28-08-2013
Bjorn Svensson and Jo Bøe Klakegg, chefs of the new Fauna restaurant in Oslo. Their past is divided between Noma, Oscarsgate, Bagatelle and other temples of Scandinavian cuisine
We’re in the middle of the fiords, not too far from the most longed for destinations of Northern cuisine. The long wave of modern cuisine gurus has reached even the bay of Bergen, between fish stands in the port (where funnily enough almost all the sellers are Italian) and the wood houses of the Hanseatic League, which still are the visitors’ favourite destination. This summer, thanks also to a soft opening, Lysverket, a restaurant run by young chef Christopher Haatuft, previously at Thomas Keller’s Per Se in New York, opened in the pavilion number four of the Museum of Contemporary Art of Bergen (Kode). The setting is cosmopolite and sparkling, with a cocktail bar at the entrance, a long bar counter and art works that clearly remind you of where you are. There are only a few tables, finely distanced from one another, in an open space in which you can taste Hitra’s Saint Jacques with a beetroot and red radish puree, Mackerel with aubergine puree, with dill and cucumber sauce, or Egg cooked at 64° with asparagus and shiitake. Perhaps the approach is less rigorous in comparison to the other interpreters of Nordic food and is closer to a style that skilfully mixes local products with excellent delicacies form abroad.
Christopher Haatuft (on the rightm together with his sous chef), chef of restaurant Lysverket in Bergen
Pesce rosso cotto alle erbe, cavolo rosso, aglio confit e rouille, ristorante Lysverket
The establishments, tastes and cooking personalities in Europe, as seen by Gualtero Spotti
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