OMG, there is actually amazing pizza in Ålesund, Norway! My husband and I were skeptical that we'd…read morefind crusty, wood fired pizza in Norway, but color us surprised 'cause it was damn good! And as a native New Yorker, I'm pretty picky about pizza, and I was pretty impressed.
We ordered the Antipasto appetizer, which included two slices of pizza bread, several sliced meats, one tuna bruschetta, one tomato bruschetta, a half baked tomato, a slice of stuffed squash, and a date stuffed with cheese topped with pine nuts, olives, and a baked pesto pasta. Everything was delicious, except for the baked pasta, which was undercooked.
Then came the pizza. We split the "Calabrese," which includes tomato sauce, mozzarella, Gorgonzola, pepperoni, and a little bit of greens. OMG, that pizza was amazing! The crust was crunchy and chewy just like a NYC pizza crust. They use a wood fired oven, but I wonder if the Norwegian water has anything to do with the yumminess. There was just the right amounts of cheese, and the pepperoni was sliced thin and long, different than in the US. We ate every last piece of that 'za! The owner told us that the pizza chef is from Italy, and they order all their ingredients from Italy as well.
Drinks: My husband ordered their locally brewed beer, which came in a bottle with a Nona Lina label on it. So clearly, it is a very local beer! It was pretty decent beer, but we couldn't decide definitively the style of beer. My husband thinks it's a pale ale. I thought it tasted more malty than hoppy. I ordered an apple juice, which came in a cute bottle, and tasted more like apple cider than juice.
Dessert: OMG, you must try the vanilla pannacotta with the strawberry sauce! We went up to the bar area to pay our bill, but then got distracted by the dessert case. They had several delicious looking desserts, but we decided to go simple. The vanilla pannacotta was out of this world! So creamy, silky, not too sweet, and the strawberry sauce was perfect.
Overall, wonderful dining experience! The food was great, the decor was homey and warm, and the service was wonderful. Our meal ended up costing 610 NOK, about $76, with current conversion rates. It is pricey, but all food and drinks in Norway are crazy expensive, so this is probably a mid-level priced meal. If you are trying to save some money, they do have a lunch special from Tuesdays to Fridays, where a selection of their pizzas are cheaper starting at 104 NOK.
