Food & Drink

Tricked out: Adult treats for Halloween

Aisles of confectionery beckoned with their brightly colored labels, sheer heft (a pillow-sized bag of mini Snickers!) and that nostalgic, Willy Wonka-esque scent of sugar-driven mania. Then I looked at the prices and dropped the bag I was holding, almost injuring myself in the process. When did candy become as expensive as coffee? It's like they're trying to discourage a person from eating 15 pounds of assorted nougat.

I plan on spending Halloween indulging in the following festivities and tasty treats, a far better use of my money than a self-inflicted bellyache. My inner child and my discerning adult mind will both be pleased.

Pumpkin buttered rum (Spenard Roadhouse)

The bodacious Roadhouse bartenders have come up with another seasonally delicious libation: a classic buttered rum base pureed with real pumpkin and pumpkin spices, mixed with rum and topped with house-made vanilla whip and sprinkles of nutmeg. "Rich, warm, spicy and creamy. A liquid piece of alcoholic pie," says bartender/manager Brandy Thompson.

"Rocky Horror Freak Show" cocktails (Mad Myrna’s)

This show blows audiences away every year. It's a spectacular, over-the-top, energy-driven experience that leaves one very thirsty. Luckily, bartender RJ Johnson and the rest of the formidable staff at Mad Myrna's have created a character-based drink menu to help you taste the rainbow. Try the Magenta Martini, a vodka old-fashioned, or the Frank N. Furter, a crisp concoction of clementine vodka and cranberry juice rimmed with edible black sugar.

Lunch at Lucy’s (University of Alaska Anchorage)

This sounds like a trick, you say. Go to a cafeteria on a college campus to celebrate Halloween? I know it sounds suspicious, but the dining room at Lucy's is a different world from the dining hall right next door. Classical music plays, culinary students glide around in professional waiters' uniforms pouring coffee and serving amuse-bouches and the new menu that just rolled out is chock-full of fall touches and flavors.

I had the savory Chinese pumpkin steam bun, which is soft dough rolled around Chinese sausage and aromatics and served with an incendiary chili dipping sauce. The salad course helped clear my palate with the licorice bite of fennel and the sweetness of pear, mixed with dried currants and an anise-orange vinaigrette. My entree was an order of crepes stuffed with pancetta lardons, mushrooms and duck confit in a black truffle cream sauce. Dessert was a delightful pumpkin semifreddo tiramisu.

It sounds fancy and it is, but the price is definitely a treat; my entire meal was a little over $30. Student chefs-in-training are running the line, cooking the food and preparing for culinary stardom after college. Lucky diners eat the benefits.

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Modern Dwellers Chocolate Lounge

I now get excited about salted caramel in a way that I used to reserve for all-you-can-eat buffets. It's the only sweet that lures me in with its siren song of complexity. Modern Dwellers showcases salted caramel chocolate bars along with more unusual combinations, like organic nibs and porcini and smoked salmon. The chocolates are locally made: truffles, bars, caramels and "bonbombs," along with drinking chocolate. These indulgences are stratospheres above kiddie Kit Kats.

Sub Zero’s Harry Potter Ball (Saturday, Nov. 1)

Sure, I can eat fancy chocolates and slurp down fall-inspired drinks and thoroughly enjoy every adult second, but I'm still juvenile enough to enjoy a good dress-up party. Sub Zero Bistro & Microlounge is extending the Halloween shenanigans to Saturday with a Potter-themed party. Its website promises shots of "expecto patronum" — which I hope is tequila — and plenty of witching the night away. Your costume isn't Potter-themed? Wear it anyway and get enter the costume contest to win cash prizes.

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