Lighthouse Restaurant - Haines, Alaska

Front St - Near the Marina

(907) 766-2442

I had a few days to wait before catching the Alaska Marine Highway ferry to Bellingham, Washington. Right next to the RV park where I was staying is the Harbor Bar and Lighthouse Restaurant. It is close enough that even with the frigid wind coming down the Lynn Canal off the glaciers and ice fields it wasn’t a bad walk. And, since I had been doing the frugal cooking bit in the RV for several days, it was time for a change of pace, for a bit of more extravagant food. Haines is a small, isolated town and although change takes place it happens at a more relaxed pace than in the hustle and bustle of the big city. Come to find out that the Harbor Bar and Lighthouse Restaurant has a bit of history associated with it. It is reported that the bar is located directly over the very first US Southeast Alaska survey marker, marker number 1, dating from 1890. The bar dating back to 1890 was originally located in Skagway, Alaska and was moved to Haines, a distance of 15 sea miles, in the early 1900s. Several businesses occupied the building over the years. In the early 1960s Charlie Barnett and Jack Martin opened the Harbor Bar. Charlie had an untimely death on the premises and his ghost has been reported many times over the years by the bar’s employees. Jack Martin’s wife, Ramona, opened the Lighthouse Restaurant back in 1976. It continues handily to this day. It is the end of the season. The cruise ships won’t be back until next year and the town is winding down for a long winter’s nap. I was late for a lunch and early for a dinner so it was no surprise that I was the only customer. I had my choice of seating, a booth that let me look out over the Haines small boat harbor.

First off we need to talk about food prices in Alaska, especially restaurant prices. The farther away you are from the supply hub, usually Anchorage, and closer to the end of the road you are, the higher the menu prices will be. That’s the awful truth; a fact of life we have to live with here in Alaska. I was in Haines and Haines is at the very end of the road. So when I opened the Lighthouse Restaurant menu I held my breath. It is an interesting menu unlike most I have seen elsewhere in Alaska. True, it features entrees with hefty prices such as seared halibut and stir-fry vegetables for $26.99 or the Captain’s Platter, a choice of seafood either deep fried or sautéed with a baked potato and steamed vegetables for $34.99. On the other hand it also features more reasonably priced items in the Local Favorites section such as a six-piece chicken strip dinner with French fries for $8.99. There are several children’s selections for $5.99. The page that most caught my eye was the Hamburger and Sandwich page.I ordered the Portage Cove Burger (A 1/3 of a pound beef with sautéed mushrooms and covered with melted Swiss cheese, served on a toasted sesame seed bun with lettuce, tomato, mayo and pickles. $9.49) To the order I added a side of French fries, $2.00, and a Coca Cola®, $2.00. My server, Erica, was courteous and patient abiding my questions. She apparently had visited here once before and became enchanted with Haines and has since moved here. She is girding for her first winter in Southeast Alaska. The soft drink was the first to arrive. It was a can of soda. I have no problem with that – it wasn’t a watered down fountain drink. It came with a brew pub glass and some ice. The glass was just the right size to hold the soda. Not long after came the burger. It was nicely arranged open-faced on a platter with a generous portion of French fries. The fries were piping hot out of the fryer but well drained and not at all greasy, crispy outside and tender inside. They were all good fries, not a lot of ends and pieces; an ideal batch of French fries. The lettuce leaf was fresh and crispy. The tomato was ripe and firm and it was a nice thick slice. The burger patty was cooked through but still juicy, not at all dried out. Although it doesn’t show well in the picture,