Wednesday, and 9 a.m. to midnight Thursday to Saturday. The Loft, at 8111 Dimond Hook Drive, shut down in part because food costs have risen, competition has grown and people are drinking less, he said.“We’re also competing with this whole new business model that exists in the world now where people don’t even have to leave their house to spend money,” he said. That change is apparent during events like Black Fridays or dividend check week, he said. Shoppers once fanned out across Anchorage looking for deals, and many stopped at the Loft for food.The Undertap will sell “unique, fun beers” with a menu of light food, he said. The operation will have some built-in advantages, including tourists on site and lots of parking. The Wildbirch, after a $70 million renovation, has spruced up a corner of downtown. “I’m hopeful that more folks in Anchorage will start to make their way back downtown and help revive the area,” he said.“It has been an incredible space and we have hosted so many wonderful events and music shows over the years,” its Facebook page said.The Cove Studio & Boutique, photographed on May 4, 2022 in downtown Anchorage. “The tariffs hit us for sure,” he said, boosting prices and dissuading shoppers. A graphic designer, Loosli said his Alaska-themed apparel, like the colorful leggings the store sold, will remain available online aton Facebook that it’s closing at the end of April, once ski season is over, drawing laments from scores of disappointed fans. “Rising costs have made it tough to keep things rolling, but we’re beyond proud of what we created together,” the post said. “This community showed us so much love, and we’ve had an absolute blast serving you.”The clothing chain is shutting down nearly 180 stores in the U.S. and Canada at the end of April, after filing for bankruptcy protection and finding no buyer.Alex DeMarban is a longtime Alaska journalist who covers business, the oil and gas industries and general assignments. Reach him at 907-257-4317 or alex@adn.com.
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