Top 10 Favourite Restaurants in Stockholm, Sweden

1. Matsalen (Mathias Dahlgren, Grand Hotel) **

The best restaurant in Stockholm that Western Taste ever tried. The name of the restaurant is Matsalen run by Mathias Dahlgren in Swedens best hotel; Grand Hotel. This restaurant gives you 2 Micheline stars and is granted Western Taste 2 star “Cru Beverage Award” for an excellent wine list with good variety and selections that can be paired for multiple occasions and multiple gastronomic food experiences.

You can feel the chef and his passion for traditional Swedish food that has been taken to another level with modern and innovative cooking. His combination of flavors is extraordinary and he brings the Swedish restaurant business to a higher competitiveness. We like it, we enjoy it and we definitely love it.

2. F12 (Melker Andersson, F12 Group) ***

Well, I must say that this restaurant gives you absolute perfection. Everything feels exact, like a mathematic formula or scientific creation, at F12, you will not be disappointed. Everything is coordinately calculated, from the staff to the presentation and food, even the interior feels calculated and exact. Somehow this is also a downturn because food is about passion and “mostly” not mathematics. However do not get me wrong here; I absolutely adore F12 and what Melker has accomplished in Stockholm. I have never been given a better restaurant service and I still feel that the food is amazingly good. The flavors and combinations are beyond words however I sort of miss the passion and love for food and wine. Although the wine list is the best I have seen in Stockholm and is why it has been given 3 star “Grand Beverage Award” by Western Taste.

F12 is a restaurant I will always look back on and definitely go back to. It will always be in my list of recommendations.

3. Frantzén/Lindeberg (Björn Frantzén, Daniel Lindberg) **

In 2011 Frantzén/Lindeberg was named “restaurant of the year” by the prestigious White Guide and ranked 57 on ”The S.Pellegrino World’s 100 Best Restaurants 2011”. It also sports two Michelin stars!

The restaurant is located in historic Old Town and gastronomy buffs from Stockholm and beyond are fighting over the tables. Eating here is a sensory experience with a touch of humor. Chefs Björn Frantzén and Daniel Lindeberg serves up fresh ingredients from the restaurant's own garden to create culinary artistry with intriguing surprises such as the dessert "burger" where the bun is a macaroon, the burger is made of chocolate and the lettuce is a slice of mint. The surprises continue with the sommelier-selected drink package that pairs pre-selected wines with specific food courses.

For an unforgettable evening event, Frantzén/Lindeberg can accommodate groups of up to 12 people in its "chambre separé". It features its own entrance, bar and sommelier. The restaurant is also awarded with 2 star "Cru Beverage Selection Award" for its great selection of wines and beverages that goes perfectly with its food.

This truly is the most exciting eating experience in Stockholm! 

4. Matbaren (Mathias Dahlgren, Grand Hotel) *

Matbaren is Mathias Dahlgren’s “more casual” alternative to his world renowned and 2-star ‘Matsalen’ fine dining restaurant. They are both located inside the Grand Hotel right in the heart of Stockholm.

Matbaren is a lively restaurant displaying smart Swedish design furniture. They feature concise menu changes up to twice a day, always showing off straightforward yet perfectly balanced recipes with a simple but playful modern style. Dishes are carefully crafted using top quality ingredients.

At Matbaren they mostly offer a variety of seasonal medium sized dishes. They’re larger than an appetizer but smaller than a regular entree. Basically divided into regional (Swedish) and globally inspired they also have vegetarian and a part with pastries and one with dairy products and cold cuts. The beverage section is very well matched and the service is always impeccable.

The restaurant has a few traditional seated tables. The relaxed ethos of the restaurant is evidenced by the long steel food bar around the kitchen and the high tables and stools that line the sides of the restaurant. The restaurant is also awarded with 1 star "Beverage Selection Award".

5. DJURET (Daniel Crespi)

Well, this restaurant is truly something different and stands out from the rest in Stockholm’s culinary scene. I asked the waiter while we sat at the table, why only meet and why the name for the restaurant? The waiter answered me that the best possible aspect for the owner to think of when it comes to be sustainable is to not waste proper food. That is why at “DJURET” they use all parts of the animal and none goes to waste and you can literally eat anything with a amazing and truly creative gastronomic way. 

