Visit Anchorage: 49th State Brewing

49th State Brewing is one of the busiest restaurants in Anchorage.  With multiple floors and outdoor seating, the huge space was always packed with a line whenever we passed by.

The restaurant was also where I had my favorite meal while in Alaska.  

King Crabby Grilled Cheese

The King Crabby Grilled Cheese with a seafood chowder was the highlight.  The sandwich consisted of a crab meat blend, Appenzeller Swiss, and cream cheese.  The chowder was amazing, as well as the accompanying Brewpub fries.   It was comfort food at its finest. 

Award Winning Smoked Wings

World Famous Yak Burger

Crab Artichoke Dip

Baked Mac-N-Cheese

Highly recommend adding steak and bacon to the Baked Mac-N-Cheese (extra charge) for a hearty meal.

Mexican Street Corn

We loved everything, and the service was excellent too. 


49th State Brewing
717 W 3rd Ave

Anchorage, AK 99501

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Okayama Kobo Bakery & Cafe

 I had some time to kill and decided to finally stop by Okayama Kobo Bakery & Cafe in Ward Village. I’ve driven past this place so many times, and there always seems to be a line out the door. Today was no exception.  Thankfully, the line actually moved at a pretty good pace. But let me tell you…the smell while you're waiting is torture!  With all those freshly baked breads and pastries coming out, it definitely makes it hard to decide what to get.

We ended up picking up a small variety to try:

Cinnamon Roll

Salt & Butter Roll

Chocolate Croissant

Kobo Kuma (Bear-Shaped Custard Bun)

Everything we tried was delicious, and the bread is so pillowy soft! 

The bear-shaped bread was especially cute, with a sweet custard filling inside.

It's definitely on the pricier side for bakery items, but the quality and taste are there. Sometimes you just have to treat yourself!

I'm glad I finally stopped in after driving past it so many times. Now I understand why there's always a line—and I'll definitely be back for more!

OKAYAMA KOBO BAKERY & CAFE

310 KAMAKE'E STREET

HONOLULU, HI

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Nori Bar - Ward Village

I met up with some friends at Nori Bar at Ward Village.  Even though I don't eat a lot of raw fish, I was fine meeting up with them there since I knew there were non-raw fish items on the menu.  

I ended up getting the Tonkotsu Ramen. It was so delicious — one of the best ramens I've had in a while! My friend ended up getting one too even though she was nearly full from eating a few hand rolls.

Tonkotsu Ramen

Maguro Avocado Roll

Blue Crab - Truffle Kanimiso

A5 Miyazaki Wagyu

It's a small eatery with just a few counter seats, and there really is no service staff - at least there wasn't when we were there, because no one ever refilled our waters.  

The food was good though (one of my friends said the nori was excellent), and I was pleasantly surprised by just how delicious the ramen was!

Nori Bar

1000 Auahi St

Honolulu, HI 96814



 

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Hi Pie Bakery & Cafe

The last time I went to Hi Pie Bakery & Cafe, they were still in Waialua.  I finally got to visit their Haleiwa spot, and I picked up some cookies and a cheesecake!

"The Best" Chocolate Chip Cookie

The cookies were chewy on the inside, with a sight crisp on the outside - just the way I like them!

OREO Cheesecake

The OREO Cheesecake was luscious and rich.  It was very good.

I look forward to visiting again!

Hi Pie Bakery & Cafe

66-526 Kamehameha Hwy

Haleiwa, HI 96712

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Noe at Four Seasons Ko Olina

Our Mommy Lunch Bunch got together to celebrate our MLB member and Hawaii Mom Blog Lifestyle Correspondent Nadia’s 50th birthday. Since this was such a special milestone, we decided to take her somewhere special — Noe at Four Seasons Ko Olina.

When choosing a restaurant, I also had to keep in mind that one of our MLB ladies is gluten-free. Thankfully, Noe offers gluten-free pasta that can be substituted in their pasta dishes, which made choosing a place a lot easier!

My friend was craving the main lobster tail, but it normally comes with gnocchi. She asked if they could substitute the gnocchi with the gluten-free pasta, and they were happy to accommodate her.

The birthday girl and I both ordered the rigatoni, while our other MLB member ordered Noe’s signature tagliatelle (sorry, I didn't get a picture of this dish!). All three dishes were excellent!

While we waited for our entrees, we were served their house bread with olive oil — perfect for holding us over until our food arrived.

Of course, no birthday dinner is complete without dessert! The restaurant brought out a cute slice of cake with a candle for Nadia, but she also wanted to order her favorite dessert from Noe — the warm olive oil cake. And lucky for us, it happens to be gluten-free, so we could all enjoy it together.

Noe really is a beautiful spot for a special occasion. We saw quite a few people celebrating with leis, as well as couples who looked like they were enjoying a special date night. The setting at Four Seasons definitely makes it feel like a place to celebrate.

Parking: Valet parking only, but it’s free with restaurant validation for up to 4 hours.

 NOE AT THE FOUR SEASONS RESORT KOOLINA

92-1001 OLANI STREET

KAPOLEI, HAWAII

808-679-3347

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Visit Napa Valley: Quilt & Co. Wax Dipping Experience

My hand dipped bottle!

Napa Valley is home to approximately 475 wineries, but Quilt & Co. offers a custom wax dipping experience in downtown Napa. The $130 per person fee includes a custom wine tasting flight featuring five wines plus your selected bottle of Belle Glos or Napa Valley Quilt wine that you will dip in the wax yourself to create a one-of-a-kind keepsake to take home.
If you are looking for something different and memorable to do the next time you are in Napa, I recommend trying the wax dipping experience!

We loved our wax dipping experience!

Quilt & Co. 

813 Main Street

Napa, CA

707-777-8198

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"Old School" Sandwiches - Corned Beef & Mayo

One day someone told me about mixing corned beef straight from the can with mayo to make sandwiches, which I never heard of.

I searched online and found an entire thread of how this was an “old school” thing locally (Libby's + Best Foods).

So, we decided to try that sandwich (added some onion), along with egg, tuna, and bologna sandwiches — the kinds of sandwiches many of us ate back in the day.

I couldn't believe it, but the corned beef + mayo sandwiches turned out to be the fave of all the sandwiches.

It was a fun lunch experiment!

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