Grand Hotel – Afternoon Tea

Södra Blasieholmshamnen 8
+46 (0) 86 79 35 85
Monday-Sunday 14:00-17:00
www.grandhotel.se
Map

We’ve recently fallen into the habit of having tea at Chaikhana on Sunday afternoons.  There are other tea houses we should probably be trying, but something keeps drawing us back to our favorite.  So it was a pleasant surprise when S’s mother decided to celebrate her birthday with afternoon tea at the Grand Hotel.

The Grand offers a lovely view of the royal palace and Gamla Stan (particularly nice if you’re lucky enough to be seating on the varanda).  The hotel itself is everything one would expect it to be, with beautiful high ceilings and ornate decorations.  A bit old-fashioned perhaps, but there is a certain charm to enjoying a small feast of tea and scones while observing the other guests.  The combinations are endless; the middle-aged man with the beautiful young blonde, the old ladies in the fur coats, the American tourists, and the man who feeds his cocker spaniel tea sandwiches.

The afternoon tea is served in the Cadier Bar, to the right of the entrance.  It is possible to book a table a month or more in advance, but the hotel only allows half of the tables to be booked, so you can also just go and try your luck.

The afternoon tea itself consists of a veritable tower of tasty tidbits, a glass of champagne, and tea.  The food is in three layers: scones on top, sandwiches in the middle, and sweets on the bottom.  One of each is provided for each person.  The scones are plain and chocolate chip.  We agree that they are mediocre at best, and no comparison for Chaikhana.  The sandwiches, however, are a real treat.  Fillings include reindeer and lingonberry, Swedish shrimp salad, salmon and caviar, and porcini mushrooms.  All were excellent.  The sweets were a bit disappointing.  Not bad, but not really exciting either.  Maybe we were just too full.  The Champagne is excellent, the Grand Hotel’s standard Pol Roger.  The tea was also noteworthy.  The hotel has their own blend, which is similar to Earl Grey, the nicest we’ve had of it’s kind.  All this for 395 kr/person.

The price is certainly a bit on the high side, and we won’t be going on our own, but the experience was lovely and certainly out of the ordinary.  We wish the scones and sweets could match the quality of the sandwiches, but that would make it dangerously tempting…

Summary: Great atmosphere for a special occasion, but a bit pricey for the quality of the food.

Rating: *

Sirap

Brunch #5 (toast not pictured).

Surbrunsgatan 31
+46 (0) 86 12 94 19
Monday-Friday 9:00-18:00
Saturday-Sunday 11:00-17:00
www.cafesirap.se
Map

We went to Sirap for a late brunch on Saturday with S’s friend O and his flatmate.

L: I have to admit that I tend to be skeptical of places in Stockholm that claim to serve real American food of any kind, particularly those specializing in brunch.  Most such places offer a ridiculously expense buffet of things I don’t want.  Think a table covered in prince sausages (prinskorv), bad scrambled eggs, stale toast, and cold Swedish pancakes for around 120 kr each.  Exciting, no?  No.

But I digress.  Suffice it to say that I probably would have avoided it had not O been such a winning fellow.

The first impression was not great.  The place was hideously overcrowded an underserved, but the food looked amazing.  You can see beautiful and surprisingly realistic pictures of the food on their website.  Annoyingly there is no service, so you have to queue to make your order.  Despite the fact that we were lucky and there were only a few people in front of us in line it took about 20 minutes.  The person who took the orders also had to make the coffee – not very efficient.

After having managed to place the order, it was about another 20 minutes before the food came – a grueling 20 minutes of starvation while watching other people stuff down delicious breakfast, might I add.

So worth it though.  Fabulous fluffy American pancakes with lashings of maple syrup, generous amounts of bacon, and some of the best scrambled eggs I’ve had at a restaurant.  S had the Brunch #5 for 100 kr (which I stole from), and I had the Ceasar Wrap for 85 kr.  The wrap was heaven.  I didn’t realize how much I missed the American version of Ceasar salad.  It was full of chicken and bacon and so huge I had serious problems finishing, despite the long wait.

I recommend reserving a table if you plan to go on Saturday or Sunday morning.  The place tends to be packed.  The crowd is a bit interesting as it seems to be a mix of 20-something Söder-dwelling Indie types and rich kids who have wandered over from Östermalm.

