Pagoda - The Best Restaurant in North Pole and maybe all of Alaska

The Pagoda Restaurant is the "must eat at" place to go when in North Pole.  It has been featured on the Food Network's Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, and it is a perennial winner of the local "People's Choice" awards for the best Asian food in the Fairbanks area.

The building started out as an Arby's back in the 80's.  In the late 80's the Arby's went out of business and the Pagoda was born.  Since then it has always been a the first place I want to go to when I go home.

My wife and I went to visit my family over the holidays.  When I called my mom to let her know when we were going to arrive, she immediately offered to take us directly to Pagoda.  If she had not offered, I would have asked anyway.  We literally drove straight from the Fairbanks International Airport to Pagoda in North Pole.

My parents go to Pagoda regularly, and the waitstaff knows their orders when they walk in the door.  My father likes his Mongolian Beef with a little extra kick, and my mother has the Mongolian Chicken.  I ordered the Beef with Fresh Broccoli and my wife had Ginger Chicken.

I ordered my Beef and Broccoli spicy, and then started in on the Hot and Sour soup.  It really hit the spot, and it definitely has a kick.  I love this soup.  The meal comes with your choice of soup (hot and sour, egg drop, or won ton), pork fried rice, and an egg roll.

I can tell you that the egg rolls are very good and so is the rice, but the portion of Beef and Broccoli is so large, and delicious, that I did not have any room for the sides.  The savory sauce and extra spice balanced perfectly and the broccoli and carrots had the perfect tenderness.  I highly recommend this dish, but I like everything on the menu.

I think you would be hard pressed to find something on this menu that you will not like.  I can't wait to visit my family again, just so that I can go to Pagoda for dinner or lunch!


Pagoda Restaurant:

Address - 431 Santa Claus Lane, North Pole, AK 99705

Phone - 907.488.3338

Website - pagodanorthpole.com

Reservations - None. First come, first serve.

Overall Recommendation - Go!  Right now!  This is good stuff.  The waitstaff is super friendly.  The portions are generous.  The food is great.