Stockholm Restaurant Recommendations

[TheSwede]

Visited newly Michelin-starred restaurant Leijontornet during the week and had a really excellent meal. Not quite as spectacular as Matthias Dahlgren (but who is?) and not quite the cutting edge cooking of Esperanto (not intended to be either), but delicious dishes very much rooted in the nordic/local/seasonal credo.

I thought Leijontornet's food were better than Lux (see above), but this time of the year Lux definitely wins extra points for the dining environment. Dark rustic cellar (Leijontornet) vs park and water views (Lux).

Leijontornet offer two three course menus. Both comes with amuses and two bonus courses so in effect you get six dishes (plus canapés with the coffe).

My menu was:

Amuses/snacks: Crispy fish skin, crispy pigs ears, crispy pork jowls with dipping sauces.

Langoustine from Skagerrak

Luke warm langoustine, crispy side of pork, pearl barley, morels, sorrel, common wood sorrel and shoots of spruce

Extra dish: Smoked char

Duck from Hagbygård

Breast of duck fried with thyme, terrine of duck liver, jelly of elder flower, three kinds of onion, poached quail egg and baked cheek of pork

Extra dish: Composed goat cheese course

Rhubarb from Lennartsnäs

Pickled rhubarb, polypody and wheat bun filled with vanilla cream

Canapés

Also very nice home baked bread service with 4-5 different kinds of bread.

Definitely a memorable meal!

Edited May 30, 2008 by TheSwede (log)

[TheSwede]

Revisited Esperanto a week ago. The wow factor wasn't as big as last time when I really was floored by both presentation and ideas (although not always execution - see above). Maybe my expectations was higher this time or I just knew more what would be coming.

The tasting menu was almost completely changed from last time, although the structure was pretty similar.

The outstanding dishes of the evening was the oyster (exceptional) and the pike-perch (very good). The foie gras was also very good.

I had a very nice evening, but I was ever so slightly disappointed with the food when I left.

Menu:

Amuses

Frozen cream of fresh garlic in boneflour and celery salt

Fennelbaked pike-perch with black lemon and cauliflower

Belon oyster from Grebbestad with pearls on celeriac and Bayonne aspic

Kingcrab on sole mousseline with green peas and ramson bavaroise, mayonnaise viande

Spring porridge with morells

Smoked scented foie gras with ginger pressed pears and soft ginger

Salt poached sucklinglamb with a white onion butter and spring vegetables, liver paté on lambs bread and summer truffle

Roses, Champagne and Madeleine

Canapées

[TheSwede]

Visited one star restaurant F12 last week. Finally managed to go with dining companions I could bully into trying the "innovative" tasting menu. Also had the wine menu.

Overall a splendid experience with some fun twists (lobster, lobster jelly and gazpacho served with a drinking straw, terrific chicken served with popcorns and corn kernels, wine menu served as a blind tasting etc).

However, there were some strange choices and/or execution errors:

The two first courses (Shrimp, Lobster) were both pretty acidic. It would have been nice with some sort of break between them.

The pig cheek and the turbot (I think it were) both came with a beige-ish puré. Tasted nice and definitely not the same puré, but strange to serve something so similar looking and similar textured to two courses in a row.

The chicken (or rather the popcorns) were overly salty. That was the only actual error, the other stuff above is just nitpicking. I finished the chicken (wich was perfectly fine) anyway and just ate sparingly of the pocorns. I didn't bother telling the kitchen about it until afterwards.

I had a great time and the food is definitely on par with what is served at Esperanto (perhaps even better than my last visit there) and Leijontornet.

The menu (besides amuses, three of them that I've forgotten and the canapées) was as follows:

SWEDISH RAW SHRIMPS «tiradito» with salicorn and rice crispies

BRETAGNE LOBSTER «on the rocks» with verbena and grilled chili

PIG CHEEK «couvert» with sour plums and F12 caviar

TURBOT «boutarga» with sea urchin and parsley sprouts

FARM CHICKEN «pop corn» with truffle and curry

GOAT’S CHEESE «snickers» with caramelized peanut and sour fudge

PEACH «pressé» with jasmine and dried raspberries

1095:-SEK /119€

[Peter B]

Had a five course lunch at Oaxen last Sunday. My camera was set on some weird mode which made the pictures sort of blurry. Sorry for that

Apertizer 1: Quail egg on air dried ham. Purée (can't remember of what) and rapeseed oil. The ham was outstanding!

