Is Red Viking Restaurant Still Open? Food Paradise Update (Solvang, CA)
Current status
As of September 2026, Red Viking Restaurant is open — confirmed via the restaurant's current website/social account, accessed September 8, 2026.
Last verified
What the source shows: The business's own website, checked 2026-09-08, shows current hours and a menu change away from the old buffet format, and Yelp's August 2026 listing shows no closure flag.
- Season / episode Season 10, Episode 5
- Address 1684 Copenhagen Dr, Solvang, CA 93463
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What happened after Food Paradise?
On Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives' 'Passport on a Plate' episode, Guy Fieri highlighted the Red Viking Restaurant for Danish and Scandinavian dishes including aebleskiver and open-face sandwiches served alongside American plates. The restaurant is a family operation the Olsen family, who emigrated from Denmark, has run in Solvang since 1970, near the town's Danish-heritage shopping district on Copenhagen Drive. Since the broadcast, the restaurant's own website, checked 2026-09-08, notes it no longer runs a buffet-style smorgasbord and now serves a full printed menu, with posted hours of 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. daily and the same Copenhagen Drive phone number. Yelp's page for the restaurant, updated 2026-08, carries more than 900 reviews with no closure flag, consistent with the website's current hours and menu.
Featured on Food Paradise
- Show
- Food Paradise
- Original air date
- Not confirmed
- Episode title
- Passport on a Plate
- What was featured
- Danish family smorgasbord serving Scandinavian and American comfort dishes
- Role
- Featured restaurant
- Name on the broadcast
- Red Viking Restaurant
Frequently asked questions
Is Red Viking Restaurant still open in 2026?
As of September 2026, Red Viking Restaurant is open — confirmed via the restaurant's current website/social account, accessed September 8, 2026.
What happened to Red Viking Restaurant after Food Paradise?
On Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives' 'Passport on a Plate' episode, Guy Fieri highlighted the Red Viking Restaurant for Danish and Scandinavian dishes including aebleskiver and open-face sandwiches served alongside American plates. As of September 2026, Red Viking Restaurant is open — confirmed via the restaurant's current website/social account, accessed September 8, 2026.
Where is Red Viking Restaurant located?
1684 Copenhagen Dr, Solvang, CA 93463. That is the address on the record as of September 7, 2026.
What season and episode of Food Paradise featured Red Viking Restaurant?
Season 10, Episode 5 of Food Paradise. The episode is titled “Passport on a Plate”.
What do reviews say since Food Paradise?
Yelp's page for the restaurant, updated 2026-08, carries more than 900 reviews with no closure flag, consistent with the website's current hours and menu. We summarise what dated sources report; we do not publish our own rating.
Is Red Viking Restaurant still using the Food Paradise menu or branding?
Since the broadcast, the restaurant's own website, checked 2026-09-08, notes it no longer runs a buffet-style smorgasbord and now serves a full printed menu, with posted hours of 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. daily and the same Copenhagen Drive phone number. Anything newer than our last check on September 7, 2026 may not be reflected here.
Every status on this site carries a confidence label and a date, and names the source it rests on. Read the Editorial & Corrections Policy for what each label means and how quickly we act on corrections. The questions above are generated from this record's own published fields — we never publish a question we cannot answer from the data.
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Visit info
- Address
- 1684 Copenhagen Dr, Solvang, CA 93463
- Venue type
- restaurant
- Official website
- theredvikingrestaurant.com
- State hub
- TV restaurants in California
Businesses change fast. Always confirm directly with the restaurant — call ahead, or check its own current website or social media — before making plans around anything on this page.
Sources
- theredvikingrestaurant.com — https://www.theredvikingrestaurant.com/
- Yelp — https://www.yelp.com/biz/red-viking-restaurant-solvang
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Record fp-0681 · last verified .