Different types of Swedish cafés to try
The Swedish café culture of today is quite refined, something you should take advantage of next time you visit this land of coffee and cake devotees.
Traditional patisseries
A must for the fika lover. You’ll find traditional Swedish cafés (‘konditorier’) in most Swedish towns, many of which feature original interiors from decades past. And they take cake-making seriously – something you’ll realise from the first nibble. Swedish classics such as princess cake, ‘mazarin’ (small almond tarts covered with thin icing) and vanilla hearts are much-loved staples.
Coffee bars
Swedes love their strong brew and are the second largest consumers of coffee in the world, beaten only by the Finns. In short, the Swedish coffee culture is flourishing and the palate searching for robust blends, complex flavours and sustainably sourced beans is never-ending. Over the last decades, a number of craft coffee roasters have surfaced to satisfy these hard-to-impress Swedes.
Artisan bakeries
Swedes love their bread almost as much as their coffee, and artisan bakeries making bread and sweet rolls from locally sourced, organic ingredients have carved a niche for themselves. These bakeries often offer a few seats so you can enjoy their freshly baked bread for breakfast, lunch and fika on the spot. How about a classic prawn sandwich, a heated sourdough bread filled with hearty ingredients or a simple yet delicious cheese sandwich?
Café chains
While Starbucks never really took off in Sweden, there are several Swedish café chains spread over the country. Perfect if you’re after a quick coffee or a central location to rest your feet over a fika and free wifi after a shopping spree. Espresso House was founded in Lund in southern Sweden and is the largest café chain in the Nordic countries. Their sticky chocolate cake is still made from the recipe of one of the founder’s grandmothers. Waynes is Sweden’s first coffee chain, which opened in Stockholm with the ambition to infuse the Swedish fika tradition with Italian coffee and American pastries. Waynes was the first coffee shop to serve Caffe Latte in Sweden. Bröd & Salt is a younger café chain rapidly expanding in Stockholm. Their bread, cookies and buns can be found in stores and hotels all over the city, and everything is baked in the main bakery in Stockholm’s Old Town.