Edsbacka Bistro

Sollentunavägen 223
19135 Sollentuna
Sweden

+46 (0) 8 631 00 34

Monday-Friday 11:30-23:00 (kitchen closed from 15:00-16:00)

Saturday 14:00-23:00

Sunday 14:00-21:00

http://www.edsbackakrog.se

Map

 

Our trip to Edsbacka Bistro was a spontaneous choice when our plans for comforting soup from Sibiriens Soppkök fell through (they were closed for the afternoon). S’s dad suggested Esbacka instead, so we piled in the car and called to make a reservation on the way. Interestingly enough, they open for lunch at 14:00, which seems a bit late, but it worked perfectly for us.

 

We were anticipating a lot. The Bistro is the more laidback incarnation of the famed, 2 Michelin star Edsbacka Krog. It’s recommended in the Michelin guide, but has no stars.

 

The interior was very casual with a nice pub feeling. You could image it was your favorite place to get a pint and a burger until you saw the prices on the menu.

L: As soon as I saw the menu I know I had to have the asparagus starter, “Vit sparris från Smedberga gård med Hollandaisesås.” Translation: “White asparagus from Smedberga garden with Hollandaise.” At 140 kr it was a bit steep, but I’m a sucker for Hollandaise and I never muster up the energy to make it myself.

 

The main course was a bit harder. I considered the chicken with tarragon and duck liver sauce (225 kr), but I was turned off by the duck liver. The Ceasar salad (155 kr) was also tempting, but I felt like it was a stupid choice for such a nice place. I mean, anyone can make a decent Ceasar salad. Finally I settled on the Bistro’s lamb sausage at 195 kr. I love lamb sausages and it felt like a nice cosy choice for a rainy Saturday afternoon. Besides, it seemed to be some kind of specialty.

 

The starter was quite disappointing. At first I was confused when they put an empty plate in front of me (um, didn’t you forget something??), then a few minutes later they made a big deal of bringing out my three pieces of asparagus on a little platter. That’s right, three pieces. I know luxury restaurants don’t really specialize in filling you up, but it still seemed a bit little for 140 kr. I mean, that’s more than 45 kr per piece. So it must be amazing, right? Nope. Hideously overcooked actually. The Hollandaise was nice, but not outstanding.

 

The main course was similarly disappointing. It was three lamb sausages served with some kind of small green legumes and preserved tomatoes in a reduction sauce with potatismos (Swedish mashed potatoes). The sausages were completely unremarkable. Not bad, but certainly nothing special. I’ve done better with ones I bought at the grocery store and fried up myself. The sauce was a typical French reduction, but it was a bit off somehow. I found myself wondering if they scorched it slightly. The vegetables were quite ok, but nothing remarkable, and the potatoes were on the gluey side. I must admit that I almost never like the Swedish version of mashed potatoes though, so this is probably just personal taste.

 

I honestly hope we hit them on an off day. I would hate to think it’s always that bad, but I won’t be back to find out.

S: I started out with the mussels in white wine.  Done right they can be outstanding, and I have many fond memories from trying them out at different places in Italy. Unfortunately these just didn’t quite cut it.  They came with some kind of weird biscuit that had been deep fried (yes you heard right) and a pretty bland aioli that I didn’t quite get the point of.

For the main course I picked the entrecote with bearnaise sauce. Sadly this didn’t live up to expectations either, the bearnaise sauce was the kind you’ll get in a pub or the grocery store, thick fatty and with a mayonnaise-like taste. The meat was very well grilled but without the bearnaise sauce it just didn’t make it.

 

All in all it was pub food of roughly the quality that I’d expect in a sports bar.

Summary: Mediocre food for very high prices. Not recommended.

 

Rating: No Star