Beet goes on: Red Beet opens shop along Palmer-Wasilla Highway

WASILLA — Red Beet is back on the menu.

It hasn’t been a speedy process; Sally Koppenberg’s sit-down restaurant was closed for eight months during the transition. But the Red Beet is back, and Koppenberg said she is excited at the transformation. Now the Bistro Red Beet & Beetniks’ Coffee, the new eatery is smaller, more intimate and touts a “comfortable old-world atmosphere.”

“We had a fabulous opening day,” Koppenberg said Saturday, after Friday’s long-awaited reopening. “Great customers, both existing Beetniks who have been waiting patiently for us to re-open and new ‘Niks, who have been watching for the open sign to come on. The bakery sold out and staff was busy. I can’t ask for more than that.”

The focus of the eatery remains on local foods and wholesome, natural fare, but now it is served up just off the Palmer-Wasilla Highway, between Skip and Shennum roads.

It’s a departure from the restaurant’s former location in downtown Palmer’s Historic district. Koppenberg called the new area a “vibrant business community.”

“When we had the opportunity to leave, we looked for something we’d really like,” she said. “This is one of the first places we looked at. The more we looked at other spaces the more we decided this was good for us.

“We’re excited about the location,” she added. “We’re much closer to our demographic right now.”

The demographic from the Palmer location showed about 20 percent of the clientele was coming from Palmer, and about 80 percent from Wasilla and Anchorage. Koppenberg said she considered moving the restaurant to Anchorage, but the Palmer native really didn’t want to be in the city.

“We have fabulous foodies in the Valley and they are thrilled with what we have to offer,” she said.

Koppenberg said they wanted room to cater in house to up to 30 people. There’s a seating area for lunches and dinners, and an in-store bakery/deli that also offers coffees, smoothies and slushies.

“Fusing Beetniks’ Coffee with the eatery was an interesting project, but has turned out well,” Koppenberg said.

It required some renovations, including building space for the large stone bakery oven from Italy. The 3,800-pound oven was originally shipped in one piece from Italy to the Beet’s former location.

The oven is part of the Bistro’s identity as a specialty restaurant that features 80 percent local foods and 80 percent organic. There’s nothing frozen or processed. Everything is done in house.

“We meet that every day; some days we exceed it,” Koppenberg said.

The new location will offer a drive-up window and outdoor dining next summer, as well as an expanded European-style bistro menu. But much of what draws fine diners to the eatery will remain the same as in its first incarnation, including the restaurant’s prix fixe menu, now offered as an early dinner alongside the seasonally changing bistro menu. It was previously offered at lunch.

“We’re going to keep our prix fixe,” Koppenberg said “That’s what we love. By featuring the prix fixe daily, we can continue to highlight all the fresh stuff that comes in the back door. ”

Starters and soups based on the seasonally changing menu give the restaurant its character. Thanks to an ever-increasing list of Alaska-grown foods, Koppenberg said the deli menu will feature many 100-percent Alaska foods — meats, cheeses, sprouts, mushrooms, wines, etc.

“It’s huge,” she said. “It’s changed so much in the last 10 years. The resource list for produce to meats to cheeses is huge right now.”

Just in time for Christmas, the restaurant is offering catered holiday trays, gift items and gift certificates. For information, call 376-1400.

Bistro Red Beet and Beetniks’ Coffee is at 5031 E. Mayflower Lane, Wasilla. It is open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, and 12:30 to 4 p.m. for Sunday roast. Bistro breakfasts are offered until 10:30 a.m. Lunch items are available from 11 a.m. until closing. Prix fixe dinners are 5 to 7 p.m. For intimate gatherings, private evening dining is available by appointment.

Bistro Red Beet will be featured on Dec. 22 in the web-based Groupon promotion site.