Apertizer 2: Smögen shrimps on hot stone which they poured a gel ontop of which resulted in an amazing scent spreading in the room. The shrimp became lightly cooked from the hot stone and were then dipped in the same gel and some basil oil (not seen in picture). Funny and very tasty dish!

Butter on stone. Together with each of the first two dishes came two unique breads.

Starter 1 pic 1: Smoked (minute) warm Norwegian lobster with cream cheese. Spectacular dish! The Norwegian lobster was smoked directly in the bowl it was served in and before placing it on the table the waiter lifted it's lid and put the it under our noses and made us smell the fantastic smoke welling towards us.

Starter 1 pic 2: Purée of confided cabbage, jelly of distilled cockles & bread crumble with acidity. We also got a shot of distilled cockles extract which tasted pretty much like semi warm, slightly salty water. Very exciting!

Starter 2 pic 1: Seared scallops with oyster in oyster jelly & lukewarm tomato salad from Skilleby, foam of horse-radish served with a purée of garden greens & wormwood. Good!

Starter 2 pic 2

Main course: Saddle of venison with herbs from the garden & onion braised brisket of lamb with a “stomp” of Jerusalem artichoke & truffle from Gotland. VERY good classic dish!

Cheeses: Goat's milk cheesecake in burnt bay leafs, chèvre from Ljusterö & foam of "Karl Johan" served with garden cress purée, macadamia nut & crispy rockweed. Nice selection. Fun to have a cheese from Ljusterö as our summer house isn't very far from there.

Pre dessert: It's soo bad my memory is short, I didn't take any notes and this dish isn't in the menu since it was one of the highlights of the evening flavour wise and I can't for my life remember what it was. Some sort of ice cream bathing in a sweet and acidic sauce (maybe bits of ginger in there too) and a sweet and salty crisp. We were told to have a little bit of each component with each bite as they wouldn't taste that good by themselves. Doing this resulted in an explosion of flavours, different textures and temperatures which all came together in a smooth harmony.

Dessert: Lukewarm compote of fall apple under cardamom jelly with cinnamon crumbs & crème caramel mousse. Very very good. The caramel mousse was slightly salty. See the jelly and apples? They looked exactly as the jelly fish we saw in the water when waiting for the car ferry when leaving. Hilarious detail!

Sweets: And lots of them!

Edited September 26, 2008 by Peter B (log)

[TheSwede]

Chef/patron Christer Lingström is leaving Edsbacka Krog, Sweden's only two star, after 26 (!) years. Executive chef Fredrik Pettersson is taking over the restaurant. Since Petterson has been with Lingström for 20 years, I assume the restaurant is in capable hands.

[TheSwede]

I had dinner at Mathias Dahlgren's Matbaren ("The Food Bar") last friday. Matbaren is also located at Grand Hotel, just across the foyer from much more prestigeous Matsalen ("The Dining Room").

Matbaren is a pretty casual dining experience. People can eat at the bar (really the serving counter), at bar tables or at a couple of regular tables. The menu is short and has no real distinction between appetizers or main courses. You order your courses one at the time and they are promptly delivered to your table. When you have finished a course, you order the next etc.

I started with cured salmon, cucumber and horseradish cream, followed by a dry aged beef from Nebraska with oyster butter and jerusalem artichokes. For dessert I had a selection of locally sourced cheeses. My dining companion had the same, except switching the beef for lamb with ratatouille. There is a good selection of wines by the glass.

Overall, it was a good dinner. High quality ingredients served pretty simply, although with some twists such as the oyster butter. Not much "wow factor", but probably not intended to be any either.

Although the setting is casual, the price level is rather high. You are after all dining in Mathias Dahlgren's restaurant, located in the best hotel in Stockholm. An therein lies the main problem with Matbaren. You are paying fine dining prices for excellent produce, but served rather simply and in a casual setting. You will definitely get a good dinner there, but you will be paying a little bit too much for it.

Personally, I much rather go once to Matsalen, then twice to Matbaren.

[blixt]

I ate the 6-course tasting menu with accompanying drinks this evening at Mattias Dahlgren (the Matsal, the restaurant proper, not Matbaren). I had eaten in Bon Lloc a few months before they closed and that was a very memorable meal, but Dahlgren has stepped up his food enormously since Bon Lloc, in my (and obviously others') opinion.

(Names of dishes as they appear in the English menu)

Truffles, corn, nuts

The nibbles with drinks: popcorn that tasted of truffle, delicious; burnt Macadamia nuts that were at such a consistent level of burnt-ness that it was obviously intentional, but nonetheless, just tasted burnt to me.

