Keshena was our waitress here at Orso great conversation and very attentive to our needs. The bar tender don't know her/his name but the quality of the drinks do I need to say anymore? Get on down to Orso's they are better than ever. Nice place very clean the food is great. read more

Very personable staff. Excellent wine list. Antipasto was wonderful Seafood Gemelli very good. Seafood chowder outstanding. Definitely a great place to enjoy a very nice dinner read more

Dined there during dinner. Great seafood, but it is on the pricier side - to be expected with good seafood. We ordered the king crab legs. Delicious! Wish they steamed it more because I did get a few frozen chunks. Server told me fresh caught crab requires immediate cooking and packed frozen or else it spoils. I ordered the crab stuffed rock fish with cauliflower mash. Hands down the best fish fish I've ever had! Desserts aren't the best - creme brûlée with raisins, tiramisu, and chocolate cake. All typical tasting. Services was good for the most part. Server forgot a few things and needed reminding. read more

Great little gem in Anchorage. We were (not so politely) told "no tables" next door, and we were so glad! Wonderful dinner here at Orso.

We had a great meal here, which helped to offset the mediocre meal we had at the steakhouse down the street the night before. Service was on-par, great drink menu, and a nice interior and atmosphere. She had the sockeye salmon and it was very tasty. Sidenote, she ordered it fully cooked but it still came medium rare, so plan accordingly. I had the seafood Gemelli, and it was unique and wonderful. Would definitely return the next time we are in Anchorage. read more

Arrived at our hotel at 5:00 PM and found this restaurant close to the hotel with good reviews by Yelp standards. Great food and service. Unfortunately I found neither. We order the fried Calamari as an appetizer, tasted ok, very oily, the oil was not hot enough when the calamari was being cooked. Service extremely slow and inattentive. I ordered the chicken parm which was cooked ok, crunchy crust, I believe they used Panko breadcrumbs, very little sauce and mozzarella over dried spaghetti which was supposed to have pesto as the sauce, Dry, dry, pasta, the pesto and pasta should have been finished in the pan with pasta water to insure the pasta was well coated. Prices are. It reflective of the quality of the food. read more

Came here after a busy day of conference meetings. Again make a reservation if possible, that's one thing I learned in Anchorage. We were seated quickly and our server quickly appeared and got our drinks going. Being tired I went for comfort food and ordered the chicken parm. It was quite tasty. The chicken was thin and crispy and came served on a bed of pasta and veggies. Normally chicken parm can be a little heavy but this was just right. It was rich and comforting without weighing you down. A good solid option for sure and I would not hesitate to come back. read more

I was pleasantly surprised by this caliber of restaurant in Anchorage. The food, service and ambiance is very good. I would highly recommend it to anyone coming to Anchorage. read more

Absolutely wonderful experience! Orso was recommended by a friend and it did not disappoont. Not only was the food delicious -- the grilled seafood spiedini is a must -- but the service was spectacular. We were lucky to have David as our server! He stopped by right after we were seated to get our drink orders and appetizers in. His recommendations on the menu were spot on and (most importantly!) he was such an energetic and fun person to chat with and added to our dining experience. If you're in Anchorage you must stop by and ask for David! Thanks for being apart of our Alaska experience! read more

Terrific Italian take on a flavorful menu. The vodka flight was choice. Can't go wrong with the salmon and seafood spedini! Wonderful meal and terrific ambiance. read more

Overall, a great dining experience! Not only was the service spot on (Jessica), but the food was delicious! My Chicken Parmesan was perfectly done with a crispy fry. The atmosphere was wonderful, too! read more

I ordered three appetizers during Happy Hour (well worth the big discount: 9:00 till closing). Seafood Deviled Eggs were just perfect with the fish/horseradish flavor perfectly balanced. The Crispy Cauliflower was also well presented. A nice dish, although it could have used a few more olives; maybe 5 instead of only 3. Nicely done and not too greasy. The Polenta Ragu was amazing. Very filing and the deep fried, breaded soft poached egg on top was great. Ask the waiter how they make that - it's ingenious. Nice strong flavor from the sausage ragu was also perfect. Super nice environment, from the high ceiling in the bar to the new and clean tables and chairs. One of the best spots in Anchorage. read more

Orso - Polenta Ragu & Crispy Cauliflower - Italian Near Me - Anchorage, Alaska

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Excellent happy hour with half off appetizers and small plate. The dinner menu pricing is awesome compared to others in the area. They have a great seafood selection as well as a vegetarian and gluten free menu. Highly recommended. read more

