Maxine's

I have to tell you about my dining experience at Maxine's Fireweed Bistro last week when I spent a couple of days in Anchorage. There was a Maxine's in Girdwood (I guess it closed down?) and I loved it, the food was always amazingly good and I liked the inside, especially if you got a window seat. I heard that they opened one in Anchorage and I was curious if it would hold up to the original. The plan was to go with two of my friends but they both cancelled on me.....ehhhhh.....OK....I was disappointed at first, for about 30 minutes or so but that's life, doesn't always work out as planned. I turned the frown upside down and went to Maxine's by myself and my new book. I have no problem dining alone or going to the movies alone, I'm totally comfortable with that. I must like my own company or something. It was Sunday and I guess they have a fixed menu every Sunday. There were several dishes to choose from as the main course but only one was vegetarian, the risotto. But first there was some bread with a really yummy olive oil dipping mix on the side and a small salad with a horseradish dressing that was delicious. The risotto was good too but the salad was actually better, very memorable. I had the creme brulee for dessert and it was yummy, only because what creme brulee is not? But it didn't blow me away. My choice of beverage? Coffee.
At Maxine's in Girdwood they actually served the coffee with real cream, thick and soooo good but at the location in Anchorage it comes with milk or half & half. They should stick with the old concept.....much better. The service wasn't the best, it was OK. I have found that some (actually many) waitresses tend to be somewhat dismissive if they wait on a single woman or a pair of women because they think that we will tip less or maybe have less money to spend than a man. I can afford to dine at the best places and pay for it with my own money, so it is annoying when I see the waitress put on a show and give extra good service to a table that includes one or several men and act totally different when she interacts with me, usually less attentive and not as friendly. I pay attention to details like that. Note to waitresses out there, it's a restaurant, not a strip club. And I can be rather generous when tipping but I don't like getting obvious worse service than the man sitting at the table over gets. I think the inside was OK, nothing special, the Girdwood location certainly had way more charm. Would I go again? Yes, I would but not on a Sunday. Next on my dining list is The Marxs Bros. Cafe in Anchorage. I should be a food critique or a personal shopper.....n'est-ce pas?





That book is great by the way. Difficult to read at times because it is sad but a really good read. I have another book by the same author, it's called Red and it is worth reading too.