Dogs allowed Cafés in Norway
Every chair, lamp, and table is for sale: designers behind the mid-century Scandinavian interior include Birger Dahl, Fredrik Kayser, and Kaj Franck. House-roasted Nordic coffee by day, cocktails by night. The 1963 coffee institution was relaunched in 2012, the same year it expanded to Tokyo.
Roasting beans since 2012, this third-wave café helped launch specialty coffee in Trondheim. Founder Tony Jacobsen started in a six-square-metre space behind a hair salon; now he supplies several fine-dining restaurants in the region. The kanelboller and a single-origin filter make for a perfect pairing.
Three floors of natural light, designer furniture, and architecture books: Kokko is a coffee bar with an architecture studio on top. Owner Ole Marius Skjærseth roasts single-origin beans and supplies them even to the award-winning restaurant Re-Naa. Curated lighting and interior objects from around the world are for sale.
Frédéric Aguerre missed proper French pastry, so in 2018 he opened this crêperie near Majorstuen tram, complete with French tiles and Parisian atmosphere. The galettes are made the strict Breton way with only buckwheat flour, salt, and water. The coffee comes from Lippe Kaffe.
The Italian-style espresso bar, opened in 1997, uses beans from owner Robert Thoresen’s Kaffa roastery. He won the first-ever World Barista Championship in 2000. The architect-designed interior features a large green mosaic behind the counter, contrasting with the many red details on coffee bags and equipment.
Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves line the walls of this former fire station, now home to the House of Literature. The kitchen sources almost everything from the region of Trøndelag and varies between beans from Nordic and international roasters. Named after a character in Knut Hamsun’s novel “Growth of the Soil.”
Inside a former cod liver oil factory and carpentry workshop, two pairs of brothers from Bergen opened this café-bar in 2017. They had stumbled upon the abandoned building on a climbing trip and pooled their savings to buy it. There are hotel rooms for those who cannot get enough of the sea view.
Continuing the success of the coffee shop at Universitetsgata and in Asia, the team opened their own roastery in 2018. It is housed in a converted stable in Gamlebyen, and the star of the space is the petrol Probat roaster once owned by Tim Wendelboe. Stop by to try coffees straight from the source.
Bergen’s only specialty roastery runs a spacious café beside Nygårdsparken, where guests can watch beans turn on a Giesen drum. Owner Carl Johannessen started it as a hobby in 2009, and now he supplies cafés across the city. Every Thursday, an open tasting invites you to explore the flavour spectrum.
Family-run since 2008, Tiara Kaffebrenneri roasts beans on-site. Their signature TAJ Mocha, a warm blend of espresso with chili, spices, and orange peel, goes along with the vintage-furnished interior. Now in two locations: this original spot and Rådhusgata since 2019.
Norway’s third wave started here in 2001, when Robert W. Thoresen and Trish Rothgeb opened the country's first micro-roastery in this modest Briskeby space. Today, the beans come from their Kaffa roastery at a larger facility, but Mocca still serves them. Specialty coffee enthusiasts order the V60.
At Oslo’s most family-oriented café, children are (quite literally) part of the picture: They are invited to draw while parents linger over coffee and French pastries. The best artwork ends up in the window or even on the to-go cups. On Mondays, any child who hands in a drawing gets to pick a free bun.
Kuro (Japanese for “black”) opened in 2022 inside the F5 fashion boutique, blending Tokyo minimalism with Grünerløkka edge. The intimate space serves coffee from Kokko and Fuglen, as well as matcha with latte art, alongside pastries from small bakeries like Bakerina and Hernandez.
The only listed building in the Bakklandet neighborhood dates to the 18th century. Peasants once rested their horses here to avoid the toll at Gamle Bybro, spending the savings on food and a shot of aquavit. Today, guests enjoy soul food and waffles with brown cheese – and still over 350 aquavits.
Retro furniture, soft colors, and vintage touches set the mood at this coffee bar. The name means “milk bar,” and the lattes deliver: Guests can try the spiced cortado in winter and the cold version in summer. Ice cream from local producers makes the endlessly sunny days even sweeter.
Colorful hand-dipped candles hang from every wall of the “candle foundry” in Lofoten’s most artistic village. Founded in 2002, it still serves the signature cinnamon and vanilla buns, as well as shrimp sandwiches. The scent of warm wax mingles with coffee throughout the cosy space.
Stepping inside the “butter square” is like entering a Nordic grandmother’s living room: there are old sofas, candlelit tables, and patterned wallpaper. The quirky place blends café with thrift shop, serving strong coffee, open sandwiches, homemade soup, and warming oatmeal porridge.