There are more than one, of course – but the place to go is The Dubliner in Rådhusgata 28. Since it  started up in 1996, The Dubliner  has established itself as the most authentic Irish pub in Oslo, serving beer and coffee from the green island to an ever growing audience of Norwegian and Irish/British expats. The people behind the bar are generally both friendly and native English speakers. Live music most weekdays (and Irish dance classes on Mondays!), and you can have a decent meal, too.

Vis større kart

The entrance is free, but you are of course expected to buy a drink or two. And don’t talk when they sing! Wait till they have finished singing…
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However, at Aker Brygge, paradoxically neighboured by some of the most expensive restaurants in town, you will find Rorbua. Here you are offered a ”today’s menu” for 125 kroner (14,5 Euro), coffee included. Fish is often on the menu.

The food comes in hearty portions, and the chef specialises in traditional Norwegian food. Service is excellent, even without any Swedish waiters.

Rorbua means the little cottage where fishermen up north used to stay during the fishing season, and the restaurant’s design is meant to be kind of fisherman’s rough style. That’s OK, as long as the food is better than what the fishermen usually had to eat in the old days.

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To start with: You can’t book a table. You will have to show up at the door. But it is not like the soup nazi, though – if it is crowded, you will in a friendly way be asked to wait in the bar at the other side of the entrance. When there is a free table, they will pick you up.  It may take some time, they’ve only got 23 chairs. It is worth waiting.

There is no menu. Or, there is in fact a list of ten dishes. Start at the top and work your way through. The whole lot will cost you 850 Norwegian kroner, a little more than 100 Euro, or you can make a deal with the waiter which ones to skip. All ten is a quite a challenge, believe me, but the food is delicious. And then there is the wine. Just bring it on.

Service is indeed informal. Don’t shout at the waitress, she would probably shout back. Don’t be shy if she cuddles your hair, or if the chef comes along and asks you to taste something new he has created, right out of the casserole. To put it simple: Do exactly as you are told.

The Palace Grill is one of the three elements in the same house. There is also the bar which  I’ve mentioned already, a little rough. Live music on Mondays. And then you have got ”Skaugum”, an outdoors bar in the backyard, open during a long summer.

There is a certain danger that the two bars are crowded with young aspiring people at the end of the week. Monday to Wednesday is recommended.
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One of the few places that serve the original bayer on a tap, they will also provide you with some other bottled sorts, and you can have a hot dog. That’s about it. And of course the friendly service.

Cash is king at Ferja – they don’t accept credit cards. That’s about all you have to remember.