Norwegian Foods: What Cuisine to Expect in Norway
What foods can you expect to eat on a trip to Norway’s fjord country?
A friend used to tell me how magical her Norwegian homeland was, especially in the summer. She described lingering sunsets that last past bedtime, enjoying picnics at long rustic tables set out along the fjords edge, and delicious Norwegian foods including spreads of the freshest fruits and vegetables, cheeses, and meats.
I had a distinct vision in my head of what a summer trip there would be, so when I finally had the opportunity to experience this bliss myself on the Hiking in Norway’s Fjord Country journey led by Trip Leaders Leila Thompson and Sigrid Handlykken, I was pleasantly surprised at how it exceeded my vision!
What to Expect on a Summer WT Tour to Norway
Norway is known to be an amazing place to explore nature, with its vast network of fjords and mountains, national parks and trails, scenic train journeys, or historic hotels set amid grand landscapes. The summer rains keep everything colorful and lush, and the views are stunning no matter where you look. However, I was not aware that it is a growing foodie destination, and snacking and foraging are national sports!
While I was blown away by Norway’s landscapes, generous, friendly people, and vast and interesting history and culture, it really was the Norwegian food that surprised me the most. Below is a glimpse of what foods you would expect throughout our journey.
Breakfast
A good day begins with a good breakfast. A typical Norwegian breakfast includes sweet and savory breads, creamy butter, fish (smoked salmon, pickled herring, or smoked mackerel), eggs cooked and served in various ways, brown cheese (a caramelized cheese with a sweet and savory flavor), jams, waffles, and endless dips and sides like caviar or tomato-based spreads. Some of the hotels we stayed at treated breakfast as an event, where you could fill your plate from a buffet setting with seemingly endless and mouth-watering options. The smaller hotels on the other hand offered less variety, but very high-quality selections of delectable morsels. I was never left wanting more!
Lunch
Whether on the trail with a packed lunch from the breakfast buffet, or stopping at a quaint local cafe for some of the best sweet or savory pastries I’ve ever had…lunch was always a welcome time of day.
Usually after a couple hours of hiking or exploring, we’d stop at a magnificent spot with views of a waterfall or mountain range while enjoying sandwiches, fresh fruit, crackers, herbed cheese, and a dessert of the best chocolate bars Norway has to offer. If we were at a proper restaurant or cafe, we were served warm, creamy soups with thick slices of buttered bread, often with a gourmet salad.
One particularly memorable lunch was at a small goat farm in Aurland that we hiked several miles uphill to get to. We were greeted by bleating goats with bells, spectacular views, and an unbelievable rustic spread of goat milk based salads, cheeses, and homemade focaccia. After a tour of the milking and cheese-making processes, we tucked in to some of the best food of the trip, while sitting on a quaint balcony that overlooked the valley.
Dinner
Surprisingly we were able to work up an appetite for dinner each day! Most dinners were at our hotels, but featured many gourmet offerings. Grilled lamb, succulent seafood, and colorful salads graced our tables at night, alongside hearty imported wines. A few nights we were treated to dine in the private dining quarters, or an extravagant wine cave!
Hotel Husum was a stand out for me, with their newly acquired chef from Estonia presenting dish after dish of perfection. His way with delicate, tender meats and creative desserts was especially phenomenal, using many local ingredients, some right from the hotel grounds!
Snacks & Drinks
At any time of the day, one of our Trip Leaders would offer trail snacks between meals and keep our energy up during the hikes. These may include dried fruit and nuts, reindeer sausage, or packages of crackers and chocolate treats. A few times our guides sneakily picked up cinnamon and cardamom rolls from the local bakery as a fun surprise.
This trip is primarily focused in the Hardangerfjord Region, famous as Norway’s fruit-growing district, with picturesque orchards of apples, plums, and cherries stretching down to the fjord’s edge. On many days we enjoyed different apple cider tastings while eating an apple-focused treat, including an apple cake from a recipe handed down over hundreds of years. We learned about the region’s history of farming and met families who have been there for seven to eight generations, tending the land and preserving the buildings. And in modern times, the youth returned from the cities, turning the family businesses into thriving, craft cider venues!
Foraging in Norway
But the best snacks were the ones we got right from the land. Our local Norwegian guide, Sigrid, showed us how to gather wild blueberries and raspberries, carefully piercing them with a long, dried blade of grass to create a long necklace of berries that you could feed off throughout the hike (or pop them all into your mouth as you go, which was my preferred method). They were small, but packed with flavor.
One day we even found chanterelle mushrooms during a mystical forest walk, which we gathered and presented to our hosts at our next stop. The bounty of the land was incredible!
Traditional Norwegian Foods to Try
Traditional foods you’ll likely come across on a trip to Norway include Fårikål, a mutton and cabbage stew that’s the country’s national dish; lefse, a soft flatbread; or raspeballer, a type of potato dumpling. Brunost, a sweet, brown cheese is also popular, especially on waffles—another traditional Norwegian food. And you’ll find lots of seafood like pickled herring, a popular breakfast option, along with fish soups. We also tried cloudberry jam, a delicious preserve that’s equal parts sweet and tart.
We tried both traditional and modern cuisines on our Hiking in Norway’s Fjord Country adventure. While the trip is an is an active Norway hiking tour, it also offers a wonderful introduction into this region’s diverse food scene. And even though we stayed at some of the best hotels in the area where you’d expect the food to be good, it was the simple meals at the popular local cafes and the food we foraged along the way that stood out the most to me. The only thing I missed out on was the reindeer sausage with lingonberry sauce, mustard, and fried onions from Trekroneren in Bergen (I guess I’ll have to go back!). Skål!
Frequently Asked Questions
When made fresh, Norway’s food is excellent. It features simple, high-quality ingredients, so while Norwegian cuisine doesn’t have the wide variety of flavors and ingredients that some other cuisines have, it’s typically hearty and fresh.
In a typical day, Norwegians might eat a breakfast of bread with jams, cheeses, or cold meats, and a similarly light meal as an early lunch. The heartiest meal of the day, middag, is typically in the late afternoon or early evening and comprises a meat or fish served with potatoes and vegetables. Some folks might eat another light meal later in the evening.
Fårikål is Norway’s national food—it’s a hearty stew made of mutton or lamb with cabbage and whole peppercorns, and it’s typically served with boiled potatoes.
December 9, 2025
