We went to Spiseriet inside Stavanger konserthus on a Saturday night in August 2023 – just a few days after they reopened. The restaurant has been closed for renovation for a couple of months, but they are now back in business. It now appears lighter and warmer with a modern Scandinavian look with oak tables and comfortable chairs. We got a round table in a corner with lovely views out the huge windows. As the music festival Utopia was in progress, we even got to see Chirag and Magdi from Karpe walk past a couple of times. For some reason, there was only a handful of guests in the restaurant this evening - maybe people are not aware that it was reopened!
The menu is similar to before and you can choose to go à la carte or choose a 4 or 7 course tasting menu (with wine pairing). It seems like there is more focus on wines and the wine menu has expanded from what I can tell. We decided to just order a la carte as they have many tempting smaller dishes. We started with “beer bread” served with generous portion of butter from Jerseymeieriet . I’m not sure what it is but fresh bread and butter is really something that I really enjoy!
I started with a portion of sashimi of halibut from Sterling white halibut served with a soy-based truffle sauce served with various greens! I’m not that into traditional sashimi to be honest but with all this delicious sauce and topping, it was a great start to the meal. I continued with more seafood and moved on to confit of monkfish served with apple, potatoes, and a rich chicken stock. I also enjoyed this even if the chicken stock steals quite a bit of attention from what should be the star of this dish: the monkfish! I also had to try the grilled steak tartare which seems to be a contradiction – I mean, isn’t it the concept that a tartare should be raw? It seems like they sear sirloin from Nyyyt briefly before they make it into the tartare and serve it with pickled onion and pepper mayo! This was also mouthwatering, but again the dish was a bit “crowded” and I would like to see even more focus on the tartare.
And in the end, a portion of duck with honey and Sichuan glaze served with an amazing, rich puree of celeriac. The rest of the table decided to have the steak from Nyyt served with mushroom from Topp Sopp and a tarragon hollandaise sauce. They also seemed very pleased with this as the meat was cooked to perfection and the fries were freshly made and piping hot. As it had been a great meal so far, I also had to get some dessert and ordered the Stratos. This was a tasty chocolate mousse served with hazelnuts, homemade chocolate bar and raspberry sorbet.
The conclusion is that Spiseriet is still a great place for an evening out! The service is great, and they serve some delectable dishes with a good focus on local products. I love the fact that you can go à la carte or let them make it into a tasting menu with wine pairing. In some of the servings the presentation is a bit “crowded” and I would maybe like to see more focus on the main ingredient in the dish. But this is just nitpicking as I do look forward to visiting Spiseriet again soon!
Pros: Several tempting smaller dishes on the menu Option of tasting menu or à la carte The outdoor seating is amazing for lunch in summer (see this review) Wine menu is growing
Cons: Should allow the main ingredient to be the star
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