À L’aise owners leave Oslo restaurant after Michelin success

The owners and operators of Oslo restaurant À L’aise are stepping down with immediate effect, just two months after the restaurant was awarded a Michelin star, Dagbladet reports.

Head chef Ulrik Jepsen and general manager Mia Kondrup confirmed the decision in a post on Instagram.

“We are writing to announce that we are stepping away from À L’aise, effective immediately. Running this restaurant has been a fantastic privilege, made possible by the people who visited, our suppliers and our team,” they wrote.

The couple opened the restaurant in 2017 and received its first Michelin star in 2023. According to the restaurant’s website, it serves Norwegian ingredients prepared using French techniques and traditions.

À L’aise attracted attention in 2022 after hosting a Christmas party for 52 Ukrainian refugees.

Just three weeks ago, Kondrup wrote on Instagram that they would “continue doing what we love: cooking and welcoming every person as if it were the first time”. The post came after the restaurant was included in the prestigious 50 Best Discovery list.

The couple did not give a reason for their sudden decision.

The news comes at the end of a difficult year for Oslo’s gourmet restaurants. So far, three Michelin-starred restaurants in the city have closed.

In April, Michelin-starred Bar Amour announced that it would end its operations during the summer. Shortly afterwards, Hot Shop also announced that it would close.

Hot Shop was known for minimalist Nordic cuisine and operated from a former sex shop in Oslo’s Rodeløkka district. The restaurant received the highest rating from Dagbladet reviewers in 2019 and was awarded a Michelin star in 2022.

Three new Norwegian restaurants received Michelin stars in 2026, including Credo in Oslo. The city now has eight operating restaurants with Michelin stars, while Norway has 22 in total.