Foodle

After about 20h travel, we arrived in Oslo for the begining of our trip and Maaemo was the first stop. Maaemo is one of the two 3 Michelin stars restaurant in the Nordics and run by chef Esben Holmboe Bang. Maaemo means « mother earth » and focused on local produce and revisited traditional dishes. The beloved ingredient showcased here is butter. Butter is used in nearly all the dishes and even the star of the incredibly good signature dessert available since the opening « Brown butter ice cream, molasses and roasted hazelnuts ». One of the best ice cream I ever had with incredible silky texture, richness and sweetness of the brown butter. The « queen scallops from Nordskott, aquivit and burnt onion », Langoustine and arctic cod are all great and tasty dishes as well I enjoyed. At first sight the dishes seems simple but the technics behind are actually more complex and most of the dishes are built to highlight the main product. Less

Kontrast is a Modern Scandinavian restaurant focusing on local ingredients in an open and modern kitchen design. We walked from our hotel in the snow to the restaurant. At 20:00 the restaurant was full and we were suggested after the snacks to move to a table just in front of the open kitchen. We had the 10 courses menu and did not regret. We liked most of the dishes and the relax atmosphere. Less

Geist is the restaurant from iconic chef Bo Bech. The restaurant is offering trendy cuisine in a modern and relax athmosphere with music and a bar. The dishes are focusing on a main product with 2 or 3 other ingredients to support in a simple way but in a modern presentation. In a city where many restaurants are closed at lunch, on Sunday and Monday, Geist could be an option as it is open everyday lunch and dinner. We had:
•Wafers of avocado with lightly salt caviar
•Tartare of Norway lobster with yuzu and hibiscus
•Steamed leek with creamy oysters and jalapeño
•Ricotta gnocchi with black truffle
•Baked celeriac with condensed buttermilk
•West coast turbot with fennel ravioli on gruyère
•Grilled squid with black trumpet mushrooms
•Sweetbread BBQ with Jerusalem artichokes and mustard
•Cotton candy with coffee
•Brown butter ice cream with salted almonds
•Salt baked pineapple with pineapple sorbet Less

Kontrast is a Modern Scandinavian restaurant focusing on local ingredients in an open and modern kitchen design. We walked from our hotel in the snow to the restaurant. At 20:00 the restaurant was full and we were suggested after the snacks to move to a table just in front of the open kitchen. We had the 10 courses menu and did not regret. We liked most of the dishes and the relax atmosphere. Less

Geist is the restaurant from iconic chef Bo Bech. The restaurant is offering trendy cuisine in a modern and relax athmosphere with music and a bar. The dishes are focusing on a main product with 2 or 3 other ingredients to support in a simple way but in a modern presentation. In a city where many restaurants are closed at lunch, on Sunday and Monday, Geist could be an option as it is open everyday lunch and dinner. We had:
•Wafers of avocado with lightly salt caviar
•Tartare of Norway lobster with yuzu and hibiscus
•Steamed leek with creamy oysters and jalapeño
•Ricotta gnocchi with black truffle
•Baked celeriac with condensed buttermilk
•West coast turbot with fennel ravioli on gruyère
•Grilled squid with black trumpet mushrooms
•Sweetbread BBQ with Jerusalem artichokes and mustard
•Cotton candy with coffee
•Brown butter ice cream with salted almonds
•Salt baked pineapple with pineapple sorbet Less

After about 20h travel, we arrived in Oslo for the begining of our trip and Maaemo was the first stop. Maaemo is one of the two 3 Michelin stars restaurant in the Nordics and run by chef Esben Holmboe Bang. Maaemo means « mother earth » and focused on local produce and revisited traditional dishes. The beloved ingredient showcased here is butter. Butter is used in nearly all the dishes and even the star of the incredibly good signature dessert available since the opening « Brown butter ice cream, molasses and roasted hazelnuts ». One of the best ice cream I ever had with incredible silky texture, richness and sweetness of the brown butter. The « queen scallops from Nordskott, aquivit and burnt onion », Langoustine and arctic cod are all great and tasty dishes as well I enjoyed. At first sight the dishes seems simple but the technics behind are actually more complex and most of the dishes are built to highlight the main product. Less

