Casual or posh? Here's where to eat in Bergen, Norway

Norway’s charming coastal city has some of the best restaurants in the country.

Affordable eats or fine dining? Here's where to hit on your Bergen foodie list. 

Posh

If you’re not already clued-up on the costs involved when holidaying in Norway, heading out for a fancy meal in Bergen will be somewhat of an eyeopener. During my visit, we splashed around $900 on a 10-course degustation with paired wines. It was a memorable meal, although the restaurant has since closed. If that sort of figure makes you want to run for the nearest fjord, there are still ways to enjoy high-end dining in Bergen without splashing an obscene amount of dough.

Take, for example, the snack and drinks at slick wine bar BARE Vin og Matbar (BARE Wine and Food Bar), on the third floor of Bergen Bors Hotel in the heart of the city, footsteps from the harbour. 

This bar is helmed by skilled sommeliers and mixologists. Picture: BARE Wine and Food Bar

This elegant, mirrored bar is helmed by skilled sommeliers and mixologists who can recommend the best pairings from their world-class collection of cellared wine, or create inventive cocktails with ingredients such as rice vinegar, mushroom syrup and hot black tea. Work your way down the snack menu until you can’t eat or drink another thing.

Try the lobster with tomato, tarragon and mayonnaise paired with a dry gin, kombucha, oolong tea syrup and lemon juice cocktail. The elevated snacks menu, which features oysters, dumplings and a wagyu “kebab”, provides a guide on which boozy libations work best for each dish. Feel free to go off-piste too.

Bergen viewed from mountain in Sandviken, Norway

Casual

No trip to Bergen is complete without a meal at the waterfront Fish Market in the centre of the city. “Market” is a bit of a misnomer in this instance, as the venue is surprisingly compact, but it does sell some seafood, fruit and vegetables and has been in operation in some form or other since the 1200s, when merchants and fisherman would gather here to sell their catch.

Only the indoor market is open during winter, and there are a small handful of restaurants to dine at along the waterfront. Specialising in Norwegian seafood (yes, including controversial whale meat carpaccio and whale steaks), Fjellskal Restaurant is a convenient casual lunch option, especially if you’re craving something lighter, such as soup or fresh seafood. The restaurant’s signature shellfish soup is crammed with king crab and peeled red prawns, and would give the ultimate French lobster bisque a run for its money.

Food on display at Bergen's fish market

You’ll also find an extensive selection of sturgeon caviar, oysters and clams, crab varieties and grilled octopus, as well as fish and chips and all manner of sashimi. But the real star item is the stone crab. The claws arrive at the table cracked, served alongside a wedge of lemon and creamy mustard mayo for dipping.

Slightly salty and fresh as can be, the flesh is among the tastiest I’ve come across of all the crab species. And while it’s not cheap, at $70 for a small portion, it’s a considerably cheaper option than the overhyped crown of the crustacean world: king crab.

Originally published as Casual or posh? Here's where to eat in Bergen, Norway