[Countrywide] Seafood places: where do you get the best seafood meal (not just a market), and what’s actually good value?

I’ve eaten my way through a lot of seafood in Norway, and my strong opinion is that the best seafood meals are usually outside the capital and nowhere near a harbor packed with tour buses. From what I’ve seen, smaller coastal towns serve simpler dishes where the fish actually does the talking, and those meals often feel like better value too. I’ve had incredible cod and fish soup in casual restaurants that didn’t look special at all from the outside. but there’s a nuance… in Oslo you can still get a great seafood experience if you accept that you’re paying more for location and consistency, not just the plate. It feels like shrimp and shellfish shine most when they’re in season, while salmon is reliable year-round but rarely surprising. I now skip places that advertise “best seafood restaurant” too aggressively and ask locals where they’d take visiting family. What’s the one seafood dish in Norway you still think about? And did you feel it was good value, or just worth it anyway?

Yeah, I’m 100% with you on this. The seafood I still think about wasn’t in Oslo at all — it was in a tiny place outside Bergen where the menu was basically “today’s catch” and that’s it. I had pan-fried cod with potatoes and butter, nothing fancy, but the fish was so fresh it almost felt unfair. Cost less than most “best seafood” plates in the capital and tasted twice as good. Oslo can still deliver, but you’re paying for the postcode as much as the fish. For value, I always chase fish soup or seasonal shrimp when they’re in — hard to mess up and usually honest. After a good seafood meal, grab a cold local lager or an aquavit at a relaxed harbor bar nearby and call it a win.