Selected Travel Guide:		More Stockholm Travel Guides:			Adjust Font Size:

The selected restaurants have been divided into five categories: Gourmet, Business, Trendy, Budget and Personal Recommendations. The restaurants are listed alphabetically within these different categories, which serve as guidelines rather than absolute definitions of the establishments.

Sales tax of 12% is included in bills; some restaurants also add a 10 to 15% service charge. If no service charge appears on the bill, a 10% tip is normal and expected. As all wines are imported to Sweden, they are subject to steep price hikes and added tax and therefore tend to be expensive.

The restaurants below have been grouped into four different pricing categories:
$$$$ (over Skr1,200)
$$$ (Skr800 to Skr1200)
$$ (Skr 400 to Skr800)
$ (up to Skr400)
The prices quoted below are for an average three-course meal for one person and a bottle of house wine or cheapest equivalent; they include sales tax but not service charges.

Gourmet

Edsbacka Krog
Six restaurants in Stockholm have been awarded a star in the Guide Rouge. One has two stars: Edsbacka Krog in Sollentuna. It was opened by Christer Lingström in 1983 in a building where there used to be an inn serving food and drink as early as 1626. The restaurant has an inventive menu with dishes characterized by creative combinations of ingredients and immaculate taste. This is Continental cooking at its best - with a Swedish twist. The restaurant is not very conveniently located for tourists, however - all the way up in Sollentuna to the north of the city, some 30 minutes by taxi.

Sollentunavägen 220
Tel: (08) 963 300.
Website: www.edsbackakrog.se  
Price: $$$$
Mathias Dahlgren
Having won a Michelin star at his last restaurant, Bon Lloc, Mathias Dahlgren, one of Sweden’s most acclaimed chefs and the only one to win the prestigious Bocuse d’Or prize, has now moved on to the Grand Hotel where his name and presence grace the hotel’s new gourmet restaurant. The cuisine is Swedish and Baltic, but with global as well as local elements, and the food is delicious - based on natural produce and natural flavors, what Dahlgren himself calls ‘the natural cuisine’.

Grand Hotel, Bolinderska Palatset, Södra Blasieholmshamnen
Tel: (08) 679 3584.
Website: www.mathiasdahlgren.se  
Price: $$$$
Operakällaren
The dining room at Operakällaren is one of the most beautiful in the whole of Sweden, with its classic late 19th-century décor and wall panelling of carved oak. It is a lush and  spacious hall with a classic, yet warm atmosphere. The cuisine is French with Italian and Swedish elements, and the food is consistently of the highest order. The wine list is also very impressive.
 
Operahuset, Karl XII’s torg
Tel: (08) 676 5801.
Website: www.operakallaren.se  
Price: $$$-$$$$
Restaurang GQ
The French-inspired cuisine on offer at Restaurang GQ, brainchild of top chef Jürgen Grossman, has proved irresistible to the people of Stockholm since the restaurant opened in 2005, so booking is essential here. GQ is the gastronomic equivalent to IQ and so deals with gastronomic intelligence, for instance such issues as nutrition, food provenance and the way ingredients have been produced. Happily, the restaurant is not all about intelligence but also very much about the senses - and the tastebuds in particular. The food is exceptional, and so is the wine selection.

Kommendörsgatan 23
Tel: (08) 5456 7430.
Website: www.gqrestaurang.se
Price: $$-$$$

Trendy

Grodan
With a mix of French and Swedish dishes on the menu, Grodan (’the Frog’) is a popular and trendy place in the center of town. The fish casserole is a Grodan classic and comes highly recommended. Outdoors the restaurant has one of the most attractive spaces for al fresco dining (and people watching) in Stockholm. Grodan Cocktail Club, one of the city’s best techno and house clubs, is located downstairs. There is also a bar at Grodan.

Grev Turegatan 16
Tel: (08) 679 6110.
Website: www.grodan.se
Price: $$
Hotellet
The largest restaurant on Östermalm, located just a stone’s throw away from Stureplan, Hotellet is stylish, flashy and very trendy. This is not just a place to eat - this is a social scene where the bars, dance floor and lounge areas are as important as the restaurant. Still, the food, wine list and service are all very good. The cuisine is French and Continental with a few Swedish touches. When the weather permits, food is served at the tables outdoors.

Linnégatan 18
Tel: (08) 442 8900.
Website: www.hotellet.info
Price: $$
Lao Wai
This Chinese vegetarian restaurant is trendy not because it is hip or funky but rather because it offers healthy, clean and pure food that is also wonderfully flavorsome. No microwave ovens, canned foods or pre-packaged powder-based sauces here; instead, the freshest ingredients are used, the spices are home ground, and the result is delicious, genuine Chinese food of the very best quality.

