Baked Alaska, Astoria Oregon

While my hubby & I were away in Oregon we went to a fantastic restaurant in Astoria for dinner. The place was called Baked Alaska Fine Dining & Public House. Our experience got off to a bit of a rough start, but they definintely won me over by the end of our visit. I have to apologize for the quality of my photos... hubby was a little embarassed at me taking "obsessive" photos of our plates and people were looking at me, so I had to be quick about it to minimize his embarassment. ;)

When we first walked into the restaurant, it initially took a while for someone to come and seat us. We almost left... but the fellow who finally came was so nice and convinced us to sit on the patio - something we definitely didn't regret! The view was fantastic - right on the Columbia River where all the big barges dock and the little boats zip by. Lots of little seals playing in the water etc.

We both had a drink - hubby had a beer & I had a lovely blueberry mojito.

Next up our server came around with a tray of assorted fresh breads - foccacia, sourdough, and some kind of whole grain. She also brought a tray with four little dishes - garlic butter, olive oil, balsamic vinnegar, and their signature seasoned sea salt (seasoned with fresh choppped herbs). All for dipping the bread in - it was all great and so beautifully presented.

We each ordered an entree. I ordered a "small" sized dinner (which wasn't actually all that small)! I ordered the Campfire Salmon which was "an alaskan amber barbeque marinated Alaskan Coho Salmon filet, pan seared and flambeed campfire style". It was served with mashed potatoes and green beans and an amazing citrussy sauce that complimented the bbq sauce amazingly well.

Hubby ordered the Natural Ale Braised Baby Back Ribs which were "glazed with an alaskan amber bbq sauce and frizzled sweet onions. His was also served with mashed potatoes and green beans. Everything was cooked to perfection and the ribs were fall-off-the-bone tender.

Now by this point we were both soooo stuffed from all this delicious food, but we had to find room to order the restaurant's signature dessert - the Half Baked Alaska. It looks so simple in the photo, but sometimes the simplest things are the best. The most exciting thing for me was the way it arrived at our table - flaming! The half baked alaska consists of "a double chocolate chip cookie baked fresh in a cast iron skillet. Topped with vanilla bean ice cream, walnuts and chocolate sauce. Arrives at your table flaming with brandy." It was so fun. Unfortunately it was too bright outside to get any photos of the flames. :(

This was definitely a place I'll be returning to. If you're ever in the area, definitely stop by and get "half-baked". Its well worth it!