Don't dare take "Sognefjord sandwich" off the menu

March 25th

*The chef at the hotel shows off the Sognefjord sandwich.*

The sandwich has become so popular that the chef has no choice but to keep it on the menu.

- "It's like a really juicy club sandwich, with crayfish from the fjord and local produce from Balestrand," says Sigurd Kvikne, daily manager at the hotel.

He came up with the idea himself. On a trip to Berlin, he was served a lobster sandwich at a well-known hotel. He went home to the chef with a clear message: They had to create their own local twist. Because this was unbelievably good.

- Here in the fjord, we have access to very good sea crayfish. They are fished in Solvorn, and some in Fjærlandsfjorden. Less than two hours after they are caught, I have them in the kitchen. It doesn't get any fresher than that," says Alfred Kerschbaumer, head chef at Kviknes Hotel.

Seal several hundred quarter years

So it's a sandwich of seafood from the Sognefjord, with wild garlic from the local women's association in Vetlefjorden and, of course, good, fresh bread. With lettuce and wild onion, the sandwich is so tasty and unique that the hotel in Balestrand is starting to become known for it.

- We make several hundred of these sandwiches every year. It's very popular. So popular that we don't dare take it off the menu," says Kerschbaumer.

Local food

Kviknes Hotel is interested in local food and wants to use everything they can get from local farmers and food producers. All berries and fruit are from Balestrand and Leikanger, including plums, raspberries and blueberries. Smoked salmon from Balestrand. Monkfish and halibut from a local fisherman. Calves and bulls from local farmers. Mushrooms from the forest. Only the season determines what is available.

- "We want the tourists who come here to enjoy Norwegian food from Norway. And the Norwegian ingredients are of incredible quality," says the chef from Austria, who first came to Norway in 1992.

Summer menu

Every month throughout the summer, Kviknes Hotel serves you a new four-course dinner, made from good, local ingredients. There is a strong focus on seafood, both fish and shellfish. And you will be recommended the best wines from Sigurd Kvikne, who is passionate about wine.

- In the summer, there is a lot of good white wine. Mostly from France, and I usually recommend a good Burgundy with seafood with a lot of flavor. We have our own house wine with a picture of the hotel on the label," says Kvikne.