DURING the darker months of the year, when the sun seems to hug the horizon for much of the day, Stockholm has a stark beauty. Strolling through the historic old town or along the harbour are appealing pastimes, but only in small doses. Outside the summer months, no weekend break in Stockholm would be complete without spending several hours a day, in between visiting the excellent selection of museums, holed up in a cosy café enjoying a fika (coffee and pastry). Outdoor adventures can wait.
Long winter nights in Stockholm are warmed by festive lights
In mid-winter, the golden hour lasts a whole afternoon in Stockholm’s old town
Stockholm’s squares are transformed with ice skating
However, one acclaimed restaurant has managed to bring a taste of rural Sweden and a feeling of long summer nights by a campfire to central Stockholm year round. Ekstedt has a Michelin star and eschews modern techniques in favour of ancient methods. Chef-restaurateur Niklas Ekstedt was already well-known on the Nordic foodie scene (having made a long-running TV series) and had cut his culinary teeth internationally at big name restaurants including Spain’s El Bulli, when he decided to return to his roots in the forests of northern Sweden for inspiration.
Dense ice floes drift down river
Birds waiting out the winter jostle for space in Stockholm’s central harbour
Tourist boats lie dormant around Stockholm’s waterways until spring returns
The spectacular 17th century warship Vasa now rests in the cavernous museum hall
The result was a commitment to slow cooking over an open fire and an ambitious project to transpose this to a modern urban setting. Since opening in 2011, Ekstedt has thrived on a passion for birch wood and a flair for finding new ways to cook with it. They now have seven fires and c ounting. The heat in the kitchen has reached sauna levels (the chefs say they have become used to it), whilst diners bask in a comforting warmth.
Pastel colours dominate the skyline in the low January sun
Locals and visitors alike enjoy long afternoon lunches in Stockholm’s cafes
Cinnamon buns beckon visitors into the cosy cafes
Wood, copper lighting and slate grey tones showcase the open-fire kitchen
At the heart of the restaurant is the chef’s table, where dishes are openly prepared against a backdrop of flames. Seats here can be reserved on request (for small groups of up to four) and offer a different perspective to the intimate alcoves and classic wooden tables in the rest of the restaurant. My partner and I were entranced by the view of the fire pit and the evocative campfire smell at the chef’s table. Watching each dish being plated up had a theatrical appeal, as we tried to guess what the chefs were grating or spooning onto the innovative dishes. Smoked, dried reindeer and its vegetarian substitute of smoked dried parsnip had us guessing for longest.
Earthly food is served up straight from the hearth at Ekstedt
The menu at Ekstedt consists of two straightforward options: six courses or four. Tweaks are made seasonally, but the whole menu is never changed in its entirety; after all, why meddle with a winning formula? Although the cooking techniques are the stars of the show, each dish is beautifully balanced so that the individual ingredients get a chance to shine. Smoke is used with a lightness of touch that prevents it from becoming overpowering. The ingredients and flavour combinations are distinctly Nordic and unfussy.
Cooking doubling as a fireside show
Vegetarian options are available on request and the same confident, pared-back approach applies to the selection of meat-free alternatives. This is possible because of an ethos of everything on each plate earning its place, which sees vegetables given equal prominence to meat anyway. Thus, hay-flamed beef can be substituted for pumpkin, with the same accompaniments of overnight-baked cabbage, salsify and black garlic.
Each dish at Ekstedt pays homage to the Nordic wilderness
Having opted to substitute the meat courses for vegetarian ones, but keep the fish courses (well, when in Scandinavia…), we are treated to some particularly interesting seafood cooking methods. Pine smoked mussels with halibut foam are a visual delight as well as passing the taste test and we are unsurprised to learn that the juniper baked char with flower sprouts is many diners’ favourite. There are also some surprise extra additions between courses that should probably be kept under wraps, but cooked oysters (usually cooked in ox fat for meat-eaters) are too interesting not to mention.Â
Juniper-baked char perfectly showcases the ethos of Ekstedt
Any tasting menu worth its salt should of course have wine pairings that perfectly complement the food and Ekstedt certainly achieves this, drawing on vineyards across Europe for the ideal partners for each dish. More unusually, an option of non-alcoholic pairings is also offered, giving non-drinkers the chance to swap the soda water for such creative concoctions as lingonberry and fennel infusion, rhubarb juice with thyme and a syrupy iced tea to partner the baked almond cake.Â
All in all, Ekstedt lives up to the warm glow of its open fires, providing a stylish version of a cosy Nordic camping experience whatever the season.
by Thea Macaulay
Accompanying photographs: Danny Levy Sheehan
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