This year the Gotland Truffle Festival falls on 11th to 13th November, offering a Gotlandic truffle ceremony and seminars, as well as truffles for sale and served in many different dishes by various chefs at restaurants of diverse specialties.
Given the festival’s previous successes, hoards of visitors from myriad regions in Sweden, Scandinavia, Europe, and beyond are expected to descend upon this town’s highly popular festivities.
If you would love to indulge in three days of feasting on truffle-infused food but crowds is not your thing, then stay in Stockholm that long weekend. The Swedish capital has many eateries that delectably serve this fragrant delicacy on their regular menus.
Your Living City highlights a few to satisfy your truffle cravings:
(1) Un Poco is a trattoria that combines the perfect personal touch and level of attention with a classic offering of Italian dishes in both its tasting menu and a la carte selection. Must tries for truffle lovers are its Truffle Risotto with 48-months-aged Parmesan and Asparagus, along with its Truffles Stewed Macaroni with Lemon and Chive.
Those who love meat as well will be delighted by its Dried Dry Aged Steak, served with a red wine sauce and truffle mayonnaise, and a side of Pommes and Truffle; after indulging in antipasti of Easy Grilled Tuna, Jalapeno, Yuzu and Truffle Vinaigrette, and of “South Beach Delano” Wheat Tortilla, Tuna Carpaccio, Truffled Ponzucreme and Cress.
Where: Karlavägen 28, 114 31 Stockholm
(2) A bare-brick trattoria with ornate chandeliers for candlelit Italian classics from an open kitchen, Restaurang Ciao Ciao Due offers a delectable antipasto Piatto Freddo Gourmet which features the chef’s choice from its charcuterie, including truffle salami, pecorino and prosciutto di Parma aged for 20 years.
And the truffle indulgence continues with its Linguini Con Carne E Tartufo Nero – a pasta with fillet of beef, mushrooms, parsley and bell peppers in a creamy truffle sauce, all topped with Parmesan cheese.
Where: Karlavägen 8, 114 24 Stockholm
(3) Trattoria Montanari shares the authentic Italian cuisine its owners’ dad grew up with in Fano – a place where the food, wine and enjoyment with life are always at the center – by combining the classics with exciting dishes from their home region Marche.
One resulting creation especially appealing to those of you who gleefully answer to the lure of the truffle is its Tagliatelle Al Tartufo, a pasta dish sumptuously covered with black truffles and truffle cream.
Where: Grev Turegatan 56, 114 38 Stockholm
(4) Ekstedt opened in November 2011 with a fire pit, a wood fired oven and a wood stove. Now it also has the stone-age equivalent of a microwave oven, a smoker and extra fires burning – a result of its continual exploration of age-old techniques.
This one Michelin star restaurant’s set menus come either in 4 or 6 courses. Both’s temptations include an open fire cooked Autumn Lamb served with Truffle Dumplings and Cabbage – attesting to the dish’s success in appeasing discerning palates.
Where: Humlegårdsgatan 17, 114 46 Stockholm
(5) The Flying Elk is Michelin-two-starred Frantzén’s owner’s brainchild. As Stockholm’s first gastro pub, its great range of truffle-infused dishes will transport those of you partial to this highly prized delicacy to gastronomical heaven.
Snack on its gruyere-and-black-trumpet-flavoured Truffled Popcorn while sipping your pre-dinner drink. When you are finally ready to dine, start with its Divers Picked Scallop “Signature”, served with truffle scrambled eggs, “pommes paille” and smoked brown butter.
Then relish in the difficulty you will have choosing your mains from between the Fillet of Iberico Pork, Chantarelles and Crispy Onions on Toast with black pepper jus, parsley and truffle béchamel cabbage, and the Casserole of Creamy Egg from “Sanda hönseri” with truffle, broccoli, squash, picklad svamp, krispig svartkål and vitkålssoppa.
Where: Mälartorget 15, 111 27 Stockholm
(6) With their Swan catering business firmly secured under their belt, Frida Ernsth and Mikael Axell started The Black Swan. This gastro pub can be pegged ahead of The Flying Elk in terms of location as it sits by the lakeside Liljeholmskajen in Årstaviken, overlooking Årsta Holmer and Södermalm.
Though it serves only one truffle-infused dish, its perfectly cooked Grilled Sir Loin with Potato Puree with Truffle is worth getting out for a subtle hit of this pig-foraged culinary treasure after dining at Frantzen’s younger sibling the previous evening.
Where: 24 Sjoevikskajen, 117 57 Stockholm
(7) Bistroketet rivals The Flying Elk in its wide repertoire of recipes that include truffle as a crucial ingredient. And the bistro’s dishes wonderfully vary from brunch to lunch and dinner. Delight in the dilemma of deciding between its Steak Tartare with a hazelnut emulsion, toasted hazelnuts, fried celeriac, pickled white onions and truffle, and its Cream Baked Eggs with almonds, mayonnaise, winter truffle and brioche, for brunch.
Come the next day to mentally tussle over its Week Veg of baked celeriac, grilled gemsallad, oyster mushrooms and truffle mayonnaise, and Grilled Steak Minute with tryffelmajonäs and French fries for lunch. And if it is a Thursday, the struggle increases by an extra fold – the dish of the day is Night Baked Brisket with red wine sauce, smoked bacon, mushrooms, potato puree with truffle oil.
Fortunately, there are no specials for dinners. You can serenely choose between Duck Liver with pears, roasted macadamia, brioche, Mache salad and tryffelvinegrett, and Red Wine Braised Veal Post with truffle creamed cabbage, carrot, viltsky, oyster mushrooms and Västerbotten.
Where: Bondegatan 54, 116 33 Stockholm
(8) An internationally styled eatery with DJ at the bar, modern artworks on the walls and a menu of BBQ meat and seafood, Vassa Eggen Steakhouse’s chefs have traveled the world, cooking on Swedish Navy ships and at restaurants like New York’s Aquavit and Union Pacific. Yet the spirit of Swedish cooking is not entirely quenched.
Hence its lunch offering has almost sublime traces of truffle in a few of its mains. Its signature beefsteak comes served with truffle mayonnaise, red wine sauce, or basil butter and a side order boiled potatoes, potato purée, or French fries. Traces of truffle aioli grace the plates of charcoal grilled corn fed chicken, green salad and French fries, and that of suckling pig with red wine sauce, sauerkraut and one choice of sides.
Where: Birger Jarlsgatan 29, 111 45 Stockholm
(9) Jim & Jacob made its name serving great value for money tapas style dishes, influenced from the world over. Since mid 2016, it introduced a new brunch concept for Sundays from noon to 3pm.
If you have not tired from dining on the offerings of truffle at the eight eateries listed above over 11th and 12th November, then there is no better way of starting your 13th in Stockholm than by waking up late and tripping down to Jim & Jacob for its silky smooth Scrambled Eggs with truffle, alongside its yummy corn bread
Where: Surbrunnsgatan 38, 113 48 Stockholm
