An Insider's Guide to Stockholm

While it is important to see “the sites” when visiting a new city, often it is the little things that transcend a visit from ordinary to extraordinary. It’s the nuances of daily life, from discovering the favourite coffee shop of locals, or stumbling across their weekend escape destination of choice, that can give us a true sense of place and the cultural heartbeat of its people. And this adage certainly rings true when visiting Stockholm, Sweden’s capital. We were recently taken under the wing of local Stockholmers to discover a truly Nordic experience in a city that should be on every traveller’s list of must-visit places.

Stockholm is cool, vibrant yet laid-back, and everything works beautifully. It celebrates the world of aesthetics — from architecture to fonts, publishing to fashion, and furniture to food.  It is a true celebration of the form and function of everything around us. Although Stockholm’s ambience is aesthetically charged, the city is not without its heart and quirky, irreverent charm — it’s a place where five-star boutique hotels come together with artisan furniture design, ancient relics, and the natural beauty of the archipelago.

The city is located on Sweden’s south-central east coast, where Lake Mälaren meets the Baltic Sea. The Stockholm Archipelago comprises 24,000 islands, but the city itself occupies a tiny 14 of them, connected by 53 bridges and stunning waterways. As the economic and political heart of Sweden, Stockholm is service sector-driven and with an absence of industrial manufacture combined with strict environmental laws, it is an incredibly clean city. One third of the city’s area is water, another is parkland, and the remaining third is a haven for its green, progressive, design-mad and friendly inhabitants.

The old town, Gamla Stan, is a beautiful medieval city of maze-like cobblestone streets and tight-fitting ochre coloured buildings that seem to hold themselves up with love and luck over the top of quirky shop fronts. Further south is the incredibly hip Södermalm, where beauty reigns supreme as hipsters and bohemians grace the streets lined with shops, art galleries and beautiful old residences. On the opposite side of the old town lies the city centre with its concentration of boutiques including Sweden’s famed Acne and Filippa K, as well as restaurants that serve the sort of meals that leave you speechless and your preconceived notions of meatballs, herring and ABBA far behind.

Mathias Dahlgrens
Eating at this epicurean pit-stop is a must for culinary mavens. This modern bistro doesn’t take itself too seriously, and the food and produce are representative of all that is great about Nordic cuisine — light, fresh, foraged and meticulously selected. 

Grand Hôtel Stockholm,
Södra Blasieholmshamnen 6,
SE-103 27. Tel: +46 8 679 3584,
www.mathiasdahlgren.com

Rosendals Trädgård
These spectacular gardens, once the domain of royalty, are now open to the public for all to witness organic cultivation firsthand. The plots and greenhouses are home to a wide range of biodynamically grown vegetables, flowers and herbs. The café here is extremely popular. The carrot cake alone is well worth the visit. And the short but punchy savoury menu, heavy on the salads during summer, is likely to see you visiting the Rosendals shop to purchase a cookbook to recreate the magic at home.

Stiftelsen Rosendals Trädgård, Rosendalsterrassen 12, SE-115 21.
 Tel: +46 8 5458 1270,
www.rosendalstradgard.se

Urban Deli
If there is one thing that all those long hard winters did for the Swedes, it was to turn their propensity for curing and pickling foods to epic gastronomic proportions. Try the trio of pickled herrings at this great spot known for its laidback food. For the full ‘Swedish’ experience, try the Wallenbergare — a beautiful dish of lingonberries, green peas, brown butter and potatoes. 

Nytorget 4, SE-116 40.
Tel: +46 8 5990 9180,
www.urbandeli.org

B.A.R.
Think fresh seafood and heavy menus served in über cool surrounds amongst the local chi-chi set. Great food, a great drinks list and great people watching make this a hot spot. Traditional dishes are thick and fast on the menu with black pepper grilled red deer, truffle mayonnaise and pickled vegetables and buckwheat cakes with red onion and sour cream.

Blasieholmsgatan 4A,
SE-111 48,
Tel: +46 8611 5337,
http://restaurangbar.se/

Fabrique
This bakery sells thousands of sourdoughs per day; the bread being made with natural ingredients and baked in a traditional way, by hand, around the clock, and in a stone oven. For something sweeter, the traditional kannelbullar bun, particularly the version laden with the sweet husky taste of cardamom, is legendary.  Fabrique has seven outlets in Stockholm.

Tel: +46 7 6647 9103,
www.fabrique.se

Fotografiska Museet
Brunch mavens should make this a necessary pit-stop to refuel all the senses from the phenomenal and continually changing exhibitions of the museum, the million dollar water views and a stunning menu. Tastes change with the seasons but centre around Swedish dishes with favourites including pickled herring with chopped egg, chives, red onion and scallops with marinated apple and Jerusalem artichoke. 

Stadsgårdshamnen 22, SE-116 45.
Tel: + 46 8-50 900 500,
http://en.fotografiska.eu

Ostermalm Food Hall
A must visit for foodies, this food hall is brimming with produce heavy on  seafood and regional specific fruits like ligonberries. Perfect for grazing,  tasting and watching Stockholm's serious foodies as they select their delicacies.

Östermalmstorg SE-114395.
www.ostermalmshallen.se

Parlans Boutique Toffee
Parlans makes toffees with love — and organic cream, real butter and premium sugar. The décor and china are reminiscent of old-time luxury. Enjoy coffee at its best, with sounds from yesteryear and velvety smooth handmade toffees with creative flavour infusions. Parlans knows how to make the most of past and present.

www.parlanskonfektyr.se  

Svenkst Tenn's Tea Salon
Enjoy tea and retail serenity at the tea salon housed within the Svenkst Tenn interior design store. Founded in 1924 by Estrid Ericson, the store is located on Strandväge. Artisanal blends are poured amidst modernist and eclectic furniture, and hallmark Swedish designs like the famous Joseph Frank wallpaper collection.

www.svenskttenn.se


All images courtesy Henrik Trygg / imagebank.sweden.se