Food and drink in Oslo

The capital of fresh ingredients

From Michelin-starred restaurants and the Nordic cuisine phenomenon Maaemo to street food on the corner. Oslo offers a vast range of vibrant restaurants, cafés, and bars.

Food in Oslo is as fresh as it gets. Here, you can enjoy fish and other seafood directly at the harbour, or choose eateries where chefs grow ingredients on-site or at green urban spots like Vulkan bee garden, Bybonden, or Losæter. In the latter, Maeemo chef Esben Holmboe Bang harvest rose petals that will end up on the menu in his restaurant, which was awarded three Michelin stars in 2019.

Holmboe Bang says that “there is so much progress in Oslo now, and when you combine that with the closeness to the sea and to nature, it’s the perfect place to run a restaurant.” At Maaemo, they use only Norwegian ingredients and because lemons are not grown in Norway, ants are an exciting replacement – as they also add acid.

“Our concept is that we want the customers to get a sense of Norway”, Holmboe Bang explains. Maaemo has also been voted one of the world’s absolute best places to eat by The World’s 50 Best Restaurants Awards.

You can find more budget-friendly options for a taste of Norway, as talented chefs often run more low-key joints as well – and even hang out there themselves.

Oslo is also a city of world food with high ambitions, like the Thai based Plah, Italian Baltazar, Japanese Alex Sushi and Omakase by Alex Cabiao, the French-oriented À l’aise, and the pintxos place TXOTX.

Social eating and concepts like food stalls with shared tables are found at Mathallen, Oslo Street Food, and Vippa by the Oslofjord. There is also a growing culture of food trucks in Oslo. And why not combine eating and shopping at markets like Mat & mer, Maschmanns, Mathallen, Fiskeriet, and Fisketorget, or go for the many independent cafés and bakeries?

In the evening, you should go mingle on the funky bar scene, where you can get drinks based on local brew and from Norwegian distilleries.

And – some of the world’s most renowned coffee baristas and coffee brewers like Tim Wendelboe are based right here in Oslo!

Find more inspiration on Oslo’s official website.

visitoslo.com

Tim Wendelboe roasting coffee in Oslo, Eastern Norway

Tim Wendelboe, Oslo.
Photo: Anders Valde

Maaemo restaurant in Oslo, Eastern Norway

Maaemo in Oslo.
Photo: Bandar Abdul-Jauwad

The food truck GoGrilla in Oslo, Eastern Norway

Food truck in Oslo.
Photo: GoGrilla

Oysters at Mathallen in Oslo, Eastern Norway

Mathallen in Oslo.
Photo: Ståle Felberg / Mathallen

Two beekeepers at Vulkan in Oslo, Eastern Norway

Vulkan bigård in Oslo.
Photo: Ståle Felberg / Mathallen

People sitting in front of a wall with street art at Vippa food court in Oslo, Norway

Vippa in Oslo.
Photo: VisitOSLO

Oslo for seafood lovers

Shortly after the catch, the fish and other seafood are served right on your plate. Enjoy everything from a new take on fish and chips to sushi meals that are awarded the best in the world.

Michelin-starred restaurants in Oslo

In addition to one-star restaurants Galt, Statholdergaarden, and Kontrast, all offering unforgettable tastes based on Norwegian ingredients, newcomer Omakase Oslo offers Japanese Edomae Sushi.

Oslo for carnivores

Just follow the scent from the open fire grill, and you will stumble into one of Oslo’s many eateries that have made meat their specialty and pride.

Meals with great views

Of course, you can eat the view – Oslo is idyllically situated right between the fjord and huge areas of nature, and some of the greatest places to eat and drink are among the best viewing points.

Social eating

Mingling and eating has long traditions in Oslo, and more than ever you can now eat like – and with – the local urbanists in food halls or restaurants with shared tables.

In for coffee, wine, beer, or drinks?

In Oslo, what you drink is taken as seriously as your food and is just as carefully prepared. Coffee baristas, beer brewers, sommeliers, and bartenders are queuing up to impress you in the capital, where the tap water is considered the purest thing you can put into your system.