Where to eat in Stockholm
+ Bar Jabroni review and my favorite things at the IKEA Market
Yay, you’re going to Stockholm! Or you’re planning on it, or you’re going to book a trip after you read this. I know I might be a little biased, but Stockholm is a special place - especially in the summer months. A city of islands spread across the Baltic Sea, there’s so much to explore and many ways to go about it (on foot, by ferry, by bike).
I’ve been going to Sweden since I was young, but the trips have morphed over the years. My Grandpa Olle’s side of the family lives up North in Falun and my Grandma Inge had her beautiful property outside of Stockholm by The Royal Palace. That meant that my trips were typically one day in Stockholm and then straight to one of the houses. I’ve spent a lot of time in Stockholm, but since it’s been nearly two years since I’ve last been, I composed a list of restaurants, bars, and food-related hangouts that include some of my favorites, my family’s favorites (the local edition), and places on my radar that I haven’t tried but I would recommend. I’ve mostly explored Stockholm proper, so all of these spots are fairly close to Gamla Stan or Old Stockholm.
Stockholm’s food scene has started to take off in recent years. Swedes are notorious for blending food and bringing together their classics with staples from other international influences. This is thought to be how the Swedish hot dog with skagenröra (shrimp salad) came to be - a mashup of the German frankfurter with a local favorite and boom! The Swedish hot dog was born - or something like that :).
Left to right: Glashuset, Mister French, Restaurang Tradition
Here’s a key to follow along
* = came recommended
+ = my pick (have tried)
^ = my pick (have not tried)
Trendy
Celeste / ^ / Swedish-European food with delicious cocktails and a beautiful terrace
Glashuset / *+ / Beautiful patio restaurant on the water with glass doors and bold, flavorful menu
Mister French / *+ / Go here just for oysters, champagne, and a great patio
Bar Agrikultur / ^ / Gin bar with lots of snack options
Michelin
Aira / ^ / 2 stars, modern Swedish cuisine
Nour / ^ / 1 star, Swedish-Japanese cuisine
Ekstedt / * ^ / 1 star, everything is cooked over fire, no electricity!
Sushi Sho / * / 1 star, Omakase
Classic
Stockholms Gästabud / *+ / serving Swedish comfort food aka “husmanskost”
Sturehof / * / classic and creative seafood dishes
Seafood Gastro / * / inside the Grand Hotel, a tasting menu of high-quality seafood
Gondolen / *+ / a fully suspended restaurant with views over the harbor, touristy but fun!
Fjäderholmarnas Krog / * / beautiful outdoor deck
Restaurant AG - / ^ / top rated steak house
Restaurang Tradition / *+ / Swedish meatballs in Gamla Stan
Fika/Bakeries
Lillebrors / * ^ / - go for a cardamom bun
Vete-katten / * ^ / an institution that goes back to 1928, cutest place
Fabrique / ^ / haven’t been but have been dying to go! Has a NYC and London outpost too
Food Halls
Östermalms Food Hall / *+ / 1880s food hall showcasing different Swedish cuisine
Sturegallerian / *+ / another fun food and shopping hall
Drinks
Mosebacketerrassen / *+ / Beautiful beer garden, a great place to hang out or read a book
Tak / * ^ / Nice rooftop bar and Swedish Japanese fusion food
Söder at Freyja / * ^ / Terrace is great for drinks and a sunset
Södra Teatern / * ^ / Go to the 7th floor (champagne terrace)
Tjoget / * ^ / Mediterranean food and world-class cocktail bar
Spesso / * ^ / Trendy cocktail bar
Lucy’s Flower Shop / *+ / situated in the basement of a 20th-century building downtown
And of course, be sure to grab a street dog after a day of walking or at the end of a night! There are many stands in the city, but Bruno’s Krovbar is always a good choice. If you find yourself in Malmö on a Saturday or Sunday, try your luck at catching Belo’s Swedish Hot Dog stand. This man looks like a legend - I’ve been following along on Instagram and can’t wait to visit. More to come on hot dog culture in Sweden after my trip in July!
One day itinerary
Walk through Gamla Stan, or “Old Town” and explore/browse shops
Take a fika (coffee and sweet) break - try a chokladboll or kardemummabullar or kanelbullar
Take the ferry from Djurgardsfarjan stop to Grona Lund stop and exit
Walk to the Vasa Museum - give yourself at least 2 hours + buy tickets ahead. This is the coolest museum! Great for all ages.
