Food and drink
Best restaurants in Tromsø: king crab, skrei and reindeer
Tromsø's food scene lives off the sea and the mountains around it. These are the restaurants we would book, from the tasting menu at Smak to fish on the harbour and beer at one of Norway's best-known pubs.
This page contains affiliate links. If you book through them, Picolo earns a commission at no extra cost to you. Our picks are made independently by our editors.
It is three in the afternoon in January and already dark. Lights hang in the windows along Storgata, and inside the restaurants king crab and skrei are chalked on the boards. In a few hours the northern lights buses leave, and everyone wants to have eaten first.
Tromsø is a small city with a lot of visitors, and its food scene has grown with them. That makes it easy to eat reasonably well and harder to find the best. We have picked the places that build on the produce of the sea and the hills, and that locals use too.
Short answer: where should you eat in Tromsø?
For a long dinner, Smak is the most ambitious kitchen, with a seasonal menu of Northern Norwegian produce. Mathallen is the place for Arctic bistro cooking, and Fiskekompaniet on the harbour for seafood. Finish the night with a beer at Ølhallen.
Best tasting menu: Smak
Best bistro: Mathallen
Best seafood: Fiskekompaniet
Best pub: Ølhallen
Best home cooking: Emma's Drømmekjøkken
Smak: a Northern Norwegian tasting menu
Smak is a small restaurant with few tables and a menu that follows the seasons. The kitchen uses fish, shellfish, game and berries from Northern Norway, served as a long evening of small courses. It is the most serious dinner in town.
The catch: with so few tables it fills up in northern lights season. Book when you book your flight.
Mathallen: Arctic bistro and deli
Mathallen is a bistro and deli in one, cooking regional fish and meat with set menus put together by the kitchen. In the shop you can buy cheese, cured meat and stockfish to take home.
Fiskekompaniet: seafood on the harbour
Fiskekompaniet sits on the harbour and serves fish from Troms and the sea beyond, with a modern take on classic dishes. Ask for a window table: the view across the sound to the mountains is part of the meal.
Emma's Drømmekjøkken: home cooking in the centre
Emma's is one of the most established places in town, with Northern Norwegian home cooking and a menu that usually has both fish and reindeer. Choose it when you want good, reliable food without a tasting menu.
Ølhallen: the pub at Mack
Ølhallen is the pub in the brewery building of Mack, which has brewed beer in Tromsø since the 19th century. Dozens of taps pour beer from Mack and other Norwegian breweries. It is the place for a pint after a northern lights trip, and to see how locals spend a Friday.
What to taste
King crab: caught off Finnmark, it appears on most menus in winter.
Skrei: the spawning cod arrives at the coast from January to April and is the great ingredient of the season.
Reindeer: served roasted, stewed or cured. Cloudberries: often turn up for dessert, with cream.
The northern lights
Many people eat early before a northern lights trip.
Eat around the northern lights
In winter most northern lights tours leave the centre early in the evening and return late at night. Plan dinner around the trip: eat early, around five, or book a late table the next day. Many kitchens are at their busiest exactly when the buses leave.
Scandic Ishavshotel
Scandic Ishavshotel at dusk.
Where to stay if food is the reason for the trip
The centre between the harbour and Storgata is closest to the restaurants. Our guide to the best hotels in Tromsø has more options.
Scandic Ishavshotel: a ship on the quay
The hotel is shaped like a ship and sits at the end of the quay, looking across the sound to the Arctic Cathedral. Fiskekompaniet and most of the central restaurants are a few minutes away. Right for anyone eating out every night who wants a short walk home in the cold.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Scandic Ishavshotel
Home Hotel With
Home Hotel With on the harbour in Tromsø.
Home Hotel With: a wharf house on the harbour
The hotel fills an old wharf building on the harbour in the centre, with calm rooms and a lounge looking over the water. From here you walk to Smak, Mathallen and Ølhallen without needing a bus. A good choice for a winter weekend split between dinners and the northern lights.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Home Hotel With
Good to know before you book
Book early in northern lights season: from November to March the best tables are full weeks ahead.
Check opening days: several places close early in the week outside the season.
Alcohol is expensive: a glass of wine costs more than you may be used to elsewhere in Europe, so budget a little extra.
Dress for the cold: you will walk between restaurants, and it can be icy even in the centre.
Tromsø restaurants: frequently asked questions
Does Tromsø have Michelin-starred restaurants?
No. No restaurant in Tromsø holds a Michelin star in 2026. Smak comes closest in ambition.
Where can you eat king crab in Tromsø?
Fiskekompaniet and Mathallen often have king crab on the menu in winter.
Where are the best restaurants in central Tromsø?
Smak, Mathallen, Fiskekompaniet and Emma's Drømmekjøkken are all in the centre, within a short walk of each other.
What is Ølhallen in Tromsø?
Ølhallen is the pub in the Mack brewery building, with a large range of beers on tap.