“Crush-ing is fun”

Mike Komrosky

May 15^th, 2011

If you see Crush from the outside, I offer a reminder of the saying, “don’t judge a book by the cover”; the restaurants interior ambiance and fare are far more substantive than its outward appearance.  Presumably, that is the way they prefer to keep it, so don’t look for a facelift coming anytime soon, their bread and butter is high quality food artfully prepared.  Further, the friendly servers are open to questions regarding the vast (and growing) wine list, suggested pairings with the food and techniques of the chefs, all this made for an entirely enjoyable dining experience. 

 We immediately ordered one of our favorites, charcutirie and cheese; it was admired for its design and subsequently devoured for its appeal.  The plate offers ripe strawberries, assorted nuts and olives, aged Parmesan, unique and artisan cheeses, succulent salamis and delicious Prosciutto that combine to delight the senses and fill the stomach with an appetizer unmatched in Anchorage says yours truly.  Ordered drinks included 2 white wine flights for the ladies that were reported as delightful and 2 carbon copies of a brand new Organic beer called the Pike Naughty Nellie, also fantastic.

Dinner for our four top included a wealth of tapas from the Mac and Cheese, to the Lasagna to the phenomenal Crab Cakes. All were very good and cleverly garnished, but without a doubt, the star of the night was the braised Oxen Tail, the 8 hour Bolognese was reduced to perfection, the tail was tender and moist and the presentation of the meat on top of the chive mashed potatoes was a treat.  Once all were devoured, we realized we ate too much, laughed too hard and finally had to throw in the towel and regretfully refuse the delightful assortment of desserts.  

We gleaned from our waiter that the food is local, the clientele is local, the chefs and servers are die-hard local and every tourist is not always welcome, thus making it the quintessential downtown Anchorage Night Out for locals.