Rosi S
Having booked two of the hotel's 9 rooms for one night, we arrived at a little past 16.00 (the check-in time) on a Saturday. ||The hotel is surrounded on two sides by parking spaces with chargers for electric cars. The exterior is sleek and modern, kept in grey and white. There is a lot of glass, and it takes full advantage of the fjord views with all the rooms, the restaurant and (partly) the bar facing that way. Straight lines are broken by a few round windows which softens it up a lot.||All the outside areas are extremely well kept and there are several seating areas with varying furniture; like chairs/tables and a few daybeds - all in the same solid design and thoughtfully placed considering the wind and weather you can have in western Norway. There is a small beautiful pebble/coarse sand beach in front of the hotel, very easily accessed. The hotel also has a sauna (needs 1 hour notice to heat up) and a small gym.||||We entered a simplistic but stylish reception area and were met by a very smiley girl who gave us the hotel's information: ||Restaurant upstairs, rooms and bar downstairs. There are both stairs and a lift. Ring the reception bell if you need anything, or wait for someone to show up. Breakfast is 08.00 to 10.00 and if you want dinner that's at 19.00. ||Such a small hotel naturally has limited staff and you will possibly wait a bit but every question or task was met with a smile as far as we could observe.||||All the rooms are in a row and all have their own private balcony with fjord view. The wall facing the balcony is all glass (windows/door). The balcony has two chairs and a table, it's partly covered overhead and there's a small heater. ||Good size bathroom with a big rainfall shower (but also a handheld option) with nice Rituals amenities. A big mirror and place beside the sink for your toiletries, as well as a smaller mirror with enlargement for makeup and/or shaving. Water pressure was great. ||The rooms themselves were lovely. A high-quality double bed with lots of nice pillows. A pallet for your luggage so it's off the floor. I didn't look inside the closets but it seemed to be plenty of storage room. A desk and an upright chair below the wall mounted tv, and a seating area with two chairs and a table by the window. ||||The dark colours of the room enhanced the view, bringing it in to the room - and I promptly turned the seating area around to enjoy the view fully. Sadly the weather wasn't the best but we could still enjoy the lovely sight of the fjord and sky. You have full control of the ferry crossing back and forth, but since it's electrical there are no noise issues. The no-noise part also covers the rooms; all the rooms were occupied the night we were there but there was literally no noise between them and I didn't hear any of the other guests before I opened my door the next morning.||||We had opted for dinner (not included in the price), which is a 3 course meal. The menu varies. The night we were there it was pea soup for starter, beef for main, and crème brûlèe for dessert. A wine package was available but we opted for some local apple cider in stead. The food was great, excepting a few very minor details: ||You could really taste the peas in the soup, and it was a very clean green colour. It had some bacon bits which should have been crispier. My fellow traveler has a thing for soft bacon and she had to leave them. Some people may prefer their soup thicker, but I thought it felt light and fresh as opposed to the traditional version that can be thick to the point of stodgy. There was a slight delay between starter and main, but we were in no hurry so that wasn't really a problem for us. ||The beef was fall-apart tender, the vegetables and potatoes were well cooked and still had a bite to them. I got some nice heat from the pepper sauce, and it wasn't overwhelming the delicate flavour of the beef. One of the vegetables was cabbage and it was so gooood and it made me want to ask what was done to it - but I forgot. The crème brûlèe had us both starting out with how we probably wouldn't finish it, but that was before we tasted it. Probably one of the best I've ever had. Silky smooth and no taste of egg at all. So we both finished it, even my company who isn't really fond of crème brûlèe at all.||The next day we overheard some other guests giving the exact same feedback on the food that we had (and some others) to the hostess, so we didn't.||We checked out the bar area after: Comfortable seating, a fireplace both in- and outside, again a good looking seating area outside and if it had been warmer it would be the perfect place to end the evening with a glass of something tasty. ||After an excellent night's sleep (so quiet! and the beds were so good) all the other guests had finished breakfast when we arrived the next morning at 09.00, so we had the small buffet to ourselves. Don't expect options for a full English. The selection was small but well thought out. A variation of bread and bread rolls and a small selection of spreads (ham, cheese, smoked salmon, scrambled eggs, jam..). Some yogurt and granola options. You could make your own waffles (the Norwegian soft/flat variation). If not everything you want, there was certainly everything you need. ||Again, if the weather had been nicer we might have lingered in the outside areas, but we decided to push off, and check-out was speedy and again, done with a smile.||||The hotel might be on the pricier side of the scale, but considering what we got: Great ex- and interiors with a clear and thought-out style, lovely views, comfortable furniture and perfect beds, cleanliness all around, ||and service with a smile? It's all good. Very good. ||Just hope for better weather than we had so you can take advantage of the beach and fjord!
