Food and local drink always plays a role in planning for our trips. It is rare that we travel to a new place where Gina and I haven’t located a local winery and I keep a list on my phone of foods or meals that are distinct and popular to the area.

Alaska was no exception and enjoying fresh seafood from the state that provides the U.S with 50% of it’s ocean grown goodies was high on the must-do list.

We wasted no time tracking down some locally smoked salmon in Talkeetna and enjoyed it slathered on bagels during our few days in Seward.

Arriving in Seward in the late afternoon left no doubt that we would be dining out, and dining out in a seaside town meant we would be tracking down fresh seafood.

Arriving late in Seward also meant many of the restaurants that were open on a Tuesday night were packed. Our first stop, Ray’s, in the harbor was booked for the night but the hostess was kind enough to suggest the Mermaid Grotto Cafe, a cafe/restaurant/funky coastal gift shop wrapped in a great two-story space.

The menu was a departure from traditional preparations of seafood found at touristy joints and we got our first taste of our vacation of rockfish (tacos), Alaskan King Crab, and halibut (sandwich and lightly breaded and baked in a sauce), a tender, just so slightly sweet white fish we had read about during our trip planning but had never tried. We were hooked! (Pun intended).

Our second night in Seward, I stood in line for 30-minutes to secure a reservation for Gina and I at the bar of the hit restaurant, Cookery. We were surprised with a table thanks to a canceled reservation and went right for the night’s special, Halibut! Prepared with rice and a spicy asian sauce. Each bite melting in our mouths.

Mia and Barry took the kids to dinner where they sought out ice cream with the same intensity as our hunt for the great white fish.

At our third stop, Homer, we opted to purchase fresh fish and cook it at the house we were renting. This plan partially prompted by our burnout on $100 lunches and $200 dinners.

It was our luck that a seafood market on the Spit sold fresh catch on Wednesdays and we secured a 2 lb filet of fresh King Salmon and, of course, Halibut! Thick, gorgeous filets.