Noma 2.0, in a new location, where the staff kitchen is now bigger than the entire kitchen in the old place, tries to reinvent itself.
Often these innovations completely flop as there is too much pressure and strain and too little easy creativity.
Not so here! I have been a fan of Noma but had somewhat mixed meals there, very good ones but also meals with dishes not really connecting with me.
However this seafood themed tasting menu played with various levels of acidity paired with different textures and flavours. I was afraid that I get a bored as there is limited possibility of taste progression if you stick to just seafood, but the Noma Team managed to keep me and my palate alert and interested. The "main course" a BBQed head of cod was of great taste and very playful. There was only one dish which caused some conversation on our table, the horse mussel ragout. The tomato based sauce was so strong in flavour that the clam was reduced to texture. This might have been by design but nevertheless caused some discussion.
We were scheduled for the first ever serving of Noma 2.0 on Thursday for lunch, but a mishap with one of the equipment forced the Noma team to move Thursday's meals to Saturday and Sunday evening. Despite this, the execution of all dishes very flawless and throughout the menu consistent.
The ambience and atmosphere they create is genial, starting with the staff greetings to the lounge where you have your dessert and coffee. The main dining room is, as one expects, dominated by light wood. The tables are well spaced and the seats very comfortable so you like to sit through the menu.
In the past there was often a discussion of why the Guide Michelin did not award Noma a third star. Based on the publicised criteria I completely concurred, it was for me and most likely for them the lack of consistency.
It is early days now, but if the vegetable and game season turns out to be as good as the seafood season, I predict that they are a shoo-in for the third star in 2019 and also for a return to the top of the WB50 List.
Congratulations to the team, very, very well done. Less

Noma 2.0, in a new location, where the staff kitchen is now bigger than the entire kitchen in the old place, tries to reinvent itself.
Often these innovations completely flop as there is too much pressure and strain and too little easy creativity.
Not so here! I have been a fan of Noma but had somewhat mixed meals there, very good ones but also meals with dishes not really connecting with me.
However this seafood themed tasting menu played with various levels of acidity paired with different textures and flavours. I was afraid that I get a bored as there is limited possibility of taste progression if you stick to just seafood, but the Noma Team managed to keep me and my palate alert and interested. The "main course" a BBQed head of cod was of great taste and very playful. There was only one dish which caused some conversation on our table, the horse mussel ragout. The tomato based sauce was so strong in flavour that the clam was reduced to texture. This might have been by design but nevertheless caused some discussion.
We were scheduled for the first ever serving of Noma 2.0 on Thursday for lunch, but a mishap with one of the equipment forced the Noma team to move Thursday's meals to Saturday and Sunday evening. Despite this, the execution of all dishes very flawless and throughout the menu consistent.
The ambience and atmosphere they create is genial, starting with the staff greetings to the lounge where you have your dessert and coffee. The main dining room is, as one expects, dominated by light wood. The tables are well spaced and the seats very comfortable so you like to sit through the menu.
In the past there was often a discussion of why the Guide Michelin did not award Noma a third star. Based on the publicised criteria I completely concurred, it was for me and most likely for them the lack of consistency.
It is early days now, but if the vegetable and game season turns out to be as good as the seafood season, I predict that they are a shoo-in for the third star in 2019 and also for a return to the top of the WB50 List.
Congratulations to the team, very, very well done. Less

Noma 2.0, in a new location, where the staff kitchen is now bigger than the entire kitchen in the old place, tries to reinvent itself.
Often these innovations completely flop as there is too much pressure and strain and too little easy creativity.
Not so here! I have been a fan of Noma but had somewhat mixed meals there, very good ones but also meals with dishes not really connecting with me.
However this seafood themed tasting menu played with various levels of acidity paired with different textures and flavours. I was afraid that I get a bored as there is limited possibility of taste progression if you stick to just seafood, but the Noma Team managed to keep me and my palate alert and interested. The "main course" a BBQed head of cod was of great taste and very playful. There was only one dish which caused some conversation on our table, the horse mussel ragout. The tomato based sauce was so strong in flavour that the clam was reduced to texture. This might have been by design but nevertheless caused some discussion.
We were scheduled for the first ever serving of Noma 2.0 on Thursday for lunch, but a mishap with one of the equipment forced the Noma team to move Thursday's meals to Saturday and Sunday evening. Despite this, the execution of all dishes very flawless and throughout the menu consistent.
The ambience and atmosphere they create is genial, starting with the staff greetings to the lounge where you have your dessert and coffee. The main dining room is, as one expects, dominated by light wood. The tables are well spaced and the seats very comfortable so you like to sit through the menu.
In the past there was often a discussion of why the Guide Michelin did not award Noma a third star. Based on the publicised criteria I completely concurred, it was for me and most likely for them the lack of consistency.
It is early days now, but if the vegetable and game season turns out to be as good as the seafood season, I predict that they are a shoo-in for the third star in 2019 and also for a return to the top of the WB50 List.
Congratulations to the team, very, very well done. Less