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Went to this place whilst exploring Anchorage and I was kind of let down. I ordered the Chicken Parm and it was just okay. My main complaint is the service. Our waiter gave us the wrong dish and charged us for the one we actually did order (Which was more expensive). Overall, this place was just disappointing. read more

Stopped here yesterday afternoon for happy hour appetizers. We were hungry coming off our flight from Austin but not yet ready for dinner. Our bartender was fabulous. He understood that we were not looking to drink but rather nosh. We tried the Appetizer Tower and the Seafood Devil Eggs. The fried ravioli is as good as any I tried. Nice marinara and pesto sauce. The beef tenderloin tips were marinated in something delicious. I know other Yelpers described them better. They were superb. It was the calamari that had us over the . Perfectly fried, the texture was heavenly almost silky. The seafood devil eggs had me perfectly perplexed. I don't like seafood combined with other food, however these were tempting. I cut mine in half to study it. Egg yolk on top, chunks of seafood on the bottom. One bite and I could have eaten a half dozen. Now if only I was in town for dinner. read more

One of the too few nice options in downtown Anchorage! Overall great experience in terms of service, food and ambience. Warm decor makes for a great night out! I would recommend this restaurant hands down. read more

Delicious Italian food at a fair price! I finally got to try King Salmon and it was delicious. Don't expect a king-sized meal from a king-sized salmon, it's a smaller cut of high quality king salmon meat, but it's tender, juicy, and tasty. Got over 5-6 different dishes and all of them were wonderful. The seafood chowder was also really good. read more

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We dined here tonight. We made reservations and were seated promptly. Ordered salads and entrées. Kourtney, our hostess took care of everything, plus. Highly recommend this restaurant. read more

Food and service was excellent. Crab Cakes were perfect.Chicken Fettuccine and Seafood Chowder were excellent.

We had just arrived at the Marriott a couple of hours before and decided to check out the area for dinner and shopping. We came across Orso and decided to give it a try. There were six of us and we sat in the bar at a high top. We ordered our drinks and decided to eat off the small plates menu. My wife and I ordered the deviled eggs, crab cake, cod slider and beets. I don't eat beets so my wife eat them and said they were delicious. The slider is only one which I ate. It was good but the cod is fried. I would have preferred grilled. The deviled eggs were fantastic. There is a seafood mix under the tolled part. Finally the crab cake. You get two. They are Alaskan crab and they were delicious. The presentation was great. Prices are very reasonable especially for Alaska. They have good beer and wine lists. I highly recommend this place. read more

Orso - Happy Hour! - Italian Near Me - Anchorage, Alaska

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My husband found this place on a whim since we were traveling from California and wanted to try something new with the locals of Alaska. Let me start by saying the host was very welcoming, friendly and prompt. Our server was very informative and attentive. He was very helpful with what was not on the menu going over specials for the night and answering questions that we had. Our order : Devil eggs- I would say shareable for 2 but can stretch it out by just cutting them to make 4 . It's really worth a try. Rosemary potato bread- my fav. Bread was warm and the does it came with were delish as well. Can't go wrong with this one. Crab legs- these were huge!!!! Still hot and not dry. Lobster and streak- delish as well! Steak cooked to perfection medium and the lobster was great! Out of most of the places we have been so far in Alaska in the past 14 days of our trip this places really bet them all. read more

I have been going to ORSO for years, because of this I did not want to write a nasty review without giving them a chance. I sent a Facebook message to the restaurant when I got home to let them know about my disappointment. I had a response and was asked for my number to contact me. That was on 09/18. I have yet to receive a call. I ordered the chicken fettuccine, which has always been a favorite. After a couple of bites, I thought it tasted rubbery. I cut into a piece and it was raw. Our server was busy with a neighboring table so I informed the hostess who was checking tables. She looked confused and at the same time our server was walking by, she grabbed her. I explained the chicken was raw and was surprised at the response of the server. She was nonchalant by grabbing the plate and said, "oh, I'll get you a new one". I had to stop her because I did not want another. Raw chicken does not breed confidence. I ordered the prawn scampi in lieu but took only a couple of bites because I was afraid of the cooking/getting sick. The server did remove both from the check but still the attitude was so casual. The ORSO response from the Facebook message: I totally get it. Our chicken tonight had something different with it. Our saute' chef cooks 20/40 a night with no issues. Tonight we had 3 under-cooked. We are looking into the product as it seems to cook slower. Raw chicken is no joke and we are taking this very serious. Will you provide me a contact number so I could talk to you about the service? My thoughts on that. I am not sure I would ever blame the product for the amount of time it takes to cook. Nor for the end product not checked to be sure it is safe for consumption. No, I will not refer ORSO to my clients, co-workers, visitors or friends. read more

