BERGEN (Norway), April 22 — Travelling, we discover Malaysian influences in the most unexpected of places. Case in point: Hallaisen, an artisanal ice cream parlour in the quaint harbour town of Bergen in Norway.

Run by half-Norwegian, half-Malaysian She-Fah Szetu and her partner May Yee Tee, co-founder of The Last Polka in Kuala Lumpur, Hallaisen gets its name from how Bergen locals greet each other.

Here, we are greeted by creamy scoops with familiar South-east Asian flavours such as Vietnamesisk Kaffe (dark roast arabica beans blended with sweet condensed milk) as well as more Norwegian nods like Melk & Honning (milk with heather honey from Voss). What a pleasant — and delectable surprise!

Hallaisen, an artisanal ice cream parlour in Bergen, Norway.
Hallaisen, an artisanal ice cream parlour in Bergen, Norway.

How did the dynamic duo come about starting an ice cream shop here? The Norwegian town isn’t the first place we’d imagine finding a cocktail called Pandan Sour or an affogato made with salted gula Melaka ice cream. It all started during the summer of 2015; they were taking some time off in Bergen, where She-Fah had grown up.

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May explains, “There was a sort of excitement, a growing movement among independent businesses and a shift towards ‘Neo-Fjordic’ produce and cuisine. We also noticed that there wasn’t really a homegrown Bergen ice cream shop even though Norwegian dairy is excellent and Norway is one of the highest per capita consumers of ice cream in the world!”

Sensing an opportunity, they spoke to local developers who were rejuvenating the historic Skostredet street. For years, Skostredet was left derelict though it was an important trading street during the medieval Hanseatic era. A proposal to create Bergen’s first local ice cream shop was met with a resounding yes from the developers.

As May had previously built an independent ice cream business from scratch, she came with a wealth of relevant experience. She says, “The most important lesson The Last Polka taught me is to go into a business that you are truly excited about.

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Making money and building a sustainable business too, of course, but on the bad days, or when I’m just exhausted from it all, loving the product and returning to that basic desire to just make some damn good ice cream keeps me going.”

Partnering with She-Fah added a degree of freshness to the business, given she had worked at BFM, a business radio station, and as a brand strategist before that. She-Fah says, “I heard a lot about the theory of running businesses and building a brand, but this is putting theory into practice which is, of course, very different.”

The former radio journalist viewed the running of Hallaisen as a producer, bringing together different elements to create a new whole and tell a specific story. May says, “We wanted to build a brand and a business that centred around quality ice cream, using local produce and celebrating both the Norwegian and global experience.”

Hallaisen’s ice cream are made with the freshest and best quality ingredients (left). Fresh scoops to order (right).
Hallaisen’s ice cream are made with the freshest and best quality ingredients (left). Fresh scoops to order (right).

Given labour is incredibly expensive in Norway, the pair realised they had to run Hallaisen like a lean startup from the very beginning. May headed ice cream development and production, along with food. She also utilised her artistic skills to drive Hallaisen’s visuals and branding.

She-Fah is the face of the business, effectively the chief executive officer but also the bartender and bicycle delivery person. As Bergen is a city where personal history and a cultural connection matter greatly, she is also their person on the ground, which makes all the difference.

Hallaisen opened in October 2016, a challenging timing given that meant they launched as Bergen, one of the rainiest cities in Northern Europe, was entering its winter season. May says, “We worried about surviving on limited funds and experience. Early supporters loved what we were doing, the sort of do-it-yourself spirit of the place. Hallaisen is Bergen’s first independent ice cream maker, so the way the local community relates to and identifies with that is pretty special.”

As the weather grew warmer, the crowds started to roll in. The ice cream parlour occupies only a 400-square-foot space — including seating, the bar, ice cream chiller and the kitchen where everything is made — so it made for a cosy atmosphere to say the least.

Try a mix of both Norwegian and Malaysian inspired ice cream flavours.
Try a mix of both Norwegian and Malaysian inspired ice cream flavours.

May recalls, “It’s been borderline ridiculous at the peak of summer because we simply cannot make ice cream quickly enough to serve the queues out the door. Right now we’ve got three part-time workers. The team needs to be able to do a lot with quite little. Hiring and training is never easy anywhere in the world, but in Norway there’s the added challenge of cost and responsibility. Workers’ rights are hugely protected here. As employers this means our considerations go far beyond salaries; we pay into things like social services and holiday funds.”

In addition to their standalone shop, Hallaisen supplies ice cream to several restaurants in Bergen too, with more new requests — from hotels and other food-and-beverage (F&B) businesses — than their production can currently handle. They are also working with the city council to develop a pilot street food programme involving pop-ups and food trucks.

Response from customers, both Bergen locals and summer tourists, has been encouraging. May says, “We get remarks like ‘This is the best chocolate ice cream I’ve ever tasted in my life!’ or ‘This is even better than the gelato I had in Italy!’ While we don’t thrive on praise, it is special coming from Norwegians because they aren’t typically prone to hyperbole. The validation really is encouraging, and it keeps us on our toes.”

May says, “We try to keep our flavours interesting — the vegan basil is an accidental hit — and our bestsellers are the Skillingsbolle (an homage to a classic Bergen cinnamon pastry) and Tropisk Salt Karamell (salted gula Melaka). The best part about serving ice cream to our regulars is what we learn from them. We particularly appreciate advice about seasonal produce; where to get what and when.”

Enjoying Hallaisen’s creamy scoops (left). The simple décor to better highlight Hallaisen’s delicious treats (right).
Enjoying Hallaisen’s creamy scoops (left). The simple décor to better highlight Hallaisen’s delicious treats (right).

Loyal customers shared their little foraging secrets: how to pick blueberries from the Fløyen mountain after a day of frost; how to find and treat local produce like birch, sorrel, ramsløk, and cloudberries; and more. A couple from the north of Norway recently sent them 10 kilogrammes of the best cod from the North Sea at the height of the season.

These aren’t your usual regulars, we realise. These are the actions and generosity of people who believe in a product, who buy into an independent business’s philosophy and who become part of their small community. These are ice cream lovers who have become She-Fah and May’s friends, who enjoy the best scoops from two very different and very beautiful worlds.

Hallaisen
Skostredet 5, Bergen, Norway
Tel: +47 928 73 112
www.hallaisen.com