Eating out in Norway is a real treat…generally the food is really good and whilst you do pay a lot for the experience, there’s a lot of choice for all tastes – from Irish pub lunches and stews to traditional Norwegian fish dishes. Here’s a guide based on the places we’ve been to.
£ – Relatively inexpensive for Norway (100NOK for a main course)
££ – Quite normal for Norway (180NOK for a main course)
£££ – Expensive (300NOK for a main course)
££££ – Off the scale
Bambus Sushi – Claude Monets Alle 21, 1338 Sandvika (££) http://www.bambussushi.no/
Hot meals delicious. Apparently sushi is fantastic. Sometimes offer pre-6 o’clock early bird discount.
Bagel O Juice – All over Oslo (£) http://bagelandjuice.no/
Ideal for lunch. Tasty. Fresh. Fairly healthy – depending on what you order!
Sjøflyhavna – Martin Linges Vei 57, 1364 Fornebu (££) http://www.sjoflyhavna.no/
Lovely cafe/bistro. Super view over the water. Little pricey for food quality. Good for post walk drink.
Odonata – Forneburingen 1, 1360 Fornebu (£) http://www.odonata.no/
Nice cafe. Shame about location. Ideal for hot chocolate and cake after a long walk around Fornebu
Bølgen & Moi – Onstad Kunstsenter, Høvikodden (££) http://www.bolgenogmoi.no
Delicious food. Great wines. Limited Sunday menu. Chicken pasta is my favourite.
Glorioso – Strøket 15 1383 Asker (££) http://www.glorioso.no
Italian pasta & pizza. Tasty. Quick service. Ideal for ‘pre-cinema’ bite.
Solsiden – Akershusstranda 13, Skur 34, 0150 Oslo (£££) http://www.solsiden.no
Fantastic fish restaurant. Little pricey if you sit inside. Best in the sunshine for prawns and wine!
Grand Cafe – Karl Johans gate 31, NO-0159 Oslo (£££) http://www.grand.no
Lovely interior. Service not great. Pricey. Lutefisk…well, be sure you want it before you order it.
Grefsenkollen – Grefsenkollveien 100, Oslo (££££) http://www.grefsenkollen.no/
Incredible view. Pricey dinners. Cheaper lunches. Delicious. On it’s way toward a Michelen rating I think!
Cru – Industrigt 50/Ingelbrecht Knudssønsgt 1, 0365 Oslo (£££) http://www.cru.no/
Easy to get to. Great wine selection. Excellent food. Set menus – 3, 5 or 7 courses – lovely!
Ekeburg Restaurant – Kongsveien 15, 0193 Oslo (££) http://www.ekebergrestauranten.com/no/
Fantastic view. Food okay. Basic lunch menu. Nice for a walk/drink.
Pannekake Huset – Bærums Verk, Sandvika (££) http://www.pannekakehuset.no/
Great for kids. Buffet good value. Sweet and savoury. A must for shrove Tuesday!
Luna Lounge – Darres gate, 0174 Oslo (££)
Funky decor. Delicious food. House red tasty. Lots of parking. Reindeer steak yummy.
Feinschmecker – Balchens gate 5, 0263 Oslo (££££) www.feinschmecker.no
Fantastic food experience. Service shoddy. Decor from the 70’s. Spend your money at Statholdergården instead
Justisen Bar and Restaurant – Møllergaten 15, 0179, Oslo (£) http://www.justisen.no/
Old building. Relatively inexpenvise. Food pretty good. Ideal for groups.
Frognerseteren Restaurant – Holmenkollveien 200, Oslo (£££) http://www.frognerseteren.no/
Amazing view of Oslo. Top notch food. Cosy atmosphere. Great after a walk in area. Must book.
Yayas Thai Beach Restaurant – Industrigata 36, Oslo (££) http://www.yayas.no/
Fun & querky. Delicious food. Indoor thunderstorm each hour. Good value. Try to book.
Delicatessen Cafe – Søndregate 8, 0550 Grunerløkka (££) http://www.delicatessen.no/
Tasty tapas. Lovely atmosphere. Garlic dip delicious. V. popular – may have to wait!
Curry & Ketchup – Kirkevn. 51, Majorstuen, Oslo (£)
Nicest curry so far. Quick service. Tasty menu. Good Garlic Na’an. Cash only!
Egon – Universitetsgata, 0162 Oslo (££) http://www.egon.no/
Chain restaurant. Covers all kinds of food. English menus. Really tasty.
Smia Galleria – Opplandsgata 19 0657 Oslo (££) http://www.smiagalleri.no/
Delicious gourmet food. Set menu good value. Bit outside of Oslo
Dinner – Stortingsgaten 22 , 0161 Oslo (£££) http://www.dinner.no/
Chinese cuisine. Lots of business diners. Very tasty. Great set menu. Need to book.
Peppes Pizza – Stortingsgata 4, Oslo (££) https://www.peppes.no/pp08/app/
Chain restaurant. Quick. Tasty. Themed inside – nice a cosy.
Havsmak – Henrik Ibsens Gate 4, 0255 Oslo (£££) http://www.havsmak.no/
Fish speciality. Formal. Near National Theatre. Not cheap.
A New Life In Norway 
Sarah, you’ve forgotten to mention Grefsenkollen (and lots of other great places…) and your dinner there! :-)
By: Cathrine on November 19, 2010
at 12:44 PM
You’re absolutely right…I have just updated it. Have a great weekend!
By: Sarah on November 19, 2010
at 8:34 PM
Next time in Oslo, you may want to try out Olympen!
http://www.olympen.no/
About 300 nok for a three course dinner, and the food is quite good. But I like the interior of the place a lot more. They redone the place i 2007, but it still looks old, in a good way :p
By: Stein on August 21, 2011
at 2:02 AM
Thanks for the tip Stein – I looked it up on the web and it looks very nice! Certainly add that to the list
By: Sarah on August 22, 2011
at 10:14 PM
A little comment on pizza: If you order pepperoni, you might very well end up with salami…. even if it says pepperoni on the menu. ;) Speaking from personal experience here.
By: Terese @ www.thecountrybasket.com on March 28, 2013
at 4:09 PM
Ha ha – yes, well observed. I’ve noticed the same.
By: Sarah on April 28, 2013
at 8:52 PM
I’ll be traveling to norway in august and hope to visit bergen and oslo. Are there any types of bars, cafes or good places to go out and meet people for a recent college grad?
By: chelsea h on May 20, 2013
at 8:56 AM
Hi Chelsea – great that you’re coming to Norway and that you’re visiting Bergen. Take a raincoat. Even though it’s August Bergen is well known for its rainy summer days. I don’t know the places where you can buy a reasonably cheap price or where the college grads hang out but I shall ask my Facebook buddies. One friend in particular was a student in Bergen so will be able to provide a good list!
By: Sarah on June 26, 2013
at 9:00 PM
Hi Chelsea – well, my wonderful friend Marianne has been quick to reply. Here’s what she suggests for Bergen…
Kvarteret http://www.kvarteret.no – Lots of students go there and have a drink or coffee.
Other places are Garage, Hulen(mostly for beer and concerts), Hektors Hybel, Pingvinen http://www.pingvinen.no/, Cafe Opera
By: Sarah on June 26, 2013
at 9:16 PM
Thanks so much to you and Marianne! I can’t wait to try them out! Any pointers for what else to pack for that time of year? I’ll be staying until October.
By: chelsea on June 26, 2013
at 10:11 PM