Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
that are similarly priced and far more healthy.
Gatekjøkken
(food wagons or kiosks) also
serve hot dogs, burgers, chips, pizza slices and the like, and the better ones will also offer
fish and chips and a range of sandwiches.
If you're by the coast, fish markets are often well priced and those that receive large
numbers of tourists usually have a range of ready-to-go snacks, such as fish balls or
takeaway platters of salmon and other fishy wonders.
Pizzas feature prominently in the local diet. Peppe's Pizza is Norway's standout pizza
chain with creative pizzas (from Nkr159) that are a cut above the rest and servings large
enough for two; its lunchtime buffets are even better value. Another similar chain is Dolly
Dimple's.
Every Thursday from September to May, many Bergen restaurants serve
raspeballer,
a powerful traditional
meal with salted meat, potatoes and mashed turnip - an acquired taste perhaps, but hearty winter food.
Celebrations
Food is central to Norwegian celebrations and this is particularly true at Christmas, when
special dishes include
rømmegrøt
(a delicious sour-cream variant on porridge);
rupa
(ptar-
migan or grouse);
lutefisk
(a glutinous dish of dried cod or stockfish treated in lye solution
that's definitely an acquired taste and extremely popular among Norwegians living over-
seas);
pinneribbe
(mutton ribs steamed over birch or juniper branches); and pork roast,
which stems from the Viking tradition of sacrificing a pig at Yuletide. Raisin buns and a
variety of sweet biscuits, including
strull, krumkake
and
goro
, are what children get ex-
cited about.
Thealmost-universal Christmasdrinkis
gløgg,
whichroughlytranslatesas'grog',butis
farmoreexcitinginreality,blendingcinnamon,raisins,almonds,ginger,cloves,cardamom
and other spices with juice, which may or may not be fermented. Many people also imbibe
julaøl,
or 'holiday beer', which dates from the Viking days, when it was associated with
pagan sacrifices; as with the
lutefisk,
not all foreigners fully appreciate it. Die-hard alcohol
fans celebrate the season with generous quantities of Norway's own potato power brew,
aquavit (see the boxed text,
Click here
)
.
