2012: My Ten Dishes of the Year

Another year draws to a close and yet again I'm left wondering where all the time has gone (probably spent in restaurants judging by this post I'm sure you're thinking). Anyway, I thought I'd continue my tradition of looking back at the most memorable restaurant dishes I had over the year. I've been really lucky enough to have indulged in some epic meals this year, the highlights of which have undoubtedly been experiencing the truly magical Fäviken for the first time, a return to Noma and The Ledbury, and of course Oslo's sublime Maaemo.

So, in reverse order here is a list of the ten best things I ate in a restaurant in 2012:

Fäviken Magasinet, Järpen – Restaurant Review

A late afternoon in November, somewhere in Sweden, and already the inky black swathe of sky seems to envelop the rental car tightly. Two narrow yellow beams from the headlights carve out our path through the gloom over the treacherously icy roads of this mountain plateau. It's captivating, hypnotic even; the dull rumble of tyre over ice, the ghostly soft glow from the dashboard, the car seemingly piloting itself. You see, a trip to Fäviken doesn't seem so much of a journey as a pilgrimage. For what else could a jaunt to eat at a restaurant just 200 miles south of the Arctic Circle be? And, like all the best experiences in life, I never saw this one coming.

Von Porat, Oslo – Restaurant Review [Now Closed]

Typical, isn't it? You wait ages in the freezing cold for a bus and then two come along at once. And so seems to be the case for the Oslo food scene. Restaurant von Porat and Oslo's shiny new food hall, Mathallen, where it is located are two such examples. Already, in the two short months the restaurant has been open I can see it (and the food hall) becoming an established favourite for the capital's food lovers.