DINING
Swedes like straightforward meals, simply prepared from the freshest ingredients. As a seafaring country with many freshwater lakes, fish dishes are prominent on hotel or restaurant menus. The Scandinavian cold table, called smörgåsbord, is traditional. First pickled herring with boiled potatoes, then perhaps a couple more fish courses, smoked salmon or anchovies followed by cold meat, pâté, sliced beef, stuffed veal or smoked reindeer. The hot dishes come next, for instance, another herring dish, small meatballs (köttbullar) or an omelette. A fruit salad and cheese with crispbreads round off the meal. Other dishes to look out for are smoked reindeer from Lapland; gravlax, salmon that has been specially prepared and marinated; wild strawberries; and the cloudberries that are unique to Scandinavia. Once on the open road the traveller is well catered for with picnic sites on the way, often with wooden tables and seats. Top-class restaurants in Sweden are usually fairly expensive, but even the smallest towns have reasonably priced self-service restaurants and grill bars. Many restaurants all over Sweden offer a special dish of the day at a reduced price which includes main course, salad, soft drink and coffee. Waiter service is common although there are many self-service snack bars.
Snapps, the collective name for aquavit or brännvin, is a Swedish liqueur which is traditionally drunk chilled with smörgåsbord. It is made under a variety of brand names with flavors varying from practically tasteless to sweetly spiced. Swedish beers are lager- and pilsner-type brews and come in four strengths. The minimum age for buying alcoholic beverages is 20, although alcohol can be consumed in bars from restaurants from 18 onwards. Wine, spirits and beer are sold through the state-owned monopoly, Systembolaget, open during normal shopping hours. Before 1300 on Sundays alcohol cannot be bought in bars, cafes or restaurants. After midnight alcohol can only be bought in nightclubs that stay open until between 0200-0500. In a restaurant or a nightclub, the minimum age for buying alcoholic beverages is 18. Stiff penalties are enforced for drinking and driving.
Nightlife
Stockholm has pubs, cafes, discos, restaurants, cinemas and theaters. In the more rural areas evenings tend to be tranquil. From August to June the Royal Ballet performs in Stockholm. Music and theater productions take place in many cities during the summer at open air venues. Outside Stockholm in the 18th-century Court Theater of the Palace of Drottningholm there are performances of 18th-century opera.
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Travel Tips