Lucky Wishbone

Acting on a hot tip from the Best of Alaska booklet of earlier post fame, Mr EA and I stopped in at the Lucky Wishbone on our way to some downtown activities. From the outside, the place is somewhat ratty looking, but the steady stream of customers to both the sit-down and drive through part of the restaurant assured us this was the place that had won a stunning 5 Best of awards.
When you get inside, what you will find is a place with the classic coastal diner sensibilities. Since the place is in operation since the 50's or 60's (the menu had their history, but I did not write it down), that makes a certain amount of sense. Located near Merrill Field, the place is rife with airplane memorabilia and photos. A patron in a nearby booth was pointing to pictures of airmen on the wall and saying who they were and what they did later in life! Whether this was factual information or malarky to amuse the grandchild he was with I don't know, but it was interesting anyway.
Mr EA got the Mom sized order of their famous pan-fried chicken, and I got a chiliburger and an order of onion rings. I wasn't impressed with my chiliburger - an openface burger and roll smothered in a blanket of midwestern-style hamburger and kidney bean chili. However, my onion rings were awesome! Rings of real whole onion in a light cornmeal crust were fried just right. Mr EA's chicken, however, was astoundingly delicious! The light crust was flavorful and lightly seasoned. It was just the right balance to complement the chicken without overwhelming it. When you got through the crust, the chicken was moist and flavorful. Before trying a few bites of this chicken, I had kind of wondered what the fuss about pan-fried chicken was all about. Now I know.
The delicious chicken, which I urge you to try without delay if you like chicken at all, is available in three portion sizes - Pop, Mom and Jr, with piece types assigned ( Jr is a leg and a wing, for example). However, we hear nearby patrons bargaining with their waitress for different piece types than their portion names, and she seemed able to meet their wishes. Also, the menu does say that if available, you can get all white meat, but they don't make any promises. The menu also says that sometimes livers and gizzards and giblets are available. We didn't go there, but if you like chicken innards, there's something to look forward to. Also available are t-shirts with their retro-cool logo! But first, get the chicken.

City Diner

The City Diner, co-owned by two big names in the Anchorage food world, is this city's answer to the Retro Craze. As far as I know, there are no actual diners here, and possibly never have been. However, Anchorage has as much a fondness for plain old regular non-gourmet food as any town I have ever been in, so this restaurant is a natural fit.

It has a good version of the diner look, with lots of chrome and glass brick and neon, as well as a discreet smattering of kitch. The menu covers two sides of an 11 x 17 menu sheet and consists of basic diner chow. Breakfasts, a few burgers, sandwiches, and a few entrees of the meatloaf variety. Prices are a little high, but are sometimes worth it. Mr. Eating Alaska and I shared an order of Bleu Cheese chips as an appetizer, then split a BLT and a toasted cheese sandwich. The sandwiches each came with a side - he got a cup of corn chowder and I got pineapple cole slaw.

The Bleu Cheese Chips were absolutely delicious - that kind of delicious where you involuntarily moan when you taste it. The dish consists of fresh fried chips covered with cheese sauce, smoky bacon bits, bleu cheese chunks, and chives. It is astoundingly good. Just have some - I insist.

mmmmmmmmm!

The sandwiches were well executed version of the standards. My toasted cheese was crisp and buttery without being sodden. The cheese was good, flavorful mild cheddar. Mr. EA's BLT was also very good. The bacon was crisp and full of smoky flavor. The tomatoes were fresh, as was the lettuce, though there was too much greenery for his taste. So in general, well done but neither was a standout. My pineapple cole slaw was a bit sweet for me, and also a bit liquid-y, although there wasn't much left when I was done. The corn chowder, though, was delicious! It consisted of corn, potato, roasted red pepper and smoky bacon bit (again - they make the world taste good!) and what we think may have been some cilantro.

So it's a little uneven. However, we will be back again, if only for those chips. Although while we are having the chips...some of those burgers looked pretty good. We'll be back.

Mr EA Commentary: We had to wait for seating but not overly long and it was well worth it. The wait staff had the perfect balance of attentiveness & what I like to call "leave-us-alone-ness". The Unimaginatively named "City Diner" is located at the corner of Minnesota & Benson. Even if you're only in town a day or two, make this one of your stops....