Summary: Great food.  If you’re missing real American breakfast this is your place.  The wait is way too long, with better service we would definitely add a star.  We’ll be back.

Rating: ***

Chaikhana

Lovely tea.

Svartmansgatan 23
08-24 45 00
Monday-Friday 11:00-19:00
Saturday-Sunday 12:00-18:00
www.chaikhana.se
Map

L: I remember walking past Chaikhana one day a couple of years ago. It was raining and cold, and I thought a nice warm pot of tea would cheer me up considerably. Then I saw the price and nearly peed my pants. One pot of tea for one person – 60 kr. At the time I was an extremely poor student, and that was beyond luxury. I took the subway home and made my own pot of tea.

Now that I have a job, we finally ventured back one rainy Sunday to try it out. I must say, I’m in love with this place. I don’t even think the prices are that bad anymore. I think that’s my scone addiction talking, the prices are still a bit on the high side, but oh the scones. The scones cost 60 kr for 3, served with orange marmalade, black currant jam, and clotted cream. That’s right, real clotted cream. S’s favourite thing is the Ceasar salad at 110 kr or 140 kr with a pot of tea. The salad is perfection with avocado, chicken, bacon, tomatoes, and homemade croutons. Unfortunately, they also put celery in it, which is just a bit odd. I recommend you request they not put in the celery. We always share the pot of tea, which seems to annoy them, but works perfectly. It’s enough for about 2 cups each, which is plenty for us.

The location is perfect as well, right next to the German church (Tyskakyrkan) on Gamla Stan. You can sit there on a Sunday afternoon and watch the wedding parties go in and out. There’s outdoor seating during nice weather.

I also find the staff endearing, though others might find them a bit on the forgetful side. About half the time they forget to leave the celery out of the salad as requested.

We had a bit of a strange experience a couple of weeks ago. The tea tasted very strongly lemony. There wasn’t supposed to be any lemon in it, so we asked. It turned out there was something wrong with the water. The staff was great. They apologized three or four times and brought us free cider while they made a new pot. The cider is another small bit of heaven. It’s totally non-alcoholic and not to be associated with the sweet swill one gets in Swedish bars. Think of the best apple juice you’ve ever had and then make it lightly sparkling. Perfection. I’ve been looking for it all over in grocery stores and the like, but have yet to find a place that carries it. It’s something French, though the name escapes me now.

Chaikhana tends to be booked up on Sunday afternoons, so if you plan to go then, I recommend you make a reservation.

Summary: Perfection, but still a little on the pricey side. The scones are a must. Cider is a perfect alternative for non-tea drinkers.

Rating: ***

Bagel Street Cafe

St. Eriksgatan 80
+46 (0) 834 24 20
Monday-Thursday 10:00-18:00
Friday-Sunday 10:00-17:00
www.bagelstreet.se
Map

We’ve been visiting Bagel Street periodically since discovering the cafe last summer.

S: There’s no doubt that more than 60 kr seems a bit pricy for a bagel, but it’s actually a pretty good deal considering that the bagels are filled to the brim with tasty ingredients.  My favorite – the classic – has cream cheese, tomatoes, lots of avacado, lettuce, pesto, and salami.  Even when L and I split a bagel we both come away feeling pretty stuffed.  During the week it’s a good lunch deal.  You get a choose a bagel + drink (cold or warm, including espresso drinks) for 75 kr.  Not bad at all.  Particularly nice when it’s summer and you can sit out.

L:  I don’t have much to add – only that this is one of my top three places to visit the morning after a night out on the town!  The staff here is great too, always nice and friendly.

Summary: Great place to get stuffed, especially during summer.  One of the only places in Stockholm with decent bagels.

Rating: **

Amida Kolgrill

Folkungagatan 76
+46 (0) 84 42 03 60
Monday-Friday 10:00-23:00
Saturday-Sunday 12:00-23:00
http://www.amida.se/
Map

S: So I have been working on Södermalm for a while which of course gives ample opportunities to try out lunch places. On of my current favourites is the small but rather nice Amida Kolgrill. The prices are quite low; 69 kr for lunch including soda and coffee, and about 70-100 kr for dinner.

