Songs from the forest
On Oslo’s doorstep, delicious food, wild nature and stylish architecture come together in high-flown harmony.
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For many people, a visit to the Oslo region starts with a visit to – and wander over – what has been the city’s most important signature building for over a decade: the Oslo Opera House.
Designed by Snøhetta, the internationally acclaimed Norwegian firm of architects, the Opera House not only rises spectacularly out of the sea, by inviting the public to stroll across its ample roof it is also a striking symbol of something else with deep roots in Norwegian culture: the ‘right to roam’ – unfettered public access to the seafront and uncultivated land elsewhere.
But where sea and land are explicitly and spectacularly bound together by the Opera House, there is another, less obvious world, which stretches from Oslo’s outer reaches into unspoilt wilderness, well-tended farmland, good eating and striking architecture.
We are heading for the forest.
Putting nature at the centre
One restaurant in Oslo that knows how to appreciate the forests which surround the city is Einer. The restaurant may be located in a 17th century building, but the food it serves represents modern Nordic cuisine at its finest.
Einer offers two tasting menus – one containing meat and fish, one vegetarian. Key to them both, however, are locally sourced ingredients, often prepared using traditional techniques such as smoking, fermentation and pickling, explains restaurant manager and sommelier Sara Johansson.
“Our aim has always been to put Norwegian nature at the centre of things. We focus particularly on Norwegian vegetables and are keen to put them centre stage. At the same time, we want to promote local farmers and show how Norwegian nature can be used.
“Even though the restaurant now also offers a dinner cruise around Oslo Fjord in the quiet, hybrid-electric vessel Brim Explorer, the forests of eastern Norway are still central to Einer,” she says.
“In the spring and summer, our menu rests heavily on ingredients drawn from the forest. For four weeks each summer, we go out and pick what is available, so that we can preserve it and use it through the autumn. The great thing about Oslo is how much delicious edible greenery there is to make use of right on the doorstep.”
Free to roam in Nordmarka
At Jevnaker, northwest of Oslo, we find one of the region’s proud suppliers of local ingredients and meat products. Ask Gård has specialised in the production of cured meats, based on the Norsk Pelssau, a traditional Norwegian breed of sheep that is allowed to roam free and live a rich life here in the countryside.
It is a real family affair. While Eirik Glørud and his husband Runar run the farm, Eirik’s sister and her husband turn the meat into delicious products on site.
Every spring, the sheep and lambs are let out to graze in the vast Nordmarka forest, which is just an open gate away from the farm. From Oslo, it is a six-hour hike through the woods or a one-hour drive by car.
“Nordmarka is a special place for people in Oslo, and they love the idea of eating lamb that has been raised organically there. So Nordmarka is definitely one of our main resources,” says Runar.
“And if animals didn’t graze here, it would be more or less an unused resource,” adds Eirik.
An oasis of rural culture
Products from Ask Gård are sold in both specialty delicatessen shops and at restaurants in several Norwegian towns and cities. Last year, the pair let an association of Italian sommeliers match the farm’s meat products with wines from Tuscany – it was a marriage made in heaven. The family’s love of good food and good ingredients underpins everything they do.
There is one thing, however, that is an even stronger driving force at Ask Gård.
“Animal welfare is our highest priority. A high level of animal welfare gives us an even better end product, and it is the only way that we feel comfortable running the farm. Farming organically also comes high on our list,” says Runar.
Jevnaker can also offer several other attractions. The foodie hotel Thorbjørnrud Hotell, which, among other things, makes delicious cheese and brews its own beer, is one. Another is the Kistefos Museum and Sculpture Park, which contains a collection of Norwegian and international contemporary art that is being added to all the time.
There you can also experience The Twist, an award-winning, architecturally stunning art gallery that bridges the Randselv river and prompted the New York Times to name Jevnaker one of the 52 places in the world worth a visit in 2020. These places tie bucolic peace and quiet to the hustle and bustle of the city – a link that is important for the farmers.
“A lot of our social life takes place in Oslo, and we step in for each other and help out whenever there’s a need. I never imagined that I would become a farmer and move in with my in-laws, but that’s how it turned out. Fortunately,” laughs Runar.
Into the realm of King Elk
Our journey takes us further into the area’s beautiful countryside. After a three-hour drive, we arrive in Espedalen – or the Home to the Moose, as they call it up here. At Ruten Fjellstue, we are warmly welcomed by husband and wife team Berit and Arthur, who are the third generation of their family to run the mountain lodge since it was established in 1939.
“The elk is the animal that we have the strongest traditions for in this part of the country – it runs like a red thread through our history. There is a before and an after the annual elk hunt, so that tradition is sacred hereabouts,” explains Arthur.
Berit is a fabulous cook, though she is far too modest to admit it. According to the boss herself, the common whitefish is an underappreciated and versatile freshwater species. Here it is cured in aquavit and served with a salad from Aukrust farm, Gudbrandsdal flatbread, flowers, herbs, sour cream and sweet pickled cucumber.
A portion of braised lamb from the neighbouring farm, cooked with local vegetables in red wine, is generous enough to make any thought of dessert evaporate.
“I am trying to keep traditional cooking alive in a slightly different way. I update things a little, but always make use of ingredients that have travelled the shortest possible distance,” says Berit.
Breakfast by the lake
For those who really want to experience nature at close quarters, the self-catering Moose observation tower (Elgtårnet), which is operated jointly by Ruten Fjellstue and Dalseter Høyfjellshotell, offers a unique opportunity to do so. Vast windows ensure that up to six guests can sleep – and wake up – wrapped in the forest’s green embrace. You might even get a glimpse of one of the forest’s many wild inhabitants.
The building was designed by architect Sam Hughes. It is four storeys high, with three spacious bunkbeds on the first floor, lounge with woodburning stove on the second, and a fantastic viewing gallery at the top, 12 m above ground. From here, the hush of the Espedalen valley feels immense and powerful.
For breakfast at the Elk Tower, bring the food you like best and prepare it on a campfire cooking grate beside the little lake nearby.
Local sausages sizzle and brown, while cherry tomatoes and bell peppers gradually soften and char. Add thick slices of bacon and make some improvised scrambled eggs flavoured with Norwegian seterparmesan cheese, while homemade rhubarb jam and campfire coffee await you for dessert.
Everything seems to taste better when prepared this way, with nature breathing down your neck and campfire smoke tickling your nose.
“We have lots of room inside and lots of room outside, too. There are never any traffic jams on our roads or lakes. And we have very gentle mountains, with easy walking trails and opportunities to experience nature that are suitable for guests of all kinds,” says Berit.
And if you are lucky, you may even get an audience with the king of the forest himself.
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Faktaboks: Explore the forests of the Oslo Region