Luntmakargatan 74
Tel: (08) 673 7800.
Website: www.laowai.se  
Price: $-$$
Prinsen
This restaurant first opened its doors in 1897, and it has been a second home for the city’s artists and writers ever since. It still has a bohemian and fun feel to it, and nowadays it is a rather trendy place, attracting lots of people who appreciate the special atmosphere - as well as the excellent food. The menu consists of dishes from the Swedish and Continental kitchen, and more often than not they are cooked to perfection. Prinsen serves seriously good food, and gourmets with a bohemian streak should definitely consider a visit.

Mäster Samuelsgatan 4
Tel: (08) 611 1331.
Website: www.restaurangprinsen.com
Price: $$
Rolfs Kök
One of the trendiest places to eat in Stockholm, Rolfs Kök is where the local cognoscenti head. The sparse interior veers towards minimalism and the food tends towards the style (and often small portions) of nouvelle cuisine. The open kitchen allows guests to inspect the preparation of the food. The menu is a collage of Swedish and international influences, which are given innovative reinventions in the Rolfs Kök style.

Tegnergatan 41
Tel: (08) 101 696.
Website: www.rolfskok.se  
Price: $$-$$$

Budget

Indian Curry House
Among the cheaper Indian restaurants in town, this tiny, but fun place serves up tasty Indian staples, such as samosas and curries, in typically rich Indian interior. During the summer months, the Indian Curry House also has a few tables outside.

Scheelegatan 6
Tel: (08) 650 2024.
Price: $
Kungshallen
Located right in the heart of downtown Stockholm, Kungshallen food hall is a great place for the hungry to fill up with cheap goodies, whether they choose to sit down or take meals away. It offers a range of international foodstuffs, from Tex-Mex and Indian to Greek, Lebanese and sushi, as well as a range of more esoteric Swedish specialties. There are over a dozen different eateries to choose from here.

Kungsgatan 44
Tel: (070) 8655 620.
Website: www.kungshallen.com  
Price: $
Örtagården
Örtagården (‘the Herb Garden’) opened in 1980 and is Stockholm’s oldest vegetarian restaurant. With its high ceilings and old-fashioned, stylish interior it doesn’t really look like a veggie place, but it serves a good selection of excellent vegetarian dishes in an abundant buffet. For meat lovers, Bakfickan (‘the Back Pocket’), which is part of the same establishment, serves a number of meat dishes. Prices are very reasonable, and the atmosphere is friendly and welcoming.

Nybrogatan 31
Tel: (08) 662 1728.
Website: www.ortagarden.gastrogate.com  
Price: $

Personal Recommendations

Gondolen
Gondolen easily offers the best view of any restaurant in Stockholm. Décor is functional and simple but this purpose-built viewing capsule lends diners panoramic vistas of the Stockholm skyline. The menu mixes French and Swedish cuisine and changes regularly. Menu highlights include gravadlax (marinated salmon) with asparagus or the roasted reindeer fillet served in cranberry sauce. Closed Sundays.

Stadsgården 6
Tel: (08) 641 7090.
Website: www.eriks.se  
Price: $$
Nordic Hotel Restaurant
For those either arriving at or leaving from Stockholm’s main international airport, the bright and breezy restaurant at the Nordic Light Hotel is only a two-minute walk from the airport’s Arlanda Express train terminal. The restaurant is the perfect alternative to the ramble of fast food joints in the railway building itself. Lunches are light and good value, while the evening meals are more interesting.

Nordic Light Hotel, Vasaplan 7
Tel: (08) 5056 3000.
Website: www.nordichotels.se  
Price: $$
Restaurant J
This restaurant is a boat ride outside the city center. Its aquatic locale, on a marina by Nacka Strand in southeast Stockholm, complements the cooking, which focuses on seafood. Culinary wonders are worked in the kitchen with the day’s catch. The menu also features a range of salads and, in the colder months, hearty soups. The sunbathed terrace is a heavenly place to be on a hot summer day, although the restaurant is also enjoyable for cosy autumnal dinners.

Augustendalsvägen 52
Tel: (08) 601 3005.
Website: www.restaurantj.com  
Price: $$
Salzer Restaurant & Bar
This restaurant is unique in Stockholm for its 1950s interior, which made it an instant favorite with the city’s more style-conscious set. It might remind some diners too much of Happy Days, but the food is fresh, modern and international. The large portions of the Swedish mainstays, such as Åseda isterband (a type of smoked sausage) with potatoes in white sauce, keep the locals coming back for more, with dishes.

John Ericssons gata 6
Tel: (08) 650 3028.
Website: www.salzer.nu  
Price: $$
Tranan
This is the type of simple but genuine place that is popular with Swedes who want to dine out without breaking the bank. Not only do few tourists ever make it here but the menu is written in Swedish only, so adventurous visitors will have to trust the friendly staff and other diners to fill them in on translations of the traditional Swedish dishes. One excellent example of the food on offer here is the fillet of beef served with fried potatoes, horseradish and egg yolk. Tranan also serves several vegetarian dishes, such as goat’s cheese on toast. The décor is that of a typical French bistro, giving it a wonderfully relaxed atmosphere.