Personally I’m a big fan of their lamb, either Ali Nazik (which really you should only get for dinner because the lunch special is a very good deal) or the spits made with ground lamb and a lot of middle eastern spices, I wouldn’t call it hot by any stretch of the imagination but it is nice with some food that actually tastes like something.

All the food comes freshly grilled while you wait with a nice smoky flavour courtesy of the fact that they use real coal (as they should of course). Despite the fact that it is freshly grilled the food actually comes very fast; waiting time of over 10 minutes is very uncommon.

Summary: Good eastern food at reasonable prices, great when on a budget or a time constraint.

Rating: **

Muffin Bakery

Muffin Bakery on Drottninggatan

Locations:
Fridhemsgatan 3 (Kungsholmen)
+46 (0) 86 51 88 00‎

Drottninggatan 73 (Norrmalm)
+46 (0) 84 11 68 88‎

Tegnérgatan 11 (Vasastan)
+46 (0) 820 69 40‎

Linnégatan 42 (Östermalm)
+46 (0) 86 63 02 22‎

Monday-Thursday 9:00-19:00
Friday-Sunday 9:00-17:00
www.muffinbakery.se
Map (all locations)

L: My American friend S recommended this place for our weekend fika.  It was fantastic!  I should make her suggest fika places more often.  I find it difficult to find places for fika that both have good food and coffee and a nice place to sit.  The Muffin Bakery satisfied on both counts, despite being a chain.

We met up at the Fridhemsgatan location, which features spacious outdoor seating.  It’s great not to be perched on the sidewalk for once, but I did think the AstroTurf under the tables was a bit odd.  One danger is that you may be attacked by a large bird who will steal your muffin, but it seems that they are usually occupied with food in the street.  S and I guessed that the cafe might be sacrificing an occasional muffin to the birds to keep the customers safe.

Ah, the muffins.  They are large and lovely.  Tons of flavors, the ones I remember include: chocolate cheesecake, strawberry cheesecake, apple cinnamon, and carrot cake.  Don’t worry, they will have something for you.  They even had a few ‘healthy’ looking muffins.  Prices are average for Stockholm.  For a muffin and cappuccino it costs around 60 kr.   The cappuccino was good, but not outstanding.

I’ve been past the other locations.  All seem nice enough, but the nicest outdoor seating is definitely at the Fridhemsgatan cafe.

Summary: Great place for a fika, especially if  you’re American and craving a huge American-style muffin.

Rating: **

Roxy

Nytorget 6
116 40 Stockholm
Sweden
+46 (0) 864 096 55
Tuesday-Thursday, Sunday 17:00-00:00
Friday-Saturday 17:00-1:00
Monday closed
www.roxysofo.se
Map

L: Casual dinner out with my lovely friend L was the perfect chance to try out Roxy, which has been sitting on my restaurant queue for a while now.  Roxy is located in the trendy SoFo area of Södermalm on Nytorget.  The restaurant itsself is simultaneously both hip and cosy, with small nooks built into some of the walls.

When I arrived there were no waiters standing near the door, so I walked over to the bar to ask for our table.  When I told the waitress there my name and reservation she grumpily said that she would help me in a few minutes and continued preparing drinks for a table.  Not great.  I mean, how hard is it to understand that you should help the person standing in front of you and then fix the drinks???

The menu is quite impressive, including small dishes, medium dishes, and main courses.  I had heard that the best is to take several small dishes and have a tapa-style meal, but when I asked the waitress how many it would take I was a bit put off by the idea of having 3-5 small dishes costing from 73-99 kr.  I settled on the chorizo stuffed chicken (198 kr), and L took the grilled fillet of beef (240 kr).

No complaints about the food: the chicken was moist and succulent.  The choritzo made for an interesting flavor combination.  The mashed potatoes on the side were rustic and lumpy, just the way I like them.  L was also quite satisfied with her food.

At some point during the evening we realized that we seemed to be the only straight people there.  No idea if it was a coincidence or if we just missed something, but it made for great people-watching.

Summary: Good solid food at ok prices.  A great place to take a group of friends.