Cheese with fennel, radish, cress

The first of two amuse, served together. Cheese was smooth & flowing, reminiscent of tallegio but runnier. Very well combined with the garnishes. This was the mouthful when I knew that this food was going to be special.

Smoked salmon, ginger, soya

Also very good. More or less standard flavours but well executed. Served with the cheese, above.

Taste & scent of the wood burning oven

We were told this is Dahlgren's earliest food memory: bread & butter as a three-year-old. (You can see a a sort-of picture of this here). A little nugget of bread was given to each person at the table, served from a wooden block resting on a glass. When we had each taken the nugget, the block was removed and the smoke that was contained in the glass was released around the table. It did indeed smell very pleasant, and made the whole restaurant smell very nice throughout the evening as the various tables got this treatment. The nugget was absolutely loaded with butter, more than I expected, which was a surprise on the bad side of surprises. Perfect toast was served with excellent salty Danish butter, surprisingly (in a good way this time) fresh rapeseed oil, and whipped bacon fat that was delicious with the rye bread. Very enjoyable all in all.

Pickled herring and beet root; potatoes flavoured with beer, capers, onion, veal gravy

This was sill, one of Sweden's national dishes. Every Swedish restaurant must serve sill by order of the national board for sill compliance, or so it seems to me. I find it very dull and stifling of innovation. Yes, it was fine. Yes, I like sill. But for God's sake, serve something else. The veal gravy (consommé en gelee) was excellent.

"La Goya" Manzanilla

This was an inspired choice with the sill. Perfectly dry.

Artichoke & Swedish lobster; seasonal salad, browned butter, dill, lemon

Claws and tails of lobster were chewy, cold and delicously freshly tasting of lemon. The combination with two sorts of richness; the artichoke puree and the browned butter, was fantastic.

Nussberg Alte Reben 2005

This Austrian white was apparently a mix of different varietals that all grow together in one vineyard, so you never one what proportions they're in. It sounded like a recipe for anything but consistency to me but had the requisite richness to stand up to the puree and butter.

Soup of corn, rye & wheat; organic foie gras, truffles, apples

This was phenomenal. It was probably the best treatment of cold foie gras I've ever had, and I love foie gras. The "soup" was extremely thick, and I honestly thought it was mushroom but obviously it was the truffles in it I was tasting. The dish was very helpfully served in four little piles of foie, apple, truffle and a crispy thing that you could scoop up with your spoon. The combination of sour, crunchy, crispy, smooth, rich was superb.

Shea Vinyard 2006

This Pinot Noir from Oregon was in retrospect an unusual choice with the foie, but the corn soup was so meaty and truffley that the earthiness of the pinot worked really well with it.

Handcut tartar of beef & oysters; watercress, tallow vinaigrette, black pepper

This was also phenomenal. I've never had beef tartar but by all accounts this was a very unusual treatment of beef tartar. It was encased in the cress which got you over the pyschological factor of a heap of raw mince in front of you. The oysters were combined with the beef and they provided a stunning saltiness to the meat. I couldn't really perceive the tallow vinaigrette which at the time they told us was tallow mayonnaise, though it sounded awful.

Porter, from Norway

This was, with the sherry, another absolutely inspired choice. The tartar was so light in flavour and texture that it was a bit of a step back from the meatiness of the foie; this porter stepped up to that meaty richness and was utterly unexpected and perfect.

Fillet of deer seasoned with juniper berries; celery, endive, honey

This meat was stunning. The perfumed fragrance of the juniper pervaded the meat and also came through in the crunchy onion garnish. The endive was soft, roasted and yielding and with the rich jus and celery puree elevated the deer. Immensely satisfying. Interestingly was served with raw, grated mushroom that was almost neutral in flavour but provided a lovely additional rubbery texture to this dish.

Barolo Bricco Parussi 2001

Big, brassy Italian was undrinkable without food, with which it worked well.

Cheese

A cheese course isn't included in the six-course menu, so we added it (upselling at work). Swedish cheeses and Swedish cheese boards are rubbish. They refuse to serve French cheese like they serve French wine but I was sure that if anyone would have good Swedish cheese, Mattias Dahlgen would. Turns out there just must not be any decent Swedish cheese. Hard, dry, dull, and ammonia. One soft cheese reminiscent of reblochon was good but that was out of seven-odd. Served with nice melba toast with black sesame seeds and a dried date, which was nice.

VT Gewurz, Alsace, 2005

The waitress recommended port but we plumped for this instead (so I didn't get the producer). Very good.