Orso - Italian Near Me - Anchorage, Alaska

ANCHORAGE: Run, do not walk, to dine on the small plates at Orso. I just had the most undeniably marvelous meal I have had in two months at this casual upscale new-American establishment. Based on what I have just tried, this should be the highest rated restaurant in Anchorage. The ambience at Orso is casual, warm, and inviting. The servers are friendly and real, and the service is attentive. They know what they are doing. FOOD: The meal consisted of a variety of small plates, each as exquisite as the one before. Smoked Salmon & Clam Chowder (5 stars): This chowder had more meat than it had potatoes or anything else; it was almost a casserole consistency, there was so much seafood in it. The smokey taste of the salmon was an excellent top note and the "fishiness" of the salmon had been cooked out. The clam bites were flawless. Amazing Cauliflower (5 Stars): Oh My Gosh-this dish is mind altering! The cauliflower is very lightly seasoned and fried, with the most spectacular seasoned remoulade (? I think) atop it that is sweet, aromatic, slightly spicy, and packed with savory flavor. I finished the meal...sat there for 10 minutes...and ordered it again and kept going! It's that good. Egg and Asparagus (5 stars): Holy Grizzly, where did these cooks come up with this? Diced asparagus under a magnificent poached-breaded-fried egg with a gooey center (never even seen this presentation before) atop diced grilled spiced vegetables and a savory aoli. Nirvana. Smoked Crab Deviled Eggs (5 stars): You can tell this is epic by the name. It tastes as good as it sounds. I would have taken photos of everything except I was with company and its not super polite to take photos during the meal, but the plating presentation was equally glorious. I tip my hat to you, culinary gods of Orso, may your reign continue a thousand years. read more

Orso - Nothing says "Alaskan Awesomeness" like a big scary bear - Italian Near Me - Anchorage, Alaska

**Update: They brought back the Osso Bucco, cashew encrusted halibut, and a new version of the seafood gemelli. A lot of people missed these items I guess... 2 stars for food + 4 stars for service = 3 stars, but I don't feel A-Ok, so 2 stars. Came in last week and treated a friend for a little celebratory dinner and got started with the tomato bisque $6.50, glass of zin, and an Orso Burger for dinner $16.95. He got the same but the fish and chips for dinner. I loved the bisque and couldn't wait til I told another tomato soup fan of my new find. The burger was average and the presentation was laughable. One crisp bacon was tore into 3 pieces and put in a little design on the plate, and there were a couple of fried pickles. The fries were okay. My friends fish and chips was just that; It was a whole filet of fish, breaded, fried, and lay upon the chips as if waiting for Jesus come use it to feed the masses. Came for lunch with tomato soup fan and got the Salmon Nicoise Salad $17.95. The salmon was cooked to perfection but lay upon a bed of cold potatoes, green beans, asparagus, tomatoes, and kalamata olives. It really should have had a warm counterpart in the bed of salad coldness, like maybe the potatoes and green beans. But I guess it is a salad... Came last night and ordered the smoked salmon spinach dip, which barely had any spinach but came with overly greasy toast points, $11.95. I ordered the crab mac and cheese, $23.95, that came on a bed of fussili pasta, bacon, lobster cream sauce, topped with only prawns. Sounds tasty right? Wrong, the dish was overly breaded, the bacon was so crunchy that it took away from the pasta. Think pop rocks on steroids, and there were 3 prawns on top. My friend got the scampi, which came with a really rich cream sauce, and some veggies and bread. This is the dish to add pasta too. It was the perfect rich, creamy, consistency. Everything I had there was something to complain about; the recipe of the hummous plate has even changed. Look new chef, I know you want to make a name for yourself, but why remove winners like the seafood gemelli Osso Bucco, or cashew encrusted halibut? I will come for happy hour for a couple of drinks and appy, but nothing else. The menu is slighty cheaper than before, but the quality is considerably less. Kudos on the awesome server and busser, you both were great! read more

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Terrific seafood. Had the halibut and it was spectacular. Excellent wait staff and atmosphere. Cannot but highly recommend.

