I had the very fortunate opportunity recently to take a business trip to Berlin for a work conference and as there are very few (not any that I could see) direct flights to the capital of Germany, I decided to stop on the way and finally see the land where my grandfather Frank was originally born before moving to the U.S. – Stockholm, Sweden.
As the plane was landing, I was struck by the number of beautiful green trees. In fact, I read that much of Sweden (70%) is covered by forests. I am used to seeing urban sprawl and suburbs as far as the eye can see when I’m traveling in the states, but that is not the case in Stockholm, which is a city built on 14 different islands that bump up against the Baltic Sea. My whole life I have wanted to see this land and to see if I felt some connection to the people. In short, it met my expectations and impressed me greatly. It is a land of friendly, welcoming faces, who particularly are eager to learn about you and why you are visiting their country. It is safe, relatively clean, and naturally beautiful.
I did a lot of research before going to Stockholm and decided to stay in Sodermalm, which is known as the hip, bohemian area of the city. I prefer to be amongst people who are not tourists, so this proved to be an excellent choice. I stayed at the Hotel Rival, which is located at Mariatorget, a lovely square that is fairly close to the bridge that takes you over to Gamla Stan, the old city. The hotel is owned by Benny Andersson, the Swedish musician and composer, who was a member of the group, ABBA. As a fan of the group, this was certainly appealing as well. The hotel was lovely, and the staff could not have been more helpful and friendly. In fact, everyone was uniformly lovely and patient during my stay in Sweden. Although I do not speak a word of Swedish it was no matter as everyone spoke English perfectly. So much so that I could not recognize if some people were American, which is fairly unusual. The hotel offers a really wonderful breakfast buffet with all manner of breads, fruits, yogurts, cheeses, and meats. A feast for the eyes!
Stockholm does not have a lot of sights to see, however, if there is one thing I recommend that anyone visiting check out, I would have to say that it is the Vasa Museum. The Vasa was a 17th century ship that was salvaged in the 1960s. If this sounds mundane, I must tell you it is not. I had no idea what to expect going into the museum. The ship is perfectly preserved and intact. It sunk on its maiden voyage only 40 minutes into its trip in 1628. The museum is very well laid out with English information panels. I was most intrigued by the skeletal remains of the people who died on the ship. They found about 17-19 people, mainly men, and were able to study their diets, age, and medical history. It is fascinating and they even reconstructed the people’s faces so you can see what they looked like at the time of death. You can’t appreciate how large the ship was until you get away from it. The museum installed sails that actually come out of the top of the building where it is housed to recreate exactly what it once looked like. It is an incredible sight.
Another place to explore is Gamla Stan, where you will find the Royal Palace and Nobel Prize Museum. Admittedly, although I enjoyed wandering the streets of this area, it was very touristy and kitschy with many souvenir shops. I was much happier exploring Sodermalm, which has a lively shopping district and is largely free of tourists, with many locals out basking in the sun and enjoying beers sitting at sidewalk cafes. The sky is magical and lovely most evenings and strolls are rewarded with live music and even a sighting of an American leading a two-step dance marathon with eager patrons. I really enjoyed watching everyone trying to do it while wearing their cowboy boots!
My trip was short but sweet and I loved walking around the city. The architecture reminded me a great deal of cities I have visited in Germany, although I understand it was modeled on Paris. Naturally, I wanted to visit restaurants to get a feel for the food scene. Swedish food is very focused on comfort – smoked pork sausages, game, potatoes and seafood. There is pickled herring, gravlax, prawn cocktails and foraged berries. It’s not a cuisine that necessarily stands out nor does it offer anything particularly crave worthy. However, what it does have is very good. Delicious strawberries and the most perfect blackberries I have ever had in my life. And let’s not forget licorice – which is extremely popular and comes in all flavors and is also served with salt! My brother-in-law Bryan would enjoy the rhubarb which appears in many desserts – I had it in my gelato! I was pleasantly surprised as well when Bryan enjoyed the very salty licorice I brought home! My kids were not at all interested. Maybe Bryan’s Viking heritage is coming to the fore! Here are some of the restaurants and bakeries I enjoyed on my trip:
Restaurants/Bageris
St. Paul Bageri – This spot just around the corner from the Hotel Rival is delightful and offers all of the baked goods for which Sweden is known for including kanelbuller, a cinnamon bun with pearl sugar (the very first thing I ate upon arrival), semlas, a bun filled with whipped cream and cardamom bulle, a knot with cardamom spices. There are also croissants and many other breads and pastries. Coffees are perfect and served in a glass with a spoon if you order a latte. Delicious stop worth the trip!
Pelikan – This is a rustic beer hall with high ceilings in Sodermalm serving classic Swedish fare. It’s actually one of the oldest restaurants from 1773, so naturally, I had to check it out. On the menu, you will find reindeer, steak tartare, and many other specialities. I tried the kottbullar, or the Swedish meatballs and they were delicious, they were fairly smooth in texture with a slightly sweet gravy and served with a side of lingonberries and mashed potatoes. Much better than what I have had at IKEA! I highly recommend it and it was nice seeing locals out also enjoying a meal there, which was great.
