Food vocabulary is some of the most useful Norwegian you can learn. You need it at the supermarket, reading product labels, ordering at a café or restaurant, and following a recipe. Many Norwegian food words are also cognates with English — once you learn the patterns, new words become easier to guess. This guide covers the 80 words you will encounter most often, organised by category.
Meals and mealtimes
| Norwegian | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| frokost | breakfast | Typically eaten between 7–9am |
| lunsj | lunch | Often a cold packed lunch (matpakke) |
| middag | dinner / the main meal | Usually eaten 4–6pm in Norwegian households |
| kveldsmat | evening meal / supper | Often a light cold meal |
| matpakke | packed lunch | Literally "food packet" — very common in Norwegian culture |
| måltid | meal | General word for a meal |
Bread and bakery
| Norwegian | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| brød | bread | Norwegians eat a lot of bread — dark bread is most common |
| grovbrød | wholegrain bread | "grov" = coarse/rough |
| loff | white bread (loaf) | Softer, lighter bread |
| rundstykke | bread roll | Literally "round piece" — common at frokost |
| knekkebrød | crispbread | A Norwegian staple — eaten with toppings |
| kake | cake | Also used for biscuits and cookies in some contexts |
Dairy and toppings
Norwegian breakfasts and packed lunches typically feature open-faced sandwiches (påsmurt brød) with a variety of toppings.
| Norwegian | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| melk | milk | Helmelk = full fat; lettmelk = semi-skimmed |
| smør | butter | Goes on almost everything in Norway |
| ost | cheese | Brunost (brown cheese) is uniquely Norwegian |
| brunost | brown cheese | Sweet caramelised whey cheese — a Norwegian institution |
| rømme | sour cream | Used in both sweet and savoury dishes |
| fløte | cream | Matfløte = cooking cream; pisket fløte = whipped cream |
| egg | egg | Same word as English |
| syltetøy | jam | Common sandwich topping |
Meat and fish
| Norwegian | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| kjøtt | meat | General word for meat |
| fisk | fish | Very important in Norwegian cuisine |
| laks | salmon | Norway is one of the world's largest salmon producers |
| torsk | cod | Traditional Norwegian fish |
| kylling | chicken | "kyKILL-ing" |
| svin / svinekjøtt | pork | "svin" = pig; "svinekjøtt" = pork meat |
| storfe / biff | beef | "biff" commonly used for beef steak |
| lam | lamb | Same as English |
| pølse | sausage / hot dog | Pølse med brød is the Norwegian fast food |
| rekker | prawns / shrimp | Popular on open sandwiches |
Vegetables
| Norwegian | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| grønnsaker | vegetables | Literally "green things" |
| potet | potato | A staple of traditional Norwegian cooking |
| gulrot | carrot | Literally "yellow root" |
| løk | onion | Rødløk = red onion |
| hvitløk | garlic | Literally "white onion" |
| tomat | tomato | Same as English |
| paprika | bell pepper | In Norwegian, "paprika" means the vegetable, not the spice |
| salat | salad / lettuce | Can refer to both the dish and the leaf |
| agurk | cucumber | Very common in Norwegian lunches |
| brokkoli | broccoli | Same as English |
Fruit
| Norwegian | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| frukt | fruit | General word |
| eple | apple | "EP-leh" |
| banan | banana | Same as English |
| appelsin | orange | From the Dutch "appelsien" |
| jordbær | strawberry | Literally "earth berry" |
| blåbær | blueberry | Literally "blue berry" |
| drue | grape | "DROO-eh" |
Drinks
| Norwegian | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| vann | water | Norwegian tap water is excellent quality |
| kaffe | coffee | Norway has one of the highest coffee consumption rates in the world |
| te | tea | "teh" |
| juice | juice | Pronounced "yoose" |
| brus | fizzy drink / soda | The Norwegian word for any carbonated soft drink |
| øl | beer | "øl" — the ø sound takes practice |
| vin | wine | Same as French |
Cooking and preparation
| Norwegian | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| å lage mat | to cook / make food | Literally "to make food" |
| å steke | to fry / roast | Used for frying and oven-roasting |
| å koke | to boil | "Koke poteter" = boil potatoes |
| å bake | to bake | Same as English |
| å grille | to grill / barbecue | Very popular in summer |
| oppskrift | recipe | "OPP-skrift" |
| ingredienser | ingredients | Same root as English |
At the supermarket
| Norwegian | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| dagligvare | grocery (item) | Dagligvarebutikk = grocery shop |
| kilo / kg | kilogram | Prices are usually per kg |
| liter / l | litre | Used for milk, juice, etc. |
| best før | best before | On food packaging |
| holdbarhetsdato | use-by / expiry date | Longer word for the same concept |
| glutenfritt | gluten-free | Labelled on packaging |
| vegetarisk | vegetarian | Same root as English |
| vegansk | vegan | Same root as English |
At a restaurant or café
| Norwegian | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| meny | menu | Same as English |
| Kan jeg få se menyen? | Can I see the menu? | Standard opener in a restaurant |
| Jeg vil gjerne bestille… | I'd like to order… | "bestille" = to order |
| Hva anbefaler du? | What do you recommend? | "anbefaler" = recommend |
| Jeg er allergisk mot… | I'm allergic to… | Important to say clearly |
| Kan jeg få regningen? | Can I get the bill? | "regningen" = the bill |
| Det smakte veldig godt | That tasted very good | A nice thing to say to a host |
Norwegian food culture: a few things to know
Norwegian food culture has some distinctive features that are worth knowing when you arrive. The main meal of the day — middag — is typically eaten in the late afternoon, between 4 and 6pm, rather than in the evening as in many other European countries. Lunch (lunsj) is very commonly a cold packed lunch (matpakke) taken to work — a few slices of bread with toppings in a box, eaten at a desk or in a break room.
Norwegian supermarkets (the main chains are Rema 1000, Kiwi, Coop, Meny, and Spar) vary significantly in price and range. Rema and Kiwi are discount chains; Meny has a wider range. Alcohol above 4.7% ABV is sold only at Vinmonopolet — the state alcohol retail chain — not in supermarkets.
Tipping at restaurants is not expected in the way it is in the US, but rounding up or leaving 10% for good service is appreciated. In cafés and fast food places, tipping is uncommon.