Every time I’m abroad and learn that someone is going to Copenhagen, I try to convince them to extend the trip with a visit to Malmö. It’s not even an effort really – the train takes half an hour – but the reward is huge.
Not only are the prices lower here; the city also has an excellent and wide selection of restaurants, cafés, bars and bakeries. For a city this size, Malmö truly has a lot to offer – you just have to know where to look, because most of the gems are scattered.
Since I work as a freelance journalist, my office is either at home or at one of the many good specialty coffee shops in town. I used to work as a barista at one of them myself. A normal week you’ll probably find me sitting with my laptop at Solde five days out of seven. Always with a cappuccino.
Many places are within walking distance, with is another great advantage. I would recommend everyone to try the equivalent of a bar round but with food focus: have dinner at one place, dessert at another.
The given stop for dessert is Ruths, former Bastard, where they still make the best sweet dishes in town. Often something classic, but with an unexpected touch. Their semifreddo is semi-famous.
– Sara Berg, culture, food and travel journalist and cookbook author, based in Malmö since twenty years. She has written books about pasta, Greek food, Berlin’s restaurant scene and is currently working on a new cookbook.
Breakfast / Bakeries / Café
Ruths
Best breakfast in town, no doubt. Semolina porridge with seasonal jams, scones, yoghurt with house-made granola or Turkish eggs. The bread and pastries come from the bakery upstairs and I often buy a loaf of Danish rye bread to take home. If you don’t feel like leaving the stylish environment, they are open for lunch and dinner as well.
Solde
This is not only a place for coffee and chitchat – the owners run a tiny bakery behind the counter and roast their own beans a few kilometres away. If you order coffee in any of Malmö’s more conscious restaurants, there’s a good chance that it is roasted by Solde. The pastry selection is not huge, but you can always get a nice croissant, pain au chocolate, a Danish pastry or traditional Swedish cookies.
Farina
This French-Italian bakery just took over the hair salon next door and turned it into an airy seating area. As a result, the many devoted guests can now enjoy their brioches, croissants, maritozzi and filter coffees – from the Lund based roastery Love Coffee – sitting down. One of the yearly perks occurs just before Easter, when the seasonal semla is released. A heavenly cream-filled wonder not to miss. One of the owners also run Kaffebaren på Möllan, a couple of blocks away.
Lunch
Saltimporten Canteen
”Best lunch in town” is the restaurant’s own tagline, and neither I nor the trend-sensitive crowd would disagree. Located in a light-filled building in the old harbour area, Saltimporten Canteen and its chefs Sebastian Persson, Ola Rudin and the rest of the crew continue to serve creative and stylish lunches every weekday. Usually with some kind of surprise element. Curious about the upcoming food hype? Go to Saltimporten – you will find it there. My bet is on rose pepper.
Marvin
British food might not have a stellar reputation here in Sweden, which makes this tiny restaurant so much more exciting. Just like in the fashion industry, the menu comes in two versions: SS and AW. Spring and summer is all about English muffins with fried chicken and condiments inspired by established dishes like Caesar salad or something from the Sichuan cuisine. Autumn and winter equals pie and mash, and if you ever find a flakier crust, please let me know.
Davidshalls pizzeria
Sure, this is a place where you can buy pizza, but that’s not the reason to come here. The owner is Greek and every day he presents a line-up of traditional Greek comfort food. Baked large white beans, stifado, orzo with chicken, okra stew, stuffed peppers or other homely dishes. The portions are immense and before the food is served, each guest is treated with warm bread and a small portion of Greek salad. The tzatziki will scare vampires away.
Dinner
Two Forks
Chef Matin Levy and his wife Charlotte Nycander opened Two Forks as a lunch restaurant, serving amazing and elaborate hummus bowls. And they still do, but it’s mainly for the evening menu I come here. The deep fried eggplant schnitzel-style is superb and I always order the tomatoes with labneh if they’re on the menu, together with the evening version of hummus: with beautiful pine nuts and ghee. They also have a small selection of natural wines and serve freshly baked sesame bread from a small local bakery.
Sauvage
Chef David Kjellstenius used to work at Au Passage in Paris and Sauvage is his version of the French bistronomy. Or at least it was, initially. Since opening some years ago he has merged his passion for small-scale producers and seasonal ingredients together with influences from his Japanese girlfriend and a sense for aesthetic plating. Dishes are light, flavourful, herbaceous and fun and if you express your interest in natural wines, the sommelier will probably open something special for you.
Soi 29
There is only one place for proper, spicy and flavourful, Isaan Thai food in Malmö and it’s Soi 29. I’m usually not a huge fan of curries but here I eat them all. At the moment the owner couple Alexander Norén and Johanna Jarevik are looking to move location and the rumour is that this will result in a slight change of concept, but I’m certain everything will be continuously wonderful.
Drinks
Riket
This place is somewhat of an acquired taste and that’s only one of the many reasons to visit. If the stars align, they have a quirky selection of natural wines, good weird dishes without geographical borders, good eccentric staff and a lively vibe. Even if I like the food, I often come here just for the wine. Summer time the outdoor seating is crowded with people, stealing the last hours of daylight, and during winter it's equally packed indoors. A good place for good old mingling.
Bise
A bit of a wild card, since the restaurant with its bar and cocktail bar is out for sale, but they have one of the largest and most ambitious wine cellars and recently hired Texan chef Dave Harrison (former Den Vandrette and Brassierie Prins in Copenhagen) to run the kitchen so my hopes are that they will continue with their concept. French food in a Scandinavian context, a lot of various events and a hipstery vibe. Even if you're not hungry, it's always worth popping in for a glass of wine or a cocktail.
Aster
Fire-cooking in an old shipyard. This used to be an office building but now it looks like somewhere I’d like to live. The staff is kind and brilliant and the food is based on vegetables from the restaurant’s own garden. Almost every dish contains something from either the wood-fired oven or the grill – it could be a skewer, something smoked or baked. The award-winning cocktails stem from the same ideology as the plates: nature is always present, flavours are surprisingly delicious.