Dropped by on a Wednesday night after a long flight in from Minnesota. A lot of nearby restaurants were packed. This one had some open seating, which is usually a sign, but Orso was fine. Our small party of two sat at the bar for dinner and waited a while to get served. We didn't mind so much because it was a work meeting and we had plenty to talk about. Just be ready you may wait a while here because everything from initial service, to follow up, to plate clearing, to check presentation seemed to take just a bit longer than you'd expect. I had the chicken salad and it was good. My coworker had the steak salad and there were about three very small pieces of steak in it (I apparently made the better choice...just by luck). He was not happy. Not a terrible place by any means so if you're forced out of the next door "hoppin'" places for any reason and you need to eat soon, drop by Orso for a decent meal. Just don't be in a rush. read more

Orso - Chicken Salad...pretty, right? - Italian Near Me - Anchorage, Alaska

Came here over the weekend to try their HH. Not bad. Their appetizers are discounted and they have a few beers and wine for a discounted price as well. HH is everyday from 3pm-6pm. I had a great experience here. We sat at the bar, and the bartender was really friendly. Before we had placed our order, he had made a mistake drink and asked if I wanted to try it. Of course I cannot deny an offer like that :) It was a sangria. And oh my, it was one of the best sangrias I've had. Super tasty!! My fiance ordered one after he took one look at it, and ended up ordering two more. For the food, the portions were a bit small for HH, but I guess you can't really complain for the price you're paying. Everything was really well cooked and flavorful. I'll definitely have to come back and try their other items on the menu. read more

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Service was okay, needs a little work. The Calamari at Orso is probably one of the worst one in Anchorage to be honest. The breading on it was not good at all. The Calamari at F Street was delicious. So I hope Orso will fix theres and take note. Main entree's portion is very small. My husband's Salmon was too small for what he spent. Took him five bites and done. read more

Average in both quality and service. But, this is a touristy town, so it's "not bad" considering. Wine prices by the glass are both limited and very expensive. We started with an appetizer order of snow crab legs; we received two large legs and @ $19, thought we'd get more. Food selection for fish was limited to halibut @ $35 and salmon @ $30. Both however fresh, and tasty, as you would expect. Dinner for 2 totaled $93 and wine another $39. We passed on dessert. read more

We had a horrible evening here, start to finish. Our server completely lost interest in us once we declined to order drinks. Our food was dry and overcooked. The attitude of the staff was beyond snooty. You're out of water? Too bad. None for you, you stupid non-drinkers. Hey, how about a pile of parsley on EVERYTHING so it overwhelms each dish? OK! to top it off, the cioppino had a boatload of spinach in it. WTF? I was so disappointed by every aspect of our experience here. We had a fantastic meal at Jens and wholeheartedly recommend them. read more

After reading so much about Orso, I was looking forward to trying out their happy hour. It is from 3-6. While I was happy to pay 2.50 for an IPA draft, the appetizers I tried were bland and underwhelming. The calamari was cut beautifully and very tender but under seasoned and served on top of a thick bed of warm goopy tartar sauce. EWWW. Lemon or salt or spices or marinara sauce would have been a real boost. I also ordered the crab cakes served over shaved fennel salad. The fennel was old and dried out, the basil sauce tasteless, and the breaded King crab cakes tasted like a garden variety seafood salad patty, unevenly fried. The inside of the cake was mayo-ey and coldish in spots and under seasoned. The atmosphere and bar staff were wonderful. I will come back and give this place one more try, but not until I make the rounds to the other joints in town first. read more

A friend and I flew into Anchorage on our way to vacation in Homer. We decided on the Glacier Brewhouse for dinner. Unfortunately, there was an hour wait so we ended up at Orso. We were so glad we did. We had the best meal of our vacation there. From our server, to my perfectly cooked rib eye, everything was excellent. read more

Orso - Italian Near Me - Anchorage, Alaska

Yum and very laid back atmosphere. A nice place to meet up with friends over some good food and beer. More of a sit-down place than a brewery, though their beer come from next door. Fresh seafood. Other friends tried the lamb here and loved it too. I had the halibut grilled simple. Price is average around here 20-30 for seafood. I can't afford it everyday, but it's a nice place once a while. read more

