This opening will be something truly special!

PopUp Bodø, in collaboration with Bodø 2024, Lofoten Seaweed, Arctic Food, and Kelpinor, invites you to the opening party featuring a Japanese-inspired menu. The fantastic Saori Ichihara, Shui Ishizaka, & Wataru Hamada will visit Norway for the first time and cook with Arctic ingredients.

Saori Ichihara
Saori Ichihara, head chef and former co-owner of Ichi, a Michelin-approved restaurant in Stockholm. Saori was born in Osaka in 1989 and moved to Sweden in 2014, bringing her culinary background and creating a new Nordic and Japanese approach to cuisine that closely adheres to sustainability and zero waste principles. Before her own adventure with Ichi, Saori worked at some of Sweden's most raved-about places, including Esperanto (*) and Oaxen Krog (**), and she has also been the winner of the Stella-award 2018 for Best Female Chef and was awarded 2018 Year's Star from White Guide 2018. Saori has now dedicated time to freelance work and is currently finishing an exciting book project!

Shui Ishizaka
Born and raised in Australia, Shui Ishizaka is Sea Vegetable’s culinary virtuoso whose innovative approach to seaweed transforms the ocean's produce into gastronomic masterpieces. His journey to and at Sea Vegetable passes through some of the culinary world’s prestigious kitchens including Tokyo's two-Michelin-starred restaurant INUA and three-Michelin-starred noma’s 2023 popup restaurant in Kyoto. Ishizaka’s philosophy revolves around the narrative of each dish, where the 'why' becomes as important as the 'what'. His work embodies a deep respect for the ingredients’ origins, pairing the known with the unknown. He is a chef who not only envisions a seat for seaweed at the global dining table but also crafts each dish as an invitation to explore, taste, and appreciate the unseen wonders of our oceans.

Wataru Hamada
Born in a rural fishing town in the Nagasaki islands, the majority of his life has been spent surrounded by pristine seas teeming with wildlife. Since choosing his career as a chef, he’s trained in France and various areas of Japan. After meeting Ishizaka for the first time while working at restaurant INUA, Hamada continues to work alongside him, now at Sea Vegetable, shedding more light by the day on the wonderful world of seaweed.

Thomas Moen is coming to Landego lighthouse to create his unique Japan-fusion menu. Thomas is a PopUp veteran who started the entire PopUp journey with the premiere weekend at Otternes in 2021 and has also joined us at Gruve 3 in Svalbard. Those who have hadd the plesure of dining with Thomas before know that this will be a culinary show! Moen is the mastermind behind Bare Rot and is known for his innovative and creative dishes. We look forward to experiencing a delightful chaos of unique flavors from the man Gunnar Garfors describes as 'A creative super chef with an extremely high energy level and gourmet contacts all over the world.' If you want to learn more about Thomas's journey with us in PopUp, you can click here to see him at Otternes.

We welcome back the guest chef who offers an experience for all senses! Aleksander is the detailed-oriented chef who will give guests a sensory delight. He has worked at the renowned restaurant Fagn in Trondheim and has extensive experience from Michelin-starred restaurants around the world. Currently, he is working on his own projects, which we are excited to learn more about. Aleksander has amazed us with his menus at Svalbard, Stranda, and Landego last year. We look forward to welcoming him back to the island and PopUp Bodø! He is also bringing his delicate confectionery, Eventyr, and you can read more about both Aleksander himself and his chocolate at here!

Another er week with aleksander and experience for all senses! Aleksander is the detailed-oriented chef who will give guests a sensory delight. He has worked at the renowned restaurant Fagn in Trondheim and has extensive experience from Michelin-starred restaurants around the world. Currently, he is working on his own projects, which we are excited to learn more about. Aleksander has amazed us with his menus at Svalbard, Stranda, and Landego last year. We look forward to welcoming him back to the island and PopUp Bodø! He is also bringing his delicate confectionery, Eventyr, and you can read more about both Aleksander himself and his chocolate at here!

