there’s a week every october when anchorage feels completely alive, and it’s AFN week. the alaska federation of natives convention brings people in from villages and hub towns all over the state, and downtown fills up with hugs in hotel lobbies, cousins running into cousins, beautiful beadwork, qaspeqs, and the kind of dressed-up energy that makes you want to put on the good earrings too.
i love it so much. the days are getting short, the light goes soft and gold by late afternoon, and the whole city feels like it’s gathering. so of course i wanted to be part of a gathering of my own.
a sivuqaq gathering at ORSO
on thursday, october 22, i went to ORSO on west 5th, right across from the performing arts center, for a social gathering built around a special menu called Sivuqaq / St. Lawrence Island. it wasn’t a quiet dinner for two. it was a full, happy room: people dressed up, catching up across tables, swapping stories about who flew in from where, and passing plates around. honestly that’s the kind of detail that makes AFN week feel like AFN week.
here’s what was on the menu, because i know you’re going to ask:
appetizers
- appetizer flight: calamari misto, marsala glazed tenderloin tips, and crispy ravioli
- tomato & prosciutto flatbread
the flatbread and those crispy ravioli hit the table first, and that’s the photo above. golden, cheesy, and shared so fast i barely got my picture before everything disappeared.
salad or soup (pick one)
- fig & walnut: spinach arugula blend, roasted apple, blonde fig, quinoa, spicy walnut, chèvre, pear balsamic
- ORSO chowder: house smoked alder salmon, seafood cream broth, ocean clams, bacon
this is one of the hardest choices on the whole menu. if it’s cold and dark outside, a smoked salmon chowder is hard to beat. the fig salad is the pretty one, though, and it tastes like fall.
entrées (pick one)
- ribeye: 14 oz. center cut, grilled, with a rosemary balsamic marinade and gorgonzola butter
- alaska seafood spiedini: salmon, halibut, scallops, and shrimp
- filet & stuffed shrimp: 7 oz. filet with oven roasted shrimp and ocean crab stuffing
dessert
- dessert platters: the chef’s assorted selection, made for sharing and lingering
why i love gathering this time of year
people sometimes think alaska life is all boots and fleece. some of it is, and i love that part too. but there’s something special about the in-between season, when the snow is coming and the town is full. you put on something nice, walk downtown in the cold, and step into a warm room full of laughter, beadwork, and good food. that’s soft living to me: showing up, slowing down, and letting a regular thursday become a memory with your people.
if you’re in town for AFN, or just visiting anchorage this fall, my advice is to dress up a little, say yes to the invitations, and stay for dessert. the conversations around a shared table are the best part of the night.
to everyone who traveled in this week: welcome home, and i hope your week was full of good food and good people. 🤍
for more anchorage gatherings, alaska light, and layover finds, come find me on instagram @raquel.batman.
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