Sweet Basil Cafe Closed - Anchorage

This lunch café has some of the best soups and sandwiches in the city. Every day there are two homemade soups and a lunch special. The Piper Club and the Damn Good Sandwich are popular with my friends on the regular menu. They're on bread in the house. My Go-to is the half-brushetta salad, covered with two slices of sweet basil bread with gogonzola and sun-dried tomatoes. That and a cup of soup and I'm good to go.

We were really excited to try this place out and support a local business during this really difficult time. But the couple running the restaurant, while cooking and serving food, were not wearing masks. And there was no encouraging or set up for socially distancing inside. I don’t care how good your food tastes (can’t say cause I haven’t tried it), but if you don’t care about keeping your customers safe that’s really a shame. And possibly illegal at this point but I’m not sure about that one?

It can be very tough to find vegetarian restaurants in Anchorage. Thankfully, Sweet Basil has some vegetarian options. It has a very pleasant, cafe-style, casual atmosphere and friendly service.

This was my 3rd visit and this time I brought my adult son for lunch. Previously I had sandwiches, however, today I chose a pasta dish. Oh my! This is definitely going to be my new favorite pasta place. The spinach basil pesto is crazy good!! The blend of flavors with the olive oil and roasted garlic was unbelievable. The portion was large with plenty to bring home for another complete meal. My son ordered the Damn Good sandwich, and it really is as the name describes. It came with a small pasta salad with their homemade wasabi dressing. We brought home a bread pudding with blueberry fluff for later.

We, like so many in Anchorage, have driven by this cafe for years. Our best friends took us there and we are hooked! Great food, great folks, funky atmosphere. Every day they have 2 new soups, a special sandwich or pasta, and plenty of unbelievable desserts! Their hours are basically lunch time, but we watched any number of folks stopping in for to go plates so they could enjoy these delights at home. Go there!