3 min read

Svalbard, Gruvelagert - Great tasting pleasures!

Svalbard is nature, darkness, snowmobiles, dog sledding, food experiences and entertainment on a conveyor belt. Then we must not forget all the nice people who make the wonderful food and the moon that gives us that little something extra!

Mining stockpile.

Gruvelager has been voted the city's best restaurant and now I can't wait to taste the menu. Maybe they are still at the top. Let me tell you right away that I still feel the wonderful flavors. If you want, you can read a bit about the story, just click on the link below here.

Let's cover some history of Gruvelagert first - click to read, if you like!

They say themselves:

We are proud to have restored the Mine Warehouse in Sverdrupbyen and converted it into a unique and new function room and restaurant. The venue has a long history and is themed with a focus on early coal extraction and mining in Svalbard. The kitchen bears the stamp of rustic elegance, and real, honest and arctic food is our signature.

Mine warehouse, a unique dining experience.

Imagine that you have been on an adventurous trip with a snowmobile or dog sled. You will have time to relax a bit at the hotel before heading up to Gruvelagret, to enjoy a wonderful atmosphere and atmosphere and, not least, a wonderful meal of food and drink. This was my first visit to this restaurant that everyone raves about, so I have to admit that my expectations were high. The first expectations are confirmed when we get out of the taxi and look in through a large window. It looked really nice here.

Gruvelagret restaurant Svalbard (c) Ingar Næss

We are welcomed by a smiling serving staff and the butler, with the catchy name of Sebastian Bach. You can actually see in him that he is proud of what he will present and serve us. There is always something about the welcome itself, it sort of sets the tone, and so did our Bach.

Bio Vegan Asolo Prosecco with notes of pear, apple and citrus was served as an aperitif. The welcome and aperitif often top the list in terms of what we can look forward to and this just has to be good. So let's "throw" ourselves over the food that was now served. For starters we were served a Sancerre Comte Lafond de Ladoucette. This is a dry Sauvignon Blanc from Sancerre, Loire, France. Mineral, round and powerful in the mouth with good acids and a long aftertaste. With this wonderful wine, the appetizer was a completely new experience. We had never before been served cod in this way and with this taste. Our Svalbard cod was served with charcoal-grilled heart salad, pickled Jerusalem artichoke and beurre blanc, a butter sauce with flying fish caviar. Wow, this was a wonderful experience!

Around us, the other guests were enjoying themselves and it was clear that the experience had begun, and the expectations were looking forward to the rest of the meal. Sebastian presented a bottle of Philipp Kuhn Pinot Noir. This is a medium-bodied Pinot Noir from the Palatinate region in Germany. We had a taste, and the palate encountered an elegant aroma of dried plums, almonds, cherries as well as chocolate and leather. Or to put it more simply - it tasted fantastic. The main course was presented by Sebastian who happily told us that we got a Pigwings, which is part of the pork knuckle. It was served with traditional potato cream, roasted root vegetables and a kimchi based sauce, another wow. This was so tender and tasty that it was hard not to let out "sounds" of satisfaction.

This was just lovely. Together with the wine selection, this was almost better than expected. Wow! The conversation is flowing and the atmosphere is very good. What they should also be praised for is the adjusted time between dishes, which meant that we had time to enjoy those flavors to the fullest!

Then it was time for dessert. We were excited to see what they would conjure up to end this delightful meal. That it was a tart shell filled with mullet fluid gel, cardamom and browned butter ice cream, creme anglaise with almonds and lemon zest was a good choice. Not too much, not too little, just good! The wine was the same that we were served as avec, i.e. a Sancerre Comte Lafond de Ladoucett! Then all you have to do is say thank you for a wonderful meal and then I hope that our recommendation of this great restaurant makes you want to try it out for yourself.