Lets do its critique as simple as “DJURET” is presenting its concept.

Prices = good, meet quality = great, staff = professional and friendly, interior = very suitable and rustic (feels like you are dining at a high class slaughter house), wine list = perfect match for the heavy wine drinker, location = in the middle of the old town in Stockholm (perfect location for this restaurant).

Well to sum up, Western Taste can truly recommend this place and have it on the list as no 5 of “Top 10 restaurants in Stockholm”.

6. LUX (Peter Johansson, Henrik Norström) *

The prices are a bit high and the interior a bit stiff and the location is a bit far away from city centre. But the food is really and truly good. I love the creative provocation of using traditional Swedish food and putting it on the plate with innovative and new modern creativity cooking.

During summertime this restaurant is actually a great scenic place since the location is just by the water at “Lilla Essingen”. By eating here you will not regret your visit, the food is well prepared and the staff gives you fairly good service. You must be thinking that why Western Taste is having LUX at the “Top 10 Best Restaurants in Stockholm” when the service is half good. Well the answer is that most of restaurant services are half good in Sweden.

LUX is no 6 and they deserve its position well because of its presentation, food quality and execution in terms of gastronomic creativity. They are also awarded with 1 star “Beverage Selection Award” by Western Taste because of its well selected wine list and combination of its contemporary Swedish food.

7. CAINA (Nobis Group) *

The new 5 star hotel in Stockholm has exploded as the new place to be. The hotel has focused strongly on food & beverage department and interior design. When entering the hotel it actually feels it can compete with international hotels as a top design hotel with 2 restaurants, 3 bars and a spa. The restaurants name is CAINA and gives you flavours from Italy. It is not trying to be a fine dining but rather a classical Italian restaurant with traditional Italian dishes. The food is actually very good and the quality of products is excellent. The staff and service is very high and well trained which is very unusual in Sweden. I also love the wine list which gives you a good variety of grapes and differentiation of regions in Italy.

Something you have to try is the starter for two, the Antipasto misto della casa (the house Antipasto). As you go for the main course I would suggest the risotto and the beef with Barolo sauce.

CAINA is something you will not be disappointed at and rather enjoy in the relaxed dining hall with great staff and pleasantly atmosphear. CAINA is also recommended with 1 star “Beverage Award” by Western Taste.

8. SMAK (Melker Andersson, F12 Group)

Smak på Restaurangen is located in Stockholm city centre, just a a few hundred meters from Hötorget. It’s a fine dining restaurant with the concept ”Taste from all over the world”.

The concept is all about flavours, where you are given three choices - three, five or seven small dishes in which the most influential flavour gives its name to the dish. You simply make your order by circling your choice on the paper menus with a pencil. Wines and other beverages are also available in smaller tasting glasses, all to give you the possibility to try as many flavours as you wish.

Smak på Restaurangen is a large, contemporary restaurant from the F12-goup. It has a  summer terrace and ingredient-filled, glass-topped tables. This really is something to try!

9. Rolfs Kök (Rolf Nilsson)

Rolfs Kök was designed to bring patrons closer to the food experience with a bar wrapping around an open kitchen. In the dining-room you will be taken care of in a royal manor buy the part-owner and restaurant manager Klas Ljunquist. The restaurant's personal service, creative dishes, and unique interior design (spare chairs hang from hooks along the wall) have made it a Stockholm favourite for almost two decades.

The Swedish and Mediterranean-inspired menu suggests wines for each dish from the 450 varieties in the cellar. The best item on the menu is undoubtedly the red wine braised cheeks of ox with truffle (from the island of Gotland) & potato purée.

10. Långbro Värdshus (Fredrik Eriksson)

Celebrity chef Fredrik Eriksson runs an old fashioned Swedish tavern called Långbro Värdshus in a big villa on the outskirts of Stockholm, in Fruängen. Here you'll find a friendly atmosphere, excellent service and the best traditionally Swedish food in Stockholm.

Långbro Värdshus takes pride in offering guests carefully prepared dishes made with the best seasonal, raw ingredients. They offer diners dishes such as Artichoke Soup with a shallot mousseline, parsley and crispy forest mushrooms and Veal Steaks with a creamy white pepper sauce, pickled winter vegetables and puréed potatoes.

Written by Alexander Yü & Kristian Kull