Sweden - Becky Ohlsen [60]
Café Art (Map; 411 76 61; Västerlånggatan 60; lunches Skr69) This atmospheric, barrel-vaulted cellar cranks up the cosy factor with its candlelit tables, snug nooks and art-slung walls. A perfect spot for fika (coffee and cake), it also makes a mean baguette and great shrimp salads.
MIDRANGE
Hermitage (Map; 411 95 00; Stora Nygatan 11; lunch/dinner Skr80/95) Don’t let the ’80s-style coffeeshop decor put you off; herbivores love Hermitage for its simple, tasty, vegetarian nosh. Salad, homemade bread, tea and coffee are included in the price.
Siam Thai (Map; 20 02 33; Stora Nygatan 25; dagens rätt from Skr80, mains Skr165-205; lunch Mon-Sat, dinner Mon-Sun) Bamboo-lined Siam channels Bangkok with its real-deal, Southeast Asian flavours. Spice it up with anything from prawns with eggplant in green curry to deep-fried chicken wrapped in pandanus leaves.
Zum Franziskaner (Map; 411 83 30; Skeppsbron 44; dagens rätt Skr80, husmanskost Skr139-298; closed Sun) It’s only natural that a place founded by German monks in 1421 (it claims to be the oldest restaurant in town) should peddle bottled German and Austrian beers and hearty sausages. Local offerings include the delicious isterband (a savoury country sausage) and spruced-up Swedish husmanskost like roe deer with lingonberries, fennel, goat’s cheese and potato cake. The current building dates from 1906, its interior an atmospheric combo of wooden stalls, ornate cabinets and ceiling artwork.
TOP END
Leijontornet (Map; 14 23 55; Lilla Nygatan 5; starters Skr110-135, 3-/5-course menu Skr695/1050; dinner Mon-Sat, bar from 5pm Mon-Sat) Leijontornet boasts a Michelin star along with 14th-century defence tower ruins in the dining room. The menu itself is unapologetically contemporary, with organic seasonal produce transformed into show-stoppers like roe deer with baked plums, forest mushrooms, ox marrow, black pudding and woodruff-flavoured gravy. For fab mid-priced fare, opt for the trendy bar, where DJs hit the decks on Friday and Saturday.
Den Gyldene Freden (Map; 24 97 60; Österlånggatan 51; lunch mains Skr165-265, dinner mains Skr175-425; closed Sun) Simmering since 1722, this venerable barrel-vaulted restaurant is run by the Swedish Academy, where (rumour has it) its members meet to decide the winners of the Nobel Prize. Personally, we think it should go to the chefs, whose sublime offerings include civilised husmanskost dishes like quail stuffed with duck liver, celeriac purée, Gotland truffles and rôti jus.
Central Stockholm
BUDGET
Vetekatten (Map; 21 84 54; Kungsgatan 55; tea, coffee & snacks from Skr25; 7.30am-8pm Mon-Fri, 9.30am-5pm Sat, noon-5pm Sun) A cardamom-scented labyrinth of cosy nooks, antique furnishings and oil paintings, Vetekatten is not so much a cafe as an institution. Wish back the old days over filling sandwiches, heavenly scrolls and warming cups of tea.
Caffé Nero (Map; 22 19 35; Roslagsgatan 4; coffee & pastries from Skr25; 7am-10pm Mon-Fri, 8am-10pm Sat, 8am-6pm Sun) Architect Tadao Ando would approve of the brutal (and brutally hip) concrete interiors at this Vasastan hang-out, where local hipsters down mighty caffé, grappa shots, salubrious panini and Italian home cooking, from sublime veal meatballs to a naughty tiramisu.
MIDRANGE
Tranan (Map; 52 72 81 00; Karlbergsvägen 14; starters Skr55-125, mains Skr95-295; 11.30am-midnight Mon-Thu, 11.30am-1am Fri, 5pm-1am Sat, 5-11pm Sun, 6pm-midnight Mon-Sun late Jun-Aug) Stockholmers swear by this bistro-style eatery, with technicolour brush strokes pimping up the walls. Food combines Swedish husmanskost with savvy Gallic touches. On weekends DJs hit the decks in the pumping, 30-something basement bar (except in summer, when the bar is closed).
Sibiriens Soppkök (Map; 15 00 14; Roslagsgatan 25; meals Skr70-135; 10am-10pm Mon-Fri, noon-10pm Sat) Sibiriens makes soup so sexy that tables are hard to come by at this intimate bolt-hole; book ahead or head in early. At the top of