I was looking for an early dinner in Moorhead and, as I’m slowly ticking off my list of must-try places, I immediately thought of John Alexander’s in Moorhead. When you’re coming to Moorhead from Fargo on Main, it’s pretty much the first thing you see on the south side of the road, so it was one of the first restaurants I told myself I had to try.
When my dinner mate and I walked through the front doors of the restaurant, it was quite dark, with the entire left part of the place nearly unlit. This was fixed a short time later, though.
Being that it was just after 5 p.m., the restaurant was just gearing up and the bartender ended up seating us.
The place is pretty small but cozy, with exposed brick on one side and banquette seating on the other. The bar looked fully-stocked and the bartender was churning out some impressive cocktails.
Our waitress was professional, helpful and attentive.
I ordered the fish and chips and my dinner partner had the quiche, which was on special that day. 
Looking over the menu, I was surprised by some of the prices. Some entrees reached the $40+ range, quite pricey for Moorhead, MN. I would have to order it to know if it’s worth the price tag, but that’s a bit too rich for me. I’ll save it for an extra-special occasion.
The entrees came in about 25 minutes and the portions were on the smaller side.
My fish had a very savory and crunchy beer batter on it, but the fish’s texture seemed a bit off and it slid right away from the batter, possibly from being frozen. The fries, though, were beyond spot-on. They’re individually battered and then fried, resulting in the crunchiest portion I’ve ever had. They were particularly non-greasy, too.
I had a bite of the quiche and thought it was fine, but nothing amazing.
While we were enjoying the entrees, none other than NDSU President Dean Bresciani walked in and had dinner. That’s got to be a good sign, right?
Overall, I think John Alexander’s is a great restaurant to have, especially in Moorhead where finer dining is in short supply. I’d really like to get back and try some of their more expensive dishes. And I’d list them here, but there is no website, menu or hours information on their Facebook page, but I’ll let you know about them when I try the place again.
315 Main Street / Moorhead / (218) 287-5802
FMfare 