boatnfish

We are going to be visiting Oslo in early July 2022 for about 10 days to see a relative (attending college) and the sights. Looking for ideas on any local restaurants that people recommend. During our travels our favorites have the small local places. While we will be staying by Oslo S, we don't mind moving around for a good meal. Definitely prefer local food and place, we'll try about anything.

Thanks in advance!

mooncity

That is actually a question that is a bit hard to answer. When traveling abroad, I try eat like the locals and seek out local restaurants. The thing is that most Norwegians eat almost all their meals at home. We don't have a tradition of going to restaurants to celebrate family events. When we go to restaurants we usually want something that cannot easily be made at home: so either non-Norwegian food or fancy food. Or we go out for drinks with friends or colleagues and need some food. And takeaway or fast food are more and more popular, so there is plenty of options of hamburgers, pizza and kebab.

The family owned, small restaurant serving authentic, local, good and cheap food full off local guests that is abundant in many countries is not really common in Norway.

If you want family owned and cheap and frequented by locals: there's a lot of Indian/Punjabi/Pakistani, Vietnamese and also some Italian restaurants. For a good, cheap and fast meal, Punjab Tandoori at Grønland or Mamma Pizza in city center is recommended.
If you want good, Nordic/Norwegian influenced food: the highly rated, new Nordic restaurants is your best bet. I do like Smalhans by Sankthanshaugen park.
If you want to go where the locals go, I would recommend some of the good burger shops, like Kverneriet (a couple of places), or pizza by Lofthus Samvirkelag (several places).
A very Norwegian thing to do is combining nature and something to eat. I would suggest a boat trip to Gressholmen (public strasport) to eat at Gressholmen kro, or the subway/tram to Holmenkollen to eat at Frognerseteren restaurant, maybe combined with a walk in the woods and fabulous views.

Some final tips:
If you find somewhere you would like to eat, its usually a good idea to book in advance, even if it is just callling beforehand or booking the day before.
Breakfast is a big deal in Norway, especially hotel breakfast. So if you stay in a hotel, be prepared to make that a substantial meal, with eggs, meat, bread, vegetables, cheese, fruits and even dessert.
Whatever you do: stay away from the restaurants in Karl Johans gate and around/at Oslo S. Østbanehallen have some OK options though, though expensive.

SanDiego1K

Welcome to FlyerTalk, mooncity. Thank you for taking the time to give a thoughtful answer to this question. It explains why we had such difficulty on a wonderful driving trip thru the Norwegian fjords finding anywhere interesting to eat. We were really perplexed and you have explained it for us.

mooncity

In the countryside, most of the places cater to drivers or craftspeople, so the places serving interesting food is even further apart. Still, most areas have some good places, it is just hard to find them. Along the coast, fresh fish could be delicious. And more and more hotels or cabins catering to mountain turists or trekkers are serving local, high quality food.

One good, "fast-food" options outside the cities, is Thai food trucks. Many Thai women have married Norwegian men in the countryside, and quite a few of them have created their own work by selling Thai food. Much better than fatdripping, prefrozen fried food.

jkirk

I'm a big fan of Brutus, a wine-focussed (yet still casual) restaurant in Oslo. Top notch food, warm and friendly service. We actually ended up going back for a second dinner there during our most recent visit to Oslo. You can read more about Brutus, and a few other options, here: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/29/t...s-reviews.html

boatnfish

Thank you Mooncity and Jkirk.

We do plan on getting a car to travel about 2.5 hours north to see some family history. I'll be on the lookout for Thai.

Hikes are in the plans and that always leads to food.

I didn't realize breakfast was so big. Our hotel provides breakfast so it will be interesting. Reviews a while back were mixed due to staffing issues.

Again, thank you for the information.

l etoile

I highly recommend Anders’ blog. He covers all ranges of food and does a good job. I have a Danish restaurant page I rely on him for, but he covers the rest of Scandinavia well too. You’re sure to find some good suggestions here; (And yes, ramen is really a thing in Scandinavia now.)

https://thelocaltongue.com/a-food-wr...o-anders-husa/

GUWonder

That’s a very good one, and the page covering Stockholm hit some of my recommended ones too. Thanks for sharing it.

Ramen is indeed very popular nowadays in Scandinavia. Even school kids in Sweden are asking parents for access to electronic means to pay for ramen at schools since the cafeterias often don’t take cash or even bank cards (and the included food is “too institutional”).

boatnfish

Thank you. We will check out the link.

Thai food sounds great.

dodgeflyer

If you want local food, for international visits that would be fish/seafood.

As such, would recommend Sjomagasinet (their lunch deal is actually good), Solsiden, Lofoten. If you want something a bit more unique, go for Lille Herbern (at Bygdøy). Latter doesn’t take reservations.

Berserk by Bokbacka does local food, but it is set menus.

You could try our out Frognerseteren (finstua) and combine it with a walk in the nearby woods.

I’ll say Thai food in Norway is pretty average, not bad - so wouldn’t seek it out. If you do, Plah gets decent reviews. Often restaurant which focus on Asian food does a mix of Japanese, Thai and Chinese so it is a one shoe fits all model - quality is thereafter.

mooncity

I would'nt seek out the thai, but some place that's the most decent option

That might not be true in Norway. Some of my very best meals have been in mountain logdes, but I have also gotten meals just from canned and dried food. And many places have short opening hours. Do your research beforehand - most places have opening hours postet on google maps.

There is much less organized outdoor lift in Norway than other countries I have visited. Some trails are marked, and some paths are improved - mainly to protect nature and wildlife. But it is expected that each person can look after them selves. So dangerous places might not have a guard rail. It is expected that people bring enough clothes and equipment to manage even in a emergency. And that people bring enough food / snacks for the trip and emergencies. There is even these selv-service huts where you can by canned goods and semi-prepared goods, but the preparation and the washing up you need to do yourself.

I third the recommendations from Anders blog.

2,5 hours north of Oslo can be many places. If that is in the direction of Hadeland, I would check out Lokstallen Røykenvik - I haven't been there, but plan to visit. They have local and good food. If your are going to Mjøsa/Lillehammer/Hamar/Gjøvik, you could go to Helgøya - one of the places that have been doing local, slow food for many years. One option there is Skafferiet Hovinsholm.

boatnfish

Thank you so much! Just over a week until we leave.