A restaurant inspired by both Scandinavian and North Eastern culture is opening its doors in Northumberland.
Restaurant Hjem will open in Wall village, near Hexham, and takes its name from the Scandinavian and Northumbrian name for home.
Its dishes will be inspired from foods from both regions, with the opening menu including meals such as wild rabbit broth; sunflower seed tart with chicken liver and pine; scallops, bacon and kale; Guinea fowl with Jerusalem artichoke; and Horseradish sorbet, apple caramel and blossom.
The eatery is the dream project of Swedish chef Alex Nietosvuori and his partner Ally Thompson, who plan to use locally sourced produce to make their international dishes.
Mr Nietosvuori said: “Having worked in some amazing restaurants, I always knew I wanted to have my own restaurant one day. I want to lead my own team and mentor my chefs in the way that previous chefs have mentored and inspired me.
“I have a real passion for developing new dishes and menus and love finding new techniques for working with ingredients. Northumberland is an amazing place for sourcing top quality produce and I’ve loved developing a whole range of dishes.”
Ingredients used in the restaurant will be sourced from a number of local suppliers and gardens, with beef coming from Sewingshields Farm, poultry from Acomb’s Kerr Henry, and vegetables from Little Harle based Ken Holland.
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Ms Thompson said: “I grew up in Northumberland and didn’t appreciate how beautiful it was until I left. I want to show off the best of the county and its produce to the rest of the UK and beyond.
“Bringing both mine and Alex’s backgrounds and passions together to offer a new fine dining experience in Northumberland feels very exciting and special. We’ve been talking about this for such a long time, it’s wonderful to see everything coming together just as we imagined.
“The past few weeks have seen a lot of hard work, but looking around the restaurant and seeing people enjoying what we’ve created makes it all worthwhile. We can’t wait to welcome lots of people to our Hjem.”
The duo have more than 20 years experience working in top restaurants across the UK and Scandinavian and decided it was time to use that experience to start their own venture.
Diners at Restaurant Hjem can choose from a 12-course tasting menu (£75 per person) or a smaller six-course tasting experience (£45 per person). Some of the courses are small bites while other are larger dishes. The restaurant will also offer wine and juice pairing.
The 24-cover restaurant is opening on May 1 and will be attached to The Hadrian Pub in Wall.
As well as launching the new restaurant, Mr Nietosvuori and Ms Thompson have also taken over the running of The Hadrian.
For those wanting more traditional British meals, a home-cooked menu will also be served at the Hadrian. It will contain dishes such as pork and black pudding sausage roll; Twice Brewed beer battered fish and chips; cauliflower soup with a sourdough roll and Sewingshields Rib Eye steak.
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