Operakällaren

A driving licence is useful to have in many professions, but for the servers at Operakällaren it’s a must. There are traffic jams several times during the evening: when one of the cheese trolleys has to give way to popular flambé and carving trolleys; or when the trolley with 40-month-aged, grand-cru-denominated Iberico bellota ham and the champagne-filled aperitif trolley compete for the attention of newly arrived guests. The dining room at Operakällaren is like a palace ball. A night to fire the imagination and to dream yourself away. Away from spruce shoots on the plate, mustyvins naturein your glass and waiters that pull up a chair and tell you about the food. The treatment you get here is royal. Not in a snooty way, but with affection, care and knowledge. As the ham trolley is rolled on to the next table, we are served nibbles of smoked duck breast with Espelette pepper, a brioche with duck liver and truffle, lightly poached French oysters and a 63-degree egg with vendace roe. A beautifully grilled Fröja scallop comes with an Asia-inspired ginger foam, baked apple and crab-filled tortellini – a perfect match for non-alcoholic, ginger-spiced apple juice. A salt-baked white onion is tender and juicy, flanked by crispy sweet kombu, pickled turnip and a clear onion broth – now with Saar riesling in our glasses. The main course of roast Swedish rapeseed-fed pig, confit of Jerusalem artichoke, pistachios and grape sauce doesn’t look very generous on the plate, but has big flavours and manages to coax the maximum from each ingredient. Drinks pairings are neither experimental nor challenging, but made with very considerable knowledge and imagination. The climax is a sole with Australian winter truffles, creamy potato purée, crunchyprimeurcarrots and mussel sauce, paired with a well-developed, sappy red Fixin from 2014. A comprehensively optimal combination of flavours. The two cheese trolleys are laden with exclusively French cheeses of perfect ripeness which are matched with vintage champagne from Deutz, dessert wine from d’Arlay in the Jura and a 5 puttonyos tokay from Hétszölö. Once the dessert trolley has been wheeled away there is still plenty to discover: four separate trolleys laden with aquavit, cognac, whisky, and calvados converge on us, saying something about the attention these spirits receive here. The only thing one might wish for on that front is a non-alcoholic drinks package that wasn’t so focused on apple.

High quality cooking

The Operakällaren experience is unique in Sweden. Nowhere else is the refinement of the service so pronounced, so well-balanced and meticulously thought out. Since Tore Wretman’s days, this culture has evolved into a well-oiled machine, manifested through a frequent and genuinely pleasant manner of address and a passion that flares up in the corners of their eyes at the slightest question about the wine list or the history of the dining room. Along with all the endless routine details, such as the precise timing of the synchronized service and the well-choreographed movement of the heavy food carts. And then there is the ambiance, which contributes greatly to the overall top-tier experience. The veranda has certainly recently received a pleasant facelift, but it is, of course, the oak-paneled dining room that serves as the main attraction. Even the crackling fire in the built-in Kolmårds marble fireplace is worth a visit on its own. A certain calm settles in, even as a heightened anticipation builds around the inviting round tables. Yet in recent years, the dining experience has not always lived up to this expectation. Following a turbulent 2020, 2021 has marked a fresh start with the goal of elevating the gastronomy to an international top level.