Rating: **

Döden i Grytan

Norrtullsgatan 61
113 45 Stockholm
Sweden
+46 (0) 832 50 95
Monday-Saturday 17:30-23:30
Sunday 17:30-22:30
Map

The name translates roughly to “Death in a Pot,” which doesn’t exactly sound romantic, but it is.  The light is warm and the unfinished brick walls lend an air of rustic romance.  This restaurant has long been one of our favorites; the site of many a celebratory birthday dinner.  It’s one of very few places in Stockholm where are guaranteed great Italian food.  That being said, the portions are much larger than traditional in Italy, so don’t expect to be able to finish three courses.

The prices are moderate for the quantity and quality of the food.  Appetizers are a bit under 100 kr, pastas around 150 kr, meat dishes average about 200-250 kr.  The wine list has a good selection of Italian wines at reasonable prices (for Sweden).  Often we visit for a little mid-week luxury.  Pasta and a glass of wine each costs around 400 kr total.

L: Most recently, I was there for a birthday dinner with my lovely friend A.  I had my favorite dish – the pasta all’ amatriciana.  Lovely tomato-based pasta with pecorino and bits of pancetta served with crispy pancetta on the top.  Perfection.

A had the rabbit, which I’ve never tried.  She pronounced it to be melt-in-the-mouth delicousness.  

The only real downside is that the service isn’t great.  It’s not terrible, but it can feel a bit abrupt at times.
 
Summary: Fantastic food (particularly the main courses), a cozy atmosphere, and acceptable service at good prices.

Rating: ***

Hemma Hos Julia

Sankt Eriksgatan 15
112 39 Stockholm
Sweden
+46 (0) 86 51 45 15
Monday-Thursday 11:00-21:00
Friday-Sunday 11:00-19:00
Map

We finally made it to Hemma Hos Julia this evening for a light dinner. L has been pushing for it for a while now, obsessed with the idea of finding a replacement for her beloved university cafe. The weather was beautiful, so we decided dinner outside sounded lovely. Hemma Hos Julia is known for their färskost (fresh cheese), which was the inspiration for the cafe itsself.

L: I ordered a färskost sandich with tomato-basil and garlic flavored cheeses for a bit less than 50 kr. I’m a total sucker for flavored cream cheese on nice bread, so I was pretty sure this would be great. It was ok. Basically what I got was a plain whole wheat baguette of the grocery store variety and two generous plopps of fresh cheese. It was tasty, but really nothing special. The fresh cheese was pretty much on par with what you buy in the grocery store. If we ever go back I will definitely try some of the sweets, they looked nice and there were a lot to choose from.

The place itsself was uninspired.  Shabby without being chic on the inside, rickety tables on the sidewalk outside.

Summary: Unimpressive, but not terrible.  We probably won’t be back.

Rating: No star

Café Panorama

Sergels torg 3
11157 Stockholm
Sweden
+46 (0) 821 10 35
Tuesday-Friday 11:00-19:00
Saturday 11:00-18:00
Sunday 11:00-17:00
Closed Mondays
Map

L: I often find myself wandering around town looking for a cosy cafe where I can sit down and have a chat with a friend.  Yesterday I was out with C, and we decided to try out the cafe at the top of Kulturhuset (the Culture House).  It’s on the fifth floor and during summer they have open air seating on the roof.  Lovely on a warm sunny day. 

The cafe offers an assortment of sweets, sandwiches, salads, and a few main courses.  The coffee and sweets looked nice, but were a bit on the pricey side.  Normal coffee or tea is 25 kr.  Coffee and a piece of cake is around 50-60 kr.  The main courses are a great deal though.  Most cost around 100 kr.  I chose the beef with chevre and honey dressing for 120 kr, including salad and coffee.  C took the gazpacho.

My food was very nice, though the red honey sauce looked misleadingly spicy it was just sweet and honey flavored.  The only disappointment was that the meat was cooked through.  It was a real shame because it would have been absolutely perfect if they had just left it pink in the middle.  It was still outstanding for the price though.  It’s not many places in Stockholm where one can eat a lovely piece of beef for dinner at that price.  C pronounced her gazpacho satisfactory, though with a bit much parsley.

All in all we were very satisfied with the food and the place was nice.  There is a view, but it’s not the nicest in the city.  One sees the rooftops around Sergelstorg and the glass fountain is a bit closer than usual, but it’s not spectacular. 

Summary: Highly recommended for those visiting Kulturhuset (which everyone should do).  Nice food at reasonable prices.  Coffee and sweets are a bit more expensive.

Rating: **