Alaska Coffee Roasting Company — Restaurant in Alaska

Edit to Add: I’m leaving my original review so I can attest to how wonderfully they handle issues and abnormalities in their customer service and food. Management’s very attentive and prompt attention to this was wonderful. I felt the amazing customer service I am used to at ACRC and appreciate their willingness to accept the error and make it right. With a new pastry and latte, I can confirm they still have their spark and highly recommend them.

I used to love ACRC, but my last two experiences are what have resulted in me writing a negative review. The “service” I have received the last two times has been subpar at best. Today, I ordered a latte and a slice of cheesecake for almost $12, not including the tip. The barista greeted me with and attitude and disdain towards customers. The iPad said “ask barista about using your points if you have more than 25” or something to that effect. To which I asked and was told with a sense of disgust “no you can’t use them, only for coffee or tea”. Then she gave me my cheesecake and went off to make my coffee. While I was waiting, I went to take a bit of my cheesecake and it was soggy and seemingly had no crust. When I looked under it, my cheesecake was marinating in an unknown liquid with the crust almost completely disassembled. I guess it’s on me for trusting them, as they used to have some of the best desserts in town, and not examining it more closely before taking a bite. When I approached the other barista to discuss the cheesecake she was pleasant, but quickly over spoken by the barista who seemed out off by customers. She said “well, it’s just the butter since the crust is separating”. To which I replied hesitantly, “ohh, okay…” and was cutoff before I could ask if I could get something else. She did offer to “look for a different slice” but promptly retracted the offer when she learned I had taken a bite from it before realizing it was runny. She essentially told me “too bad” and dismissed me from her presence. After being dismissed, I told her my major concern was that it was out of date and getting food poisoning . She responded, “no it isn’t.” And walked away. I’m not a professional baker, but in my experience working in a baker and customer experience, typically once the product has started to show age; it’s no longer worth full price ($7 in this case). I only wanted a nice treat on my rainy day off and instead was given poor attitude and food that had a weird texture and taste that I ended up throwing away. ACRC is definitely not what it once was, and...

Great food, great coffee but.....well there's no other way to say it. Its not a great place for POC. My SO used to have weekly meetings there with her Prof about their research. And she started noticing that everyone would stare at them(her). He prof also noticed it. I told her, forget about the customers as long as the staff are ok, they deserve our custom. But then we realized that the staff was quite abrasive to us as well and one time a cashier was quite rude to me, treating me like I was stupid and didn't understand English. I couldn't put my finger on it, you know when your brain is just trying to figure out "Did that just happen?". But the staff in front of the oven noticed it too and made small pleasantries to placate me, I guess. After that we stopped going there and my SO and her prof started going to College coffee house. Later on we found that other POC including A Natives have had worse experience. The only ones that didn't say anything were the Asian groups that met there over the weekend.

As I said the place was nice in terms of food and coffee. I miss their moose meat pockets and oven pizzas but I can't give my business to a place that so openly makes POC feel unwelcomed. But then again this is one family's experience and it is Anecdotal so do take it as such. If you are a POC and have had a good experience, more power to you. But if your experience has not be good/similar to mine and so many others, well you can make...

Alaska Coffee Roasting Company has been a Fairbanks staple since I can remember. Their on-site wood-fired pizzas, baked goods, premade items, and hot case foods are delicious and, with such a large variety, they accommodate many different tastes and dietary needs. The coffee is some of the best in the state and the beans they source are extraordinary. The coffee here is an incredible quality and the effort put into sourcing ethically harvested and thoughtfully curated beans sets them apart. Coffee is roasted on-site. They sell bags of whole and ground beans, grind beans upon request, and rotate through their variety so locals or repeat customers can try different roasts and regional flavors over time.

They are fairly consistent with coffee quality and shot pulls, but syrup portioning, cappuccino dryness, and teas can be more inconsistent. The prices have always felt a little outrageous for a café, but for fresh, house made dishes, unique rotating flavor combinations in baked goods, and a variety of homemade coffee syrups, amongst other qualities that only they seem to nail, it is justifiable. Drinks overall have comparable prices to other...