Frozen Arctic Angelica & sea buckthorn

Pre-desert: Two sorbets, one herb, one "sea buckthorn" which is an orange berry with an usually savoury flavour. These were both superb, and bridged excellent the savoury/sweet divide.

Swedish cheese cake of goatmilk; cherry sorbet, tonka ice cream, cream

This desert was superb aswell. Parts of it were genuinely salty, which proved utterly delicious in an unexpected way. Fruity, fresh, light, moreish.

Vin Doux Naturel Rasteau 2006

Too much. They got other unusual drink combos right; this one wasn't.

Coffee candy; raspberry bush and creme of gold

A teaspoonful of 'creme brulee'; creme with broken shards of caramel on top, with gold leaf. Eating gold leaf at the end of a meal is a very enjoyably luxurious experience.

[ginger chef]

i had exactly the same menu as much as i enjoyed it i found many similar dishes done better at noma the next night. But still i enjoyed it thoroughly

[TheSwede]

...

They refuse to serve French cheese like they serve French wine but I was sure that if anyone would have good Swedish cheese, Mattias Dahlgen would. Turns out there just must not be any decent Swedish cheese. ....

←

The statement about the french cheeses is simply not true. Lots of restaurants serve french cheese here. For example one star Mistral (RIP) used to have the most exquisite cheese board populated with perfectly ripe Philippe Olivier cheeses.

The statement about Swedish cheeses is unfortunately true. There are a couple of good hard cheeses (eg. Västerbotten), but they don't reach the lofty heights of a good Gruyére or Appenzeller. As for soft cheeses, I've had one really outstanding called Granbarksost, reminiscent of a Rebluchon (maybe the same you had?) but most other I've eaten hasn't been any special.

As far as I know, we don't really have a tradition making anything but rather basic hard cheeses here in Sweden. Sometimes "locally sourced" goes too far...

Granbarksost: http://www.jurssmejeri.se/granbark.html

[TheSwede]

Formerly Michelin starred restaurant Mistral makes a comeback! After closing down their tiny boutique venue in Old Town in Stockholm (now taken over by Frantzén/Lindeberg, see above) and taking a one year time out, Björn Vasseur and Fredrik Andersson is opening Mistral again.

The new resturant is located in an old pram factory (!) in the charming suburb of Enskede, within easy taxi distance of central Stockholm. There will 36 seats available and the opening night is Friday 6th of March.

Edited February 27, 2009 by TheSwede (log)

[TheSwede]

The White Guide (our provincial equivalent of the Michelin) is out again. The Stockholm resturants receiving "Highest International Class" are the usual suspects (see above for impressions):

Highest points for food in Stockholm and vicinities goes to:

Mathias Dahlgren - Matsalen (37 points for food)

Lux Stockholm (37 points for food)

Oaxen Skärgårdskrog (37 points for food)

Esperanto (37 points for food)

Frantzén/Lindeberg (37 points for food)

Slightly below are:

Operakällaren (36 points for food)

7. F12 Restaurant (36 points for food)

Notably absent is our only Michelin two star, Edsbacka krog which is having a change of head chef/chef patron right now.

In the "Highest Swedish Class" category you find in Stockholm:

Pontus! (35 points for food)

Leijontornet (35 points for food)

Vassa Eggen (35 points for food)

Divino (34 points for food)

Edsbacka Krog (34 points for food - this is the two star!)

Mathias Dahlgren - Matbaren (32 points for food)

GQ (32 points for food)

PerLei (32 points for food)

Rolfs Kök (32 points for food)

The real dark horse here is Rolfs Kök ("Rolf's Kitchen") which is your basic neighbourhood restaurant but with high ambitions. Since I live within ten minutes walk, it is really a shame I haven't been there for a couple of years.

Otherwise, I pretty much agree with the ranking. I have eaten at most of the resturants above during the last year and it is pretty spot on. Judged from my experinces, I would probably rank F12 higher and Lux, Pontus! (they might have shaped up?) and Divino a bit lower.

[ben mcmayon]

great news for sweden two restaurants holding two michelin stars!!! no real suprises though we would loose at least one star in gothenburg but michelin does take along time to reconise decline!!!!!!

