Bearded seal, ringed seal, Arctic char and cod from the ice-cold sea. Reindeer, ptarmigan and geese from the open tundra and the sharp mountain slopes. In Svalbard, the menu is shaped by the landscape itself.
Hunting and trapping on Spitsbergen date back to the 16th century. For centuries, survival here depended on knowledge, restraint and deep respect for nature. Even today, two professional trappers overwinter on the island, continuing a tradition rooted in self-reliance and careful resource management.
One of them is Tommy Sandal. From his trapping station on Akseløya in the Bellsund area, one of Isfjord Radio’s closest neighbours, he practices traditional trapping methods guided by ecological awareness and sustainability. His work follows strict regulations and seasonal rhythms, ensuring that harvesting remains responsible and balanced.
Head Chef Robert Rydland is in charge of the kitchen at Isfjord Radio. With his long history of creative cooking he creates menus with pure flavours and untraditional combinations.
Our menus are strongly affected of old and almost forgotten preserving techniques. Like the original residents of the outpost, we need to preserver the exclusive ingredients during the dark season months. Salting, curing, dry aging, smoking, drying, pickling and fermenting to mention few. Most of these techniques are to be found in our grandmothers handwritten recipe books, and used earlier on outposts to secure enough provisions over the winter months.
August and September are the main months for hunting, fishing and foraging. For the Isfjord Radio kitchen, this is the most hectic and fun time of the year where our food storages are being stocked with everything from pickled vegetables and dried seaweed to fermented game and cured fish.
During these months we are extending our working hours for some outdoor activities. In the morning and evening hours the kitchen staff can abandon the stove and head to the tundra to harvest mushrooms, walk the shoreline picking edible delicacies and head to the sea for some deep-water fishing. In our storehouse, we are preserving hams, cured meat and sausages and maturing and tenderizing game meat. Working with these tecniques, the produce will last longer and nonetheless enhance the quality.
The growing season on Svalbard is very short and there are limited variables to the local fauna. Thus, our remote boutique hotel simply cant survive exclusively on local ingredients. Therefore our chefs are combining their food philosophy with grocery deliveries from the mainland every half a year. Good dialogues with handpicked fishermen and farmers in Norway gives us stable supply of prime ingredients throughout the seasons.
When staying at Isfjord Radio Station, we aim to promote the arctic nature. At the morning we are serving a traditional Nordic breakfast buffet. Our lunch serving is based on Norwegian home cooking in an historic, yet relaxed environment. In the evening, we are gathering around the dinner table – a real gem of the Isfjord Radio experience. For the dinner we have created a larger menu with several servings, combining the arctic tastes and a customized beverage pairing. Our kitchen and service staff look forward giving you a unique dining experience in the Arctic wilderness.
Welcome home, to your home far away from home.
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