Chowder House — Restaurant in Fairbanks

Bottom line: I don't want to go anywhere ever again, life is too weird now. Service: -50/10, ambience: -3/10, food: 2/10.

If you are the owner of this establishment: remove the table on the right. Put the menu above the counter and have people order there since you don't provide service anyway. Add some nautical decor. Fix the acoustics in there; it's insane, it sounds like an echo chamber. Add outdoor seating. Put some salt and herbs AND SEAFOOD in your chowder. Don't put a tip line on your receipts if you don't want to hire servers that can do what's in the job title.

I love seafood and I was excited to have some seafood alfredo because someone said it was good, but I soon found out they only serve it at dinner. I am a foodie and I love to cook and eat, but even if you don't have very high standards, I don't see how you could rate this more than one star for the overall experience.

Well we came in the door and were standing right next to a table, invading their personal space. We went to the counter and didn't see a menu above it so we got closer and they asked if we were picking up or dining in and we said dining in so they told us "anything on that side". We sat down and our server came and asked us what we wanted to drink and that was almost the last time we saw her.

They gave us real menus and paper menus that you're supposed to mark your choices on. And I'm thinking...if she has to come pick these up from us anyway, why doesn't she just bring a notebook and write down what we want? So we ordered the halibut and corn chowder and the garlic butter shrimp.

The chowder, as many people have said, was lukewarm, unseasoned, and there was hardly any halibut in it. Being in Alaska where halibut is plentiful, I was expecting hunks of halibut. No. Going to a place with chowder in the name, I was expecting good chowder. No. Garlic butter shrimp was fine, but it was a TON of garlic butter and they only gave us three slices of bread, so it wasn't much of an actual meal, it was kind of a waste of butter. They didn't give us hardly any napkins, but should have because you kind of have to touch the buttery shrimp to get the tail off. No one EVER came to check on us. No one ever asked us if we needed anything. And they didn't for the other patrons either.

Then the busser came to take our plates and I asked if we pay up front or pay the server, since we hadn't spoken to anyone the whole time. She said "I can charge you up front," which doesn't tell me what the actual procedure is. Then the owner or manager charges me and has me sign the receipt. I NEVER tip less that 20%. I left $0, and I made it obvious. Our server never spoke to us again and the busser didn't even know how we're supposed to pay. Who am I tipping and what for? Did the owner/manager ask me how they could have made my experience better when she saw me put zero dollars on the tip line? Nope.

It's just sad there there is no real customer service; I am anti-social but if the experience is supposed to be silent and unhelpful, market your business that way: "Come to Chowder House where you can be...

This is a small place with a simple menu, mainly sandwiches, salads, soups, etc. The price is on the high end for the food served in terms of quality and quantity. A bowl of chowder is abou $8; sandwiches range about $9.50 to $11. The service isn't that good. We waited quite a while after sitting down before someone came to take our order. First we asked for milk shakes, and the waitress said their milk shake machine wasn't working. Then we asked for root beer floats, and the waitress said they didn't have any ice cream. Yet a few minutes later we saw other waitresses bringing both milk shakes and ice cream floats to 2 different tables next to us.

The food came quickly. Our chowders were bland and not very hot, and the sandwiches were average. It wouldn't be that bad except for the fact that about 4 hours after I ate at Chowder House I started having painful diarrhea. I ate nothing else during those 4 hours. We had a late lunch at Chowder House around 3:30pm. The only other food I ate during the day was at hotel breakfast around 8:00am. So I'm pretty sure the diarrhea was caused by something I ate during lunch at...

Always fresh, friendly, and fast. If you let the construction mess discourage you from going to The Chowder House, you’re seriously missing out! The pulled pork is the best I’ve ever had — anywhere! Excellent new dinner menu and I love every item I’ve tried. My latest indulgence is the pepperjack cheesesteak sandwich. It’s fantastic every time! I’ve tried similar at other places in town, but this one beats them all out. Quiches are flavorful and fresh; design-you-own sandwiches and salads always super fresh ingredients. There’s fancy espresso drinks and desserts too, but my favorite is the thick and super chocolatey milkshake. It’s a perfect “let’s-not-over-indulge” size, and not overly-priced like some others in town. When others jack the prices up unreasonably, they may get my business once…but that’s it. The Chowder House is keeping it reasonable, so my return business is for them. They’re making delicious fresh berry shakes now too! I will definitely be back and highly...