Svenska restauranger med stjärna i Guide Michelin Main Cities of Europe 2009:

Stockholm :

- Mathias Dahlgren Matsalen (ny med två stjärnor, hade en stjärna tidigare)

- Edsbacka krog (två stjärnor)

- Mathias Dahlgren Matbaren (ny stjärna)

- Frantzén/Lindeberg (ny stjärna)

- Esperanto

- Fredsgatan 12

- Lux Stockholm

- Leijontornet

- Operakällaren

Göteborg:

- Kock & Vin

- Sjömagasinet

- 28+

- Fond

- Basement

[TheSwede]

To summarize in english:

Mathias Dahlgrén does indeed receive two stars for Matsalen at Grand Hotel. He also recives one star for his Matbaren.

A new Michelin star also goes to restaurant Frantzén/Lindeberg.

Oherwise the Stockholm stars are the same as last year:

Edsbacka krog keeps their two stars, Esperanto, F 12, Lux, Leijontornet and Operakällaren keep their star.

(Edit: It is indeed Matbaren that receives the one star.)

Edited March 16, 2009 by TheSwede (log)

[Badabing]

To summarize in english:

Mathias Dahlgrén does indeed receive two stars for Matsalen at Grand Hotel. He also recives one star for his Matsalen.

A new Michelin star also goes to restaurant Frantzén/Lindeberg.

Oherwise the Stockholm stars are the same as last year:

Edsbacka krog keeps their two stars, Esperanto, F 12, Lux, Leijontornet and Operakällaren keep their star.

←

Kudos to Dahlgren, that was quite unexpected - not the two stars, but the one for Matbaren. Well deserved though!

So the question rises about which Scandinavian city is the Capital Of Food. Copenhagen - were Noma surprisingly did NOT get their sought after third star - might claim it on basis of having 14 stars in total. However, with Stockholm being the only city with two double stellar restaurants they might now claim the throne based on a higher top level (though only 11 stars in total).

Any thoughts?

Edited March 16, 2009 by Badabing (log)

[TheSwede]

Dagens Nyheter, Sweden's largest newspaper, has a review of newly reopened Mistral today (see above for Mistral info).

The shocker is that Mistral only recives 3 points out of 5, which means "ok". The gist of the review is that Mistral is very expensive, the portions are miniscule, the food is pretentious and sometimes bland. On the other hand DN says that the execution is flawless, the ingredients exceptional and that some of the food is really really good. Or would have been, if you would have gotten more than half a bite on your plate.

Mistral was also reviewed by Svenska Dagbladet, Sweden's second largest newspaper, two weeks ago. They on the other hand give their highes mark, six points out of six, a grade they usually reserve for Mathias Dahlgren, Frantzén-Lindeberg etc.

So, the opions are evidently divided.

[tonto21]

Going to eat in Oaxen on Saturday night, Would have loved to have visited Mathias Dahlgren but he is closed for summer break.

Can anyone recommend two places for a decent dinner (not looking for anything starred) for thursday and friday night in Stockholm? Would like something young, vibrant and creative but not horribly expensive and maybe a more traditional but good place.

Also, any good lunch deals in any of the top places in stockholm during the week?

Thanks.

[tonto21]

Going to eat in Oaxen on Saturday night, Would have loved to have visited Mathias Dahlgren but he is closed for summer break.

Can anyone recommend two places for a decent dinner (not looking for anything starred) for thursday and friday night in Stockholm? Would like something young, vibrant and creative but not horribly expensive and maybe a more traditional but good place.

Also, any good lunch deals in any of the top places in stockholm during the week?

Thanks.

←

Do like the look of frantzen-lindeberg, Does anyone have any information on Mistral, how to find and contact it! I presume both of these are pricey though.

[mdibiaso]

Going to eat in Oaxen on Saturday night, Would have loved to have visited Mathias Dahlgren but he is closed for summer break.

Can anyone recommend two places for a decent dinner (not looking for anything starred) for thursday and friday night in Stockholm? Would like something young, vibrant and creative but not horribly expensive and maybe a more traditional but good place.

Also, any good lunch deals in any of the top places in stockholm during the week?

Thanks.

←

Do like the look of frantzen-lindeberg, Does anyone have any information on Mistral, how to find and contact it! I presume both of these are pricey though.

←

Mistral open for dinner but very expensive. Restaurang Mistral, Sockenvägen 529, Enskededalen Telefon: +46-8-10 12 24

Frantzen-Lindeberg closed until August 14 and also very expensive. You'll have trouble finding stuff open this time of year. Check out Bakfickan at Operakällaren or Sturehof located at Stureplan (big shopping neighborhood).

[Peter B]

Going to eat in Oaxen on Saturday night, Would have loved to have visited Mathias Dahlgren but he is closed for summer break.

