Hjem
Restaurant Hjem was the dream project of chef Alex Nietosvuori and his wife, Ally Thompson-Nietosvuori.
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Hjem was opened in 2019 and Alex was awarded his first Michelin Star in January 2021.
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At Hjem, Alex used produce from the surrounding farms and gardens, fish and seafood from the North Sea and game from the fells all over the Tyne Valley.
With this he created a menu that married his Scandinavian style with our wonderful Northern ingredients.
Next Steps...
After an amazing 6 years of service we made the difficult decision to close the restaurant, so we can focus on our brand new project...Restaurant Freyja, due to open in Autumn 2026.
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In the meantime, we will be keeping our incredible team together by taking up a temporary residency at
South Causey Inn, in County Durham, for the next 6 months, opening on February 4th 2026.
For bookings for Hjem at South Causey Inn please click here.
Our Team
Alex Nietosvuori
Chef Patron
Alex started his cooking career at 2 Michelin star Daniel Berlin Krog, not far from his home town in Southern Skåne. He learnt hard work and determination as well as a respect for using quality produce and the importance of using foraging as a resource. He went on to work for ex-Noma sous chefs, Sam Nutter and Victor Wågman, as head chef at their Copenhagen nose-to-tail restaurant, Bror. He spent time staging at numerous restaurants in Scandinavia including Frantzen in Stockholm, and Fäviken in Northern Sweden before moving to Oslo to continue his career at 3 Michelin star Maaemo. His love for Northumberland’s landscape and produce (and Ally!) made relocating to the North East an easy decision for him.
Ally Thompson-Nietosvuori
Heart of House
Ally’s family come from just down the road so moving back to the North East really was coming Hjem for her. Since leaving the North East to travel the world back in 2008 Ally has managed restaurants in Australia, New Zealand, Copenhagen and London. The North East has been calling her back though and when the opportunity arose to take over the management of the Hadrian Hotel and open restaurant Hjem she jumped at the chance to showcase Northumbrian produce and Northern hospitality.