Art Bageri – This is a location that is actually part of the NK department store in Norrmalm. They offer virtually every kind of pastry imaginable including the Swedish classics. I wanted to try the princess cake, which has layers of sponge cake, raspberry jam and vanilla custard encased in icing with a green marzipan coating. It’s quite pretty and delicate looking. I really enjoyed the coffee I had there, but I was not hungry after the lovely breakfast I enjoyed at Hotel Rival!
Sturehof – On the recommendation of Audra, a friend and former colleague in the restaurant business from many years ago, I went to Sturehof for lunch. It’s a famous seafood and shellfish restaurant owned by Svenska Brasserier that goes back to 1887 when the location started originally as a beerhall. It celebrated its 130th anniversary in 2017. If it’s lasted that long, they must be doing something right! For lunch, I had a glass of champagne and shrimp salad made with tiny shrimps in a mayo-based dressing served on buttered toast points. It was just what I needed; however, they offer virtually all kinds of dishes made with fish and seafood in a comfortable and lively atmosphere. One fun fact: supposedly, this is where Volvo was “born” when the founders decided to go into business with each other and founded the automotive company. How cool is that?
Omnipollos Hatt – This is a fun award-winning brewery and bar serving some great pizzas. It’s very small and crowded – quite popular with the locals. I tried the ranch water beer which was infused with grapefruit – quite honestly – it was a bit too sour for my liking, but the pizza was fabulous. I had the #7, which has buffalo mozzarella, pimentos de padron and Spanish chorizo. I really enjoyed it, and the crust was terrific. I really wanted to try #4 which had tomato, provolone, pancetta, vanilla marinated apricots, and chili flakes. It sounded really good, but when you are traveling alone, there are only so many things you can eat!
Fotografiska – This is a really great museum devoted to photography and located in Sodermalm right on the harbor looking out towards Djurgården and Ostermalm. As such, it has a beautiful restaurant on the top floor with stunning views. It’s a great place to enjoy fika, the Swedish custom of enjoying afternoon coffee with a pastry. Or you can have dinner with a gorgeous view of the harbor and all that lies before you. The museum also has a wonderful shop. I stopped for a glass of champagne and admired the people below taking the ferry or the nearby cruise ship heading to Finland.
Recommendations
1. Take the Ferry to Djurgården and Visit Museums – It was amazing how easy it was to hop on the ferry – simply swiping your card to pay the nominal fee and taking a lovely ride over to Djurgården, part of the Royal National City Park. Once there, you can enjoy amusement park rides (if there in temperate weather) at Grona Lund, eat at a waterfront café, visit world class museums, or even see Skansen, an open-air museum that shares exhibits on Sweden’s traditional people and ways of life. This is the best place in the city to view a sunset with the most beautiful vantage points.
2. Try Authentic Swedish Food – While growing up, the only thing I knew about Swedish food was that they like herring, since we always ate herring and crackers on New Year’s Day. I assume this was a holdover of what my dad grew up with in terms of his dad and what his parents ate. Needless to say, I wasn’t too excited about it and vastly preferred the food of my Italian relatives, which fortunately given I had 3 grandparents of that persuasion tended to win out! While in Stockholm or any part of Sweden, you should definitely try Swedish meatballs (köttbullar). They are much better than anything you may have tried stateside from IKEA. Another place to visit that I really enjoyed was the Östermalm Market Hall, which has numerous stalls offering fresh produce (the most delicious perfect blackberries ever), pastries, and beautiful specimens of smorrebrod, those beautifully presented open faced sandwiches you see all over Stockholm.
3. Take an Evening Walk in Södermalm – As mentioned, I stayed in this area of the city and really enjoyed it. It’s a district known for its hip and relaxed atmosphere, as well as its creative and trendy residents. Explore vintage stores and boutiques, coffee shops and galleries, and bars open long into the night. For an afternoon stroll, there’s really nowhere better. I found a street filled to the brim with people sitting at sidewalk cafes and enjoying the most beautiful weather and live music. It was a completely different vibe to what I experienced walking around Normalm and Ostermalm and is worth checking out. There is also a fine English language bookshop, the English Bookstore that is fun to visit.
4. Enjoy a Fika - Fika is the approach that Swedish people take to enjoying a cup of coffee and a snack. It is similar to afternoon tea in England and is a time to socialize, check in with each other, and unwind. There are many bakeries (or bageris) in Stockholm where this can be enjoyed. There are numerous pastries as well that are traditional to Sweden that should be tried including kanelbullar (cinnamon buns) which are knotted buns with pearl sugar on top, or kardemummabullar, which is a similar bun with cardamom. One item I did not get to try but I saw at many places was the Princess Cake. It’s a sponge cake with a pale green marzipan layer on top filled with custard and cream and raspberry jam. Whatever you choose, you will enjoy it! I did love the way they served their hot coffees in tall glasses with a long spoon. I feel like it is a bit fancy and felt very dignified having my coffee break!
5. Explore Stockholm’s Waterways –The whole Stockholm archipelago spreads across 80 kilometres (50 miles) and over 30,000 islands, divided by channels you can explore by boat. These range from small islands to bustling areas filled with visitors. There are also cruise ships leaving each day to travel to Finland. I would have loved to have visited Finland, but that will have to be another time. No visit to Stockholm is really complete without taking to the water.
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