Den Gode Cafe

June 30, 2012

   

We started our first full day in Oslo at the Nobel Peace Centre, which is well worth a visit - it has rotating exhibits (which included some wonderful photographs and videos from Afghanistan) and a brilliant set of permanent exhibits dedicated to the peace prize winners. There are a few pictures at the end of this post.

The museum was so engaging that we spent longer there than expected, and left very hungry and ready for lunch. I'd tracked down two nearby vegetarian places, Cafe Blitz and Vega Fair Food. I was most excited by Blitz - a cafe in an anarchist-run squat that's been running for 30 years. Sadly, just like the last squat-based place we tried to visit, it turns out that these anarchists were on some sort of holiday. Last time we rely on anarchists to feed us. No problems I thought, Vega is only a few blocks away. Vega Fair Food is, inexplicably, closed on Saturdays (they at least state this on the website, so this one was my fault really).

By this point I was hungry, sick of walking and getting pretty grumpy. And I had no fall-back plan. Cindy pulled out a couple of muesli bars and we walked vaguely in the direction of Grünerløkka, a supposedly hip and cafe-filled suburb. We got about 200m down the road and stumbled onto this place: Den Gode Cafe (literally, The Good Cafe). Given the situation, I would have been happy enough if this place offered a single, barely edible vego dish, so I was doubly thrilled when we discovered a menu with plenty for us to choose from and an English-speaking staff member who was happy to suggest alterations to other dishes for us. Amazing.

   

I ordered the veggie burger (149NOK ~ AU$23.60), which came with delicious chunky chips and a little pot of creamy aoli. The burger patty was a crispy-fried mush of veggies (possibly with egg, flour or some other binders), with a melted piece of cheese on top and greens, tomato and sauce underneath. I dunno if it was just my hunger, but it was pretty damn terrific.

   

Cindy ordered the 'pancake', with spinach, mushrooms and feta (125NOK ~ AU$19.80).

   

The 'pancake' was basically a crepe, and was another success - thin and nicely browned and stuffed with a good mix of cheese and veggies.

We were both so grateful to have stumbled across Den Gode Cafe that we were almost certain to enjoy it. But it went well above our expectations - the staff were superbly helpful, the menu relatively well stocked with veg options and the atmosphere laid-back and comfortable. Vegans will probably struggle to find much to eat but the staff are very helpful and would probably whip something up for you. For these vegetarians though, this place was an oasis on an otherwise frustrating hunt for a Saturday lunch.

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There's not many reviews of the food at Den Gode Cafe, just this positive mention on Ingvildtelle.

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Den Gode Cafe
Fredensborgveien 13, Oslo
+47 22203455
veggie mains 125-149 NOK ~ AU$20-$25
http://dengodecafe.no/

Accessibility: There's just a small step on entry, and the exterior is spacious and flat. There's full table service.

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The Nobel Peace Centre

   

The peace forest - 
each little monitor has the details of one of the Peace Prize winners