The 2026 Gladmat festival in Stavanger showed what the region's chefs can make from local ingredients.
Scandinavia's largest food festival, Gladmat, was held in Stavanger for its 28th edition from 24 to 27 June 2026. It filled the quaysides along Vågen and extended into Pedersgata and the brightly coloured Øvre Holmegate. The festival began in 1998 and counted up to 250,000 visitors in recent years. Around a hundred stalls are run by food producers, chefs and street-food names, mainly from the Rogaland region. The food ranged from simple snacks to gourmet dishes, showcasing the culinary variety of the region.
On the final day, a jury led by food blogger Olav Birkeland handed out awards to outstanding exhibitors and dishes in the following categories: Dish of the Year, Best Experience, Innovation of the Year, Best Stand, Most Sustainable Exhibitor, and Best Local Product. A separate children's jury chose its own favourite.
The top prize, Dish of the Year, went to plant-based restaurant Bellies for the second year running. This time they won for a kombu ice cream with sugar kelp from the sea plus blackcurrant, hazelnut croquant, dark chocolate and rosehip. Bellies won over the festival's toughest critics, too: the children's jury named them their favourite. Fish & Cow won Innovation of the Year by topping crisp ice cream with Oscietra caviar. The sustainability prize went to Bravo for a dish made mostly from leftovers and by-products from local producers: new potatoes from Jæren, a butter sauce made with whey, and an oil pressed from asparagus trimmings. The Fadosten from local dairy Stavanger Ysteri, an old cheese recipe they have brought back to life, was named the best product. And Ystepikene, the “cheese-making girls,” delivered the best overall experience, while the municipality of Suldal had the best stand.
„The festival gets better each year. The food is of an incredibly high standard,“ said Birkeland, who has been at Gladmat since its second edition, during the award ceremony. „One of the best things to see is the pride the exhibitors take in their ingredients. They can tell you where the food comes from, who produced it and the story behind it. That pride around Rogaland as a food county has only grown stronger over the years. The level has become so even and so high that simply being nominated is an achievement in itself.“
Gladmat has also been a launch pad for street-food businesses that went on to become permanent restaurants. One of the clearest examples is Matsaya, founded by four friends from the Philippines. They began in 2019 with a booth selling bubble tea and street food for Philippine Independence Day, and launched officially at Gladmat in Stavanger the same year. Within a year, they opened their first restaurant in Sandnes, followed by two concepts in Stavanger: a barbecue and hotpot place in 2022 and Ramen Namen in 2023. The name Matsaya combines the Filipino word masaya (happy) with the Norwegian mat (food), offering “happy food,” just like the festival where it all started.
And for anyone who missed it, Rogaland's food story continues into autumn. On Saturday 12 September, the team behind Gladmat organises the one-day event Kortreist, when farm shops and producers across the region open their doors for tastings and direct sales. It celebrates the same idea idea that drives Gladmat: knowing exactly where your food comes from. But instead of the producers coming to the city, this time food lovers head out to visit the dairies, cider farms and bakeries themselves, and to discover eateries in the countryside.
