Let me start off by saying how highly underrated Swedish food is. Swedish people indulge in some of the most delicious cuisine I’ve had overseas. Despite these indulgent foods, they also manage to say so thin! I’m sure it has something to do with all of that walking, but I would gladly walk five miles a day to eat this type of scrumptious food on a daily basis.

Breakfast- Bakeries are the norm for a Swedish breakfast. There are many bakeries to choose from throughout the country and there is a reason for it. You will definitely find a pastry to your liking, as there are dozens to choose from! I really enjoyed going to Mormors Bageri in Lund. Since it was summer, we were able to enjoy our food out on the patio. I had a cheese danish with chocolate icing and a chocolate milk to drink. The most popular and traditional pastry item is the cinnamon roll, or kanelbullar. But don’t expect them to look or taste like American cinnamon rolls. In fact, I didn’t even realize what they were until I asked. These rolls don’t have icing on them and they are topped with what looks like salt, but is in fact sugar.

Fika- This essentially means “coffee break”. People in Sweden take “fika” very seriously, and it is really a social gathering more than anything. It is common to do this daily, and we certainly did! I felt like I had at least three cups of coffee per day while I was here! Unfortunately, I didn’t get any photos, but we enjoyed fika at the Espresso House in Lund, which is a local cafe.

Lunch- We had a variety of foods for lunch over there, mostly quick sandwiches from cafes. But I did enjoy MAX Burger, which is Sweden’s version of McDonald’s. You’ll find one in any major city in Sweden, and will get a decent quality fast food burger. We went to one in Malmö, which had very contemporary decor. Fast food is a little different in Europe in the sense that there aren’t many drive-thrus. When you eat fast food, you eat inside the restaurant, take your time, and enjoy the experience. I ordered the Cheeseburger meal with fries and a coke.

Dinner- I can’t decide what I like more, Swedish Breakfast or Swedish Dinner. On the one hand I love pastries, but on the other, I really love a great Swedish dinner. I’m a meat and potatoes kind of girl, so when I travel overseas I tend to eat at McDonald’s a lot. But Swedish food was heaven for my traditional tastes.

Of course I had to have the Swedish Meatballs, or Köttbullar, as they are called over there. I ordered them through room service at the Grand Hotel in Lund. As you will learn, I have an obsession with room service. When I’m on vacation, I love to stay in for dinner one night and order “authentic” food. That way, if I don’t like it I don’t have to feel bad about leaving my plate full. It also gives me a bit of a break from the chaos of going out to dinner every night. Anyway, these meatballs were so good! They are also quite filling. Most dinners come with potatoes of some sort, and mashed potatoes were a perfect accompaniment with the meatballs. The meal also came with a parmasean-stuffed tomato, and bread and butter on the side. It was simple, but yet, it was perfect. So I enjoyed my meal in bed, while watching the Bachelorette: Sweden. The perfect evening in!

Another great meal that I had in Sweden was a salmon dish. It was fresh and marinated in the most delicious, buttery sauce. Many of the foods I tried here were in really great sauces. It gives basic proteins a lot of variety and just makes them that much better. This salmon came with boiled potatoes. JJ ordered a shrimp and cantaloupe salad, which is at the bottom of the photo. I didn’t taste it myself, but that looked really good as well. Seafood here is great, since you are so close to the sea, and I would highly recommend eating as much of it as you can here. This particular cafe was in a square in Malmö called Lilla Torg.