Amazing food and service.. Our waiter explained all the specialties and customer favorites. Food as well as service was quick. Restaurant had a very good decor and collection. read more

Orso - Orso Chowder and Flash Seared Crab Cakes - Italian Near Me - Anchorage, Alaska

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Orso was so so. My friends and I came here for happy hour after a long day. I made reservations, but when we arrived you could pretty much see there was no need to make one. We ended up eating in the bar area to take advantage of the happy hour deals. I got a raspberry margarita and beef tenderloin tips marsala. The drink was alright. Not enough of the raspberry flavor in my opinion. My dish was an appetizer since those were half off during happy hour. My dish was swirling in sauce on some polenta. Some parts of it seemed cold. I will say that it tasted decent. The best part of the dish was the fried leeks that give it a nice crunch. I also ended up trying my friend's crab cake dish. It was 2 small little patties that were served. I bit into it and tasted more celery than crab. She felt like she got jipped on her meal so she sent it back and got the lamb sliders. Thankfully, she enjoyed that meal with no problems. Throughout our time here, the fire alarm kept going off. The place is next door to Glacier Brewhouse which was having some issue with it's fireplace. Needless to say, we were annoyed with dealing the alarm not once, but twice. A disappointment with so many people saying this place is one of the best in Alaska. read more

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3 stars for the wait. Other than that it was great. So we had 6 people got here at 7 PM and we finall got seated at 830 then started eating at 9pm. The beer is glacier brewhouse. I despise Calamri and they have converted me. It was great. I had the Prochettea and flat bread WOW !! The food was excellent the stafff was accomodating and knowledgable they went above and beyond to help my friend. I totally reccomend this place if you have time to wait. read more

Sister restaurant with glacier brewhouse, share the same open space and kitchen, glacier on the right and orso on the left side. read more

Orso - Italian Near Me - Anchorage, Alaska

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My friend highly recommended this place, so we gave it a try. We finished the 2011 Mayor's Marathon and needed a place to celebrate our individual victories. The atmosphere was great. The server that night was cute. Wanted to ask her out, but she was working. Oh well. The service was great and the ambiance was nice. My friend ordered the salmon chowder. He said it was phenomenal. I ordered the ribeye, which was served with feta cheese. That was very new to me, but the mixture was amazing!! Never had this before and it was awesome! Also had to have the side order of Alaskan king crab legs to see if it was worth the hype. It wasn't. Disappointed on that front. I ordered a dark beer: the oatmeal something. Tasty. Took the comment card back to the hotel and filled it out. The next morning, I went back to the restaurant and dropped it off. Overall, it was great. Just the crab legs was meh. read more

We had dinner tonight to see how it was and try to have a fancy evening out. There were quite a few tables open when we arrived about 10 minutes before our reservation, but the bar area was quite literally standing room only, which I find unacceptable as it is very confining and could cause a serious hazard if an emergency arises. After waiting for the exact minute for our reservation, we were seated at an extremely tiny table, something that had enough room for maybe kids at best. My wife and I kept kicking each other and barely had room for our plates. The menu selection was practically salmon or steak. My wife had to settle for halibut since the other options were only salmon related. We were also told for a party of two the appetizer tower would be a large meal and if we had ordered it, would not need an entree and for $27 or so, we opted out. The meals were fairly well proportioned. The drinks were very pricey, $10 for a mojito is fairly steep. read more

hmmmmm. If you purchase a large enough gift card to give away as a gift, which I did this past christmas. Orso's will give you a $20 gift certificate to use yourself ( sneaky way of purchasing yourself a gift, hee hee) I wanted to take the spouse out for a treat today and went for the gift certificate...noticed "expires april 1". ( april fools day) I called to confirm, yep. It expired. Incentive gone. Geez. You'd think I'd have a year to go at my convenience, not their short four months. I'm actually kind of pissed off right now, feeling kinda cheated..... ( obviously I'm not going to take the wife out for dinner there tonight, the sour taste in my mouth is going to last a while)( nothing, would taste good) APRIL FOOLS! (you win orso's.... I'm the fool) ----------------------------- Update : The spouse and i came in for the first time I a .... year? Lamb shank on a bed of polenta 5 Stars Not over spiced, I got to enjoy the pork and polenta . Most chefs spice too much. Not this chef not today. Spouse had stuffed rockfish. She was ok with it. She's had better, but most importantly. She'd order it again. 3 Stars due to still getting over the gift card April fools joke . read more