Karlbergsvägen 14
Tel: (08) 5272 8100.
Website: www.tranan.se  
Price: $$



Nightlife:

The late evening summer sun in Stockholm seems to stretch on forever, while the long winter nights need to be filled with fun. The result is a city committed to its nightlife. Strong jazz traditions and smart bars cater to older or smoother patrons, while the club scene (often Spanish in flavor) parties hard. The area around Stureplan is the most happening place in the city.

Admission to clubs can cost anything between SKr5 and SKr100, while a liter of beer will cost in the region of SKr70-100 and 4cl of vodka around SKr70. The minimum age for buying alcohol is 20 years - 18 years in restaurants or nightclubs. The sale of alcohol is restricted to 1200-2400 (from 1300 on Sunday), although nightclubs or the occasional favored bar, such as Kvarnen on Södermalm, sell drinks later into the night.

Standard hours for bars and clubs are from about 0900-0200, with restaurant bars opening earlier and some clubs closing later (at around 0500). Smoking is not permitted indoors at Stockholm’s restaurants, bars and pubs.

The official Stockholm tourism website, www.stockholmtown.com, is an excellent source for information on nightlife.

Bars: Highly trendy, Spy Bar, Birger Jarlsgatan 20, is an intimate and stylish place with excellent DJ entertainment. Gondolen, Stadsgården 6, serves drinks to match its unbeatable view. The Sturehof Bar, Stureplan 2, and its upstairs cousin, O-bar, are benchmarks in the style-conscious re-branding of the old Sturehof Restaurant. Café Opera, Kungsträdgården, draws an eclectic crowd of all ages and tastes to its fabulous interior, plying mainstream partygoers with cutting-edge sounds. The Grand Hotel’s Cadier Bar, Södra Blasieholmshamnen 8, is the place to enjoy a classy cocktail, while the Opera Bar, Karl X11’s Torg, offers quiet surroundings for a relaxing drink.

Conversely, Kvarnen, Tjärhovsgatan 4, is a beer hall with a typically rootsy Södermalm charm, open until 0300 and hugely popular. Tennstopet Bar, Dalagatan 50, is over 100 years old and another solidly traditional drinking hole. The Absolut Ice Bar in the Nordic Sea Hotel, Vastaplan 7, while not unique in the world any more, is still a special place, with its year-round temperature of -5°C (23°F). Drinks are served in hollowed-out ice cubes from a bar also made of ice. Even the walls and tables are made of ice taken from the Torne River on the border between Sweden and Finland.

Clubs: Solidaritet, Lästmakargatan 3 (website: www.solidaritetstureplan.se), is a ferociously trendy nightclub where the dancing goes on until the early hours. Lively clubbing also goes on at Blue Moon, Kungsgatan 18 (website: www.bluemoonbar.se). Pet Sounds Bar, Skånegatan 80 (website: www.petsoundsbar.se), is a trendy, but friendly restaurant and bar with a fun party atmosphere in the basement, Källaren, where there is always something special going on, whether it’s live music, release parties or just excellent DJ entertainment.

Fasching Jazzclub, Kungsgatan 63 (website: www.fasching.se), has jazz, soul and Latin American sounds at the weekend. Tre Remmare, Vasagatan 17, feeds, waters and entertains night owls long after the other venues close. Köket (The Kitchen), Stureplan 2, is one of the most popular and stylish nightclubs in Stockholm with three bars and a relaxed atmosphere.

Live Music: Fasching Jazzclub (see above) and Stampen, Stora Nygatan (website: www.stampen.se), both attract excellent jazz performers. Debaser has venues at Karl Johans Torg 1 and Medborgarplatsen 8 (website: www.debaser.nu), which are among Stockholm’s main places for top-notch Swedish and international live pop and rock music.

Nalen, Regeringsgatan 74 (website: www.nalen.se), is run by the Swedish Artists’ and Musicians’ Interest Organization in a wonderful old building with four concert venues where you can hear pop, rock and jazz from big international stars as well as obscure Swedish bands. Globen, Globentorget 2 (website: www.globearenas.se), and Stockholms Stadion, Lidingövägen, are the venues for large-scale stadium rock.

Related Stockholm Content

Related Sweden Content

Sweden Airport Guides: Gothenburg-Landvetter Stockholm Arlanda	Sweden City Guides: Gothenburg City Guide Stockholm City Guide
Sweden Attraction Guides:
Drottningholm Palace (Drottningholms Slott) Museum of National Antiquities (Statens Historiska Museum)	Royal Palace (Kungliga Slottet) Vasa Museum (Vasamuseet)