Can anyone recommend two places for a decent dinner (not looking for anything starred) for thursday and friday night in Stockholm? Would like something young, vibrant and creative but not horribly expensive and maybe a more traditional but good place.

Also, any good lunch deals in any of the top places in stockholm during the week?

Thanks.

←

Do like the look of frantzen-lindeberg, Does anyone have any information on Mistral, how to find and contact it! I presume both of these are pricey though.

←

Mistral open for dinner but very expensive. Restaurang Mistral, Sockenvägen 529, Enskededalen Telefon: +46-8-10 12 24

Frantzen-Lindeberg closed until August 14 and also very expensive. You'll have trouble finding stuff open this time of year. Check out Bakfickan at Operakällaren or Sturehof located at Stureplan (big shopping neighborhood).

←

The answer to your first request has to be DeVille. I can recommend their tasting menu for about $60.

http://www.restaurangdeville.se/?language=english

Edit: ops guess I was a bit too late as I assume you already left. Might be helpful for someone else though

Edited August 13, 2009 by Peter B (log)

[Badabing]

The new White Guide came out today - with the following results for Stockholm restaurants:

The first number is the food points (maximum 40) and the second one is the total points (maximum 100)

1. Mathias Dahlgren - Matsalen

Stockholm 37/92

Oaxen Krog

Hölö 37/92

4. Esperanto

Stockholm 37/89

6. Operakällaren

Stockholm 36/93 (highest total score of all)

7. F12 Restaurant

Stockholm 36/91

9. Lux Stockholm

Stockholm 36/87

11. Frantzén / Lindeberg

Stockholm 36/84

12. Mistral

Stockholm 36/83

Will we see a third Michelin star for Mathias Dahlgren, or will he have to wait one more year and see Noma take the Nordic throne alone?

[tonto21]

Ate in Mathias Dahlgren in November, Loved it although I think it might be hard to call for three stars, I dont think it's quite there yet. The food is great though and it is no doubt a world class restaurant. Looking forward to his new cookbook aswell, be it in swedish...

J. http://www.flickr.com/photos/tonto21/collections/72157605182380648/

[mdibiaso]

I made it to Mathias Dahlgren about 2 months ago and it is no where near the level of NOMA. Some dishes were good, others ill conceived or poorly executed (ginger in one dish was way too heavily dosed and left a lingering taste that lasted well into the next course. Not very seasonal either with mushrooms appearing in two dishes months after the mushroom season in Sweden is over. And not nearly as Nordic as NOMA. I think NOMA is worth the third star but Dahlgren is max a 1 star.

While I still drool and long for at least 10 different dishes from my two visits to NOMA there is not one dish from Dahlgren that I have a burning desire to eat again.

Edited March 13, 2010 by mdibiaso (log)

[Badabing]

So the Michelin stars for 2010 are in.

TWO STARS

- Frantzén/Lindeberg (New with two stars)

- Mathias Dahlgren Matsalen

ONE STAR:

- Mathias Dahlgren Matbaren

- Esperanto

- Fredsgatan 12

- Lux Stockholm

LOST STARS:

- Operakällaren

- Leijontornet

Comment: Good to see F/L get a second - surprising - star. I haven't had the opportunity to eat there yet, but heard only good things. Mathias Dahlgen will have to wait for his third star, which was probably expected. It would have been too soon. However, with his culinary genius and financial backing of the Wallenbergs, I am sure that he will have both the dedication and means to lift the restaurant to *** within a few years.

Sad to see the lost star of Operakällaren after 13 years. I was there pretty recently and had a very good experience. They were also named the best overall restaurant experience in Sweden by the White Guide just a few weeks ago, so this was quite unexpected in my book. But I'm sure they will be back for 2011 with a well deserved star again.

All in all, it seems the downward spiral is continuing. Copenhagen is now clearly the frontrunner in Scandinavia with its abundance of starred restaurants (even if Sthlm is the only city with two 2-star establishments). It will be interesting to see if Stockholm can gather strength once again and come back...

Edited March 17, 2010 by Badabing (log)

[DanM]

My parents will be in Stockholm next week and I want to set them up for a nice dinner while they are there. They are not foodies and do not care for very fancy restaurants, but they do appreciate good food. I was wondering if anyone has recommendations for restaurants that serve high quality, local, traditional fare.

Thanks!

Dam

[cmling]

Prinsen might fill the bill. If the restaurant has deteriorated since I was last there, I am sure someone knowledgeable will make himself/herself heard!