A Swedish adventurer has found his way to Norway and is now heading to Bodø to bring us 'fire and glow.' Kevin Karlsson has previous experience from HUSET in Svalbard and FANGST at Hattvika Lodge in Lofoten, and is now working as a freelance chef. Kevin was our incredible PopUp chef at Skinkerådhuset during PopUp Stranda last winter, and we are so excited that he is taking the time to visit us here on Landego. This will be a weekend full of surprises and great energy! We can't wait!

Welcome to Thomas Moen's Lyoness menu at PopUp Bodø! Thomas is a PopUp veteran who started our entire PopUp journey with the premiere weekend at Otternes in 2021 and has also joined us at Gruve 3 in Svalbard. Those who have dined with Thomas before know this will be a culinary show! Moen is the mastermind behind Bare Rot and is renowned for his innovative and creative dishes. We look forward to experiencing a delightful chaos of unique flavors from the man Gunnar Garfors describes as 'A creative super chef with an extremely high energy level and gourmet contacts all over the world.' This weekend’s menu he describes as 'Old-fashioned French, familiar with some surprises,' and together with Marte Næss, they will create unique experiences for this weekend’s guests. If you want to hear more about Thomas's journey with us at PopUp, click here to see him at Otternes.

We are gearing up for another weekend with the 'Fire and Glow' menu at Landego. Kevin Karlsson has previous experience from HUSET in Svalbard and FANGST at Hattvika Lodge in Lofoten, and is now working as a freelance chef. Kevin was our incredible PopUp chef at Skinkerådhuset during PopUp Stranda last winter, and we are so excited that he is taking the time to visit us here on Landego. This will be a weekend full of surprises and great energy! We can't wait!

The mystery chef is revealed! Tobias Sjölin is the chef from Sweden who has made his way to Norway and Lofoten. At just 3-4 years old, Tobias told his parents he wanted to become a chef, and when the time came to choose an education, he went to the restaurant and hotel school Grydhyttan, where his interest in techniques and exciting ingredients developed. During Covid, he took a step back from the restaurant industry and worked at Systembolaget, where he learned more about pairing wines with food. After the pandemic, he headed to Svalbard where he worked under Josh Wing, and had a stint as a chef at Isfjord Radio. Next, he moved to Lofoten and Restaurant Fangst, and guests at PopUp can look forward to a variation of this tasting menu this weekend.

In his menu “Ode to Lofoten,” he will use the fantastic local ingredients the area has to offer and represent Nordic culinary arts. We can't wait!

The incredible Team Josh Wing is here to give the guests at Landego lighthouse 'a taste of the Arctic' at PopUp Bodø. Josh Wing began his journey as a chef in 1998 at the South Pole Station in Antarctica, and has since worked with renowned chefs such as Chef Laura Cole in Alaska. He has spent summer seasons as a chef at fly fishing and hunting lodges in Montana, and during the off-season, he has captivated diplomats and the Nordic embassies in Washington DC with his culinary artistry. In recent years, he has been the head chef at Restaurant Polfareren in Longyearbyen. Now, he has moved on to Lofoten and is the Head Chef at Fangst. We are excited to embark on a culinary journey to the Arctic with this incredible team!

Our final weekend at Landegode features the incredible Team André Larsen, who will give guests a taste of the best from Northern Norway.

With an impressive track record that includes several top placements in national competitions, André is a chef in a class of his own. He has experience from Michelin-starred restaurants such as Statholdergården, Haga Restaurant, and Geranium, as well as working at places like Fiskekompaniet in Tromsø, Thon Hotel Lofoten in Svolvær, Måltid i Agder Kristiansand, and Nordis in Tromsø. Currently, André runs the restaurant Torshavn on the Helgeland coast.

Having grown up on Helligvær, one of Landegode's neighboring islands, this event is particularly meaningful for André. He feels a strong connection to this region. Joining him is Kristian Bergland Nilsen, who has previously worked at several fine restaurants in the North such as Emmas Drømmekjøkken, Hildr, and Du Verden. He has also worked at the Michelin-starred restaurant Le Gavroche and is now the head chef at La Famiglia and NYT in Tromsø.

These two have worked together before and share a passion for local ingredients treated with respect and care. Together, they will elevate the culinary experience with their menu named "Nordaførr". We are excited!