13 Best Restaurants in Sweden

Step down from the street into this former wine-and-cheese cellar to find an elegant restaurant owned by two of the best chefs in Göteborg. Italian and Asian flavors blend their way into the impeccable Swedish dishes; choose a five- or eight-course meal, or take your pick à la carte. Finely set tables, flickering candles, and country-style artwork evoke the mood of a rustic French bistro. Note that one of the best wine cellars in Sweden is at your disposal.

This cozy, atmospheric restaurant occupies a series of interconnected cellar vaults in one of Malmö’s best-preserved 16th-century buildings. Traditional Swedish dishes, often centered on beef, game, and seafood, are given a contemporary twist. Like the food, the wine list is excellent.

The idea for this old wooden harborside restaurant came from similar cafés in Brittany, France. Simple local dishes, mostly of fish, are served up in an informal wooden-table dining area. Originally just catering to local divers, Dykarbaren is now open to the general public. In the late evenings, the bustling bar is a popular gathering spot for locals and visitors alike.

Familjen's trendy, warm, red-and-green minimalist interior, along with friendly staff who manage its often-packed house with grace, both help make it one of the best restaurants in town for sampling rustic west-coast-style cooking. Menus are dictated by the availability of fresh seasonal ingredients and change regularly. Try one of the four-course menus for a complete meal of well-matched flavors.

On cooler days, a crackling fire on the hearth in the bar area welcomes the sailors who frequent this laid-back restaurant, while the terrace offers the perfect spot to enjoy the summer days. In case you haven't traveled with your own sailboat, you can time your dinner to end before the last ferry returns to the mainland. The food is self-consciously Swedish: fresh, light, and beautifully presented. The service is professional; it's a great choice for a special night out.

Grill specializes in high-quality meat cuts grilled according to your taste. Create a family-style dinner, including five appetizers and a choice of various steak cuts, or select from the à la carte grilled steaks, Wagyu beef, lamb asado, tuna teppanyaki, or grilled vegetarian meal. The restaurant is divided into several dining rooms, each decorated according to a specific theme such as carnival, hunting cabin, library, tropical beach, Moulin Rouge, and Orient Express.

From the outside, this place couldn't be more Swedish, housed as it is in a beautiful, centuries-old house opposite Uppsala's grand university building. Inside, though, a little bit of Italy takes over, with scrubbed-wood furniture, red-check tablecloths, and exposed brick and whitewashed walls. The food wins no awards for surprises—it's mostly trusted Italian staples—but the service and the quality of what's on the plate are extremely good.

Just around the corner from Lunds Domkyrka, this art deco–style dining spot—which takes its inspiration from the archetypal French bistro—offers classics such as beef tartare, cod in shrimp sauce, and duck breast, prepared with seasonal Swedish ingredients to add a twist to the brasserie fare. A monthly rotating dinner menu, with accompanying wine servings, is also available. The focus in the bar is on European beers and wines, many of the latter available by the glass. The lunch menu changes daily.

On the island of Lilla Essingen, just off the western end of Kungsholmen, this former Electrolux household appliance factory (hence the name) is now a farm-to-table bistro serving delicious Swedish cuisine. Chef-owner Henrik Norström and his team use seasonal Swedish produce (listing its source wherever possible), which they then prepare with creative, modern twists to produce outstanding dishes. The decor is simple yet elegant, with light flooding the restaurant through enormous windows during the day. In fine weather, meals are also served on the outdoor terrace overlooking the water.

Located inside the Grand Hôtel, this informal bistro has large windows, colorful floor tiles, and a horseshoe-shaped bar that together create an atmosphere of casual elegance. The menu changes frequently and focuses on Swedish and international dishes such as salted cod, lamb, seared beef, and arctic char, beautifully prepared using fresh Scandinavian ingredients. Portion sizes are moderate, so guests typically order more than one dish.

The connection between people and food is at the heart of this stylish yet intimate restaurant where you can watch your meals being prepared in the completely open kitchen—in fact, chefs often bring dishes to the tables themselves. The focus is on seasonal Scandinavian cuisine expertly prepared and complemented by an extensive wine list. Order à la carte or choose from four- and six-course tasting menus.

This massive restaurant with two huge bars is a complete social, architectural, and dining experience that surrounds you with wood paneling, leather chairs and sofas, and distinctive lighting fixtures. In the elegant dining room, fine Swedish cuisine is served, but the scene is as much social as culinary. There's a bar directly facing Stureplan, where you can sit on a summer night and watch Stockholmers gather at the nearby Svampen (the mushroom-like concrete structure that has been the city's meeting point for years). Upstairs are two bars that fill well into the night with young people and loud music.

Sitting right on the edge of the pink sandy shores of Lake Siljan, the wood-clad and glass restaurant commands views of Långbryggan (the Great Pier), a 628-meter (2,000-foot) long pier, and across toward the southwestern fringes of the lake. In the summer, meals and drinks can be enjoyed on the waterfront terrace. The evening menu focuses on fish, classic Swedish dishes, and a handful of international flavors, while the rotating lunch menu offers a different meat, a fish, and a vegetarian option on weekdays.