Enjoy a drink at Mosebacketerrassen beer garden
Dinner at Celeste
Rooftop sunset at Södra Teatern
Nightcap at Lucy’s Flower Shop
I hope you find this guide helpful - if you visit any places, drop me a note! I love hearing from you all.
Let’s move on to my restaurant review!
I finally made it in to visit Bar Jabroni. This new restaurant budded from owners Dennis Cantwell and Monica Wong of Palm City Wines, alongside former chef de cuisine of Octavia Robert Hernandez. I’m a huge Palm City Wines fan, so I had high expectations of Bar Jabroni and they delivered. The restaurant has been coined by the owners as “a restaurant disguised as a bar” and it felt just like that. It’s small and intimate yet overwhelmingly welcoming and social. I love their nooks for larger parties - we had five in our group and sat in a booth next to the window looking out onto Haight Street. Working in the restaurant industry you start to see a lot of the same types of dishes across multiple menus in the city - and I get it, it’s extremely hard to balance creativity in food with what’s in season and what sells the most (tomato season is upon us!).
*Sorry the steak and cabbage photo is half-eaten. It’s just a testament to how good it was!
The first thing that came to mind after I had my first few bites was “Wow…this is so inventive”. The combination of ingredients, flavors, the display of food, and the synergy across the menu had everyone at the table very excited. We practically ordered the entire menu, but a few favorites were:
Iacopi farms butter beans with pickled red onion, snap peas miso garlic and chili oil
Green garlic and date pancake, golden sesame, whipped feta (like this was stupid good)
Rize Up sourdough with ramp butter - of course I had to get this - shout out to Z!
But the real star was that Grilled Wagyu Coulotte with charred Arrowhead cabbage, asparagus, and spring onion salsa. I think everyone went home and added roasted cabbage to their dinner list for the week.
Everything was cooked beautifully, the staff was awesome (we were often served by Dennis himself) and let’s not forget about that natural wine list. Don’t skip the bathroom either - the hip hop music is 10/10. Highly recommend checking this spot out!
Last but not least…IKEA.
I recently had a meeting downtown near the new-ish IKEA in San Francisco and decided to pop in and check out the food market section. There is also a cafeteria on this floor where you can get traditional Swedish fare such as a Swedish meatball plate, a cinnamon roll, and a regular and veggie hot dog (woo woo). I skipped the food on this day and went straight for the packaged goods.
I remember the first time I asked my Grandpa Olle to make Swedish meatballs on a visit to Sweden, and he walked over to the freezer and pulled out a bag of frozen meatballs from IKEA, haha. Even the Swedes ride with the IKEA pantry! Also apparently I have renamed the IKEA Market to IKEA Pantry. I think it has a nicer ring to it and will be using it from here on out!
Top picks
IKEA’s spin on a chokladboll (oats, chocolate, coconut, sugar) is incredible. It’s in the refrigerated section and it’s a little different from the traditional kind, but it’s crack. So freaking good, I’m going to go get one right now. Slight coffee taste hidden in there. YUM.
Moose shaped pasta. This is definitely more of an Americanized thing, but moose are very popular in Sweden and these are cute. If you want to be a true Swede, you’ll eat this pasta covered in ketchup with lots of grated parmesan cheese. Don’t knock it till you try it!
The yellow mustard. I’ve heard it had a semi-cult following and I haven't tried it before. It’s SO good! It is a mild yellow mustard that’s slightly sweet with aromatic spices like cardamom and coriander. It’s been described as if dijon and honey mustard had a baby and I would agree.
Not that impressed
While I’m glad they had a candy section, it didn’t do it for me. Swedes invented lördagsgodis or “Saturday Candy” which is where you only eat candy on Saturdays. It’s a fun tradition and speaks to the fact that Swedes are real-life candy monsters. Given this, I think IKEA should bring back the bulk candy or bring in some of the more popular candy brands in Sweden. Skip the candy and eat it in Sweden.
Honestly…that’s my only complaint! Everything else looked fun to try. Lots of smoked salmon, Swedish hard bread, cheeses, mustards, cookies for fika (coffee break), and more.
Package it up in a cute Dalahäst (Dala Horse) tote and have yourself a day!
That’s all for this Sunday - thanks for reading!
Have a great rest of your weekend.
🍓Amelia