Image by Aaron L

Attention hungry tourist. Have you ever wanted to have 3 types of cheesecakes, a big fluffy marang, tiramisu, a large chicken salad and 17 types of tea all at the same time? Yes?! Me too! Add me on Facebook.

Cafe 60 in downtown Stockholm can offer all that and much, much more. It’s located on the corner of Sveavägen and past Stockholm’s iconic blue concert hall. I just have to stress this once more…imagine your average café, now take that café, force feed it horse vitamins and inject it with steroids and voila! You get Cafe 60.

A household name in many ways with the locals, Cafe 60 has definitely carved a place for itself in the heavily saturated fika industry of Stockholm. It has a huge variety of teas (up to 30 or more), an even larger selection of cakes, pastries and other things of that nature as well as king kong salads and an ample amount of seating both down and upstairs.

Besides being spoilt for choice, what makes Cafe 60 special is that it is one of very few cafes in Stockholm that are open past 00:00. So now let me ask that question again: Have you ever wanted to have 3 types of cheesecakes, a large fluffy marang, tiramisu, a large chicken salad and 17 types of tea all at the same time at 2 o’clock in the morning? If so, you know what to do.

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Cafe 60 | Coffee & tea
Sveavagen 60 | City/Norrmalm
Mon – Thu 07:00 – 00:00, Sat 09:00 – 02:00, Sun 10:00 – 00:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Stockholm

Image by Aaron L

Across from the godzilla (for Stockholm’s standards) department store, Åhlens there’s a great café/restaurant that serves up mean cinnamon buns and oreo cheesecakes. From the outside it seems like your typical tourist trap café/restaurant located in the middle of the city but what they offer inside is pretty quality stuff.

It’s a big place with café customers seated towards the front and the open kitchen and lunch/dinner crowd seated in the back. Bolero is a decent place to come for a fika after finishing your tour of Gamla Stan or having a light lunch before you take on the many H&M’s of Drottninggatan (my guide here).

In the evenings they serve tapas, which are delicious, tasty and quite big portioned. I know that kinda defeats the purpose of tapas but I ain’t complaining. All in all, Bolero Cafe gets a solid recommendation for those looking for a nice place to go for a coffee in the center of Stockholm city.

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Bolero Cafe | Coffee & tea, Restaurants (Intern.)
Klarabergsgatan 25 | City/Norrmalm
Mon – Fri 08:00 – 11:00, Sat 10:00 – 23:00, Sun 11:00 – 22:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Stockholm

Image by Aaron L

Juke boxes, neon signs and milk shakes will take you back to the retro 50′s era here at Marion’s Gastro Diner. It’s the perfect place to host your bi-annual Grease Lightning themed party or go bowling with a bunch of friends and realize that you don’t need alcohol or David Guetta to have a good time! They do serve cocktails and beers here though, if your bowling is really not your thing.

Marion’s is a large American styled diner that serves up your typical diner type food. Hamburgers and pickles, baby back ribs and that classic chocolate milkshake. After dinner you can choose to go bowling to work off those calories. They’ve got super cool lanes lit up by neon and ultraviolet lights on both bottom and second floor and they’re really great for big groups and a fun afterwork session.

In all seriousness, it really is a refreshing take on a night out with friends. It could serve as a great pre-party place as it’s located walking distance from Stureplan (clubbing central! untz untz) and the 50′s style decor makes for great photos to upload on Facebook and tag the members of your family so they stop asking you if you actually have real friends… Story of my life.

Regardless! Bowling is 250kr/hour for one lane before 16:00 and 400kr from 16:00 till 01:00. Strike out now!

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Marion’s Gastro Diner | Bars, Restaurants (American)
Kungsgatan 37 | City/Norrmalm | +46854611000
Mon – Wed 11:00 – 00:00, Thu 11:00 – 01:00, Fri 11:00 – 2:00, Sat 13:00 – 02:00, Sun 13:00 – 00:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Stockholm

Image by Aaron L

In each major area or hub of Stockholm city, you’ll be able to find different indoor ‘markets’ where you can go to buy high quality meats. fresh produce, dried herbs and etc. Perhaps the most famous of them and quite popular for the tourists and locals alike is Ostermalmshallen. However, in this post I’ll be talking about the lesser known, ever-busy Hotorgshallen located right in the city center.

Everytime my sister and I shop on Drottningatan we make it a point to stop here (like many of the other shoppers) to recharge and get our dose of vitamins and minerals with the huge variety of dried fruits, nuts and berries which are free to sample and try. We used to be quite shy but now its a fight with the other curious and hungry shoppers to get the last dried Incaberry.

Along with the meat and seafood vendors you can find different restaurants, fine chocolates as well as a Finnish food store all in Hotorgshallen. It’s definitely one of the most diverse halls in Stockholm city. What’s special about Hotorgshallen and all other ‘halls’ in Stockholm is that every vendor has very high standards for the freshness and quality of what they sell or serve, so you are sure to be getting the very best without having to pay a very high price!

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Hötorgshallen | Art & culture, Coffee & tea, Shopping, Restaurants (Fresh)
Hötorgshallen, 11157 | City/Norrmalm
Mon – Thu 10:00 – 18:00, Fri 10:00 – 18:30, Sat 10:00 – 16:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Stockholm

Image by Aaron L

A recent discovery that has already gotten me raving about it to my friends. I went to Köttbaren with a friend on an extremely cold Friday night, got lost, froze some more and finally ended up in the cosy, filled-to-the-brim Köttbaren.

As we waited for our table at the bar, we watched as the chefs dressed in thier white aprons prepared and plated the meals right in front of our wine glasses. Köttbaren has an open style kitchen and bar and guests sit at large dark brown tables and enjoy their plates of meat lit by candlelight. Köttbaren meaning Meat Bar in Swedish, is a boutique slash restaurant that only serves up the finest cuts of meats in town. One would think that this would cost a pretty penny but it actually really doesn’t! Its quite reasonable for the high quality food, service and amazing atmosphere. (The average for a main course: 150kr)

Vegetarians head on over to Hermans, because Köttbaren is definitely a meat lover’s paradise. The menu is comprised of, among other things: a daily slow cooked special (meat, duh), oxribs and steak tartare. My favorite would have to be the “Pelle Janzon”, which is a meat appetizer made of thinly sliced marbled oxfilet, a raw egg yolk on top of a small piece of mildly cheesy toast garnished with fish roe and lemon juice. Serious Mums!

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Köttbaren | Bars, Shopping | Main course +/- SEK 150
Tegnergatan 32 | City/Norrmalm | +46850524426
Mon – Fri 11:15 – 23:00, Sat 12:00 – 23:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Stockholm

Image by Aaron L

An authentic, affordable and delicious Mexican restaurant hidden away on a small street in downtown Stockholm makes La Neta the best taco restaurant in Stockholm period. Its a unique local favorite where everything thats served on the brightly colored plates are freshly made by the Mexican chefs: the soft taco fillings, guacamole and even the tortilla breads, which are made by the machines specially brought in from Mexico!

After a tiresome day of shopping on the main high street of Stockholm, La Neta is my number one restaurant that comes to mind when I wanna tug into some fast and tasty comfort food and destress. It’s my favorite place to introduce to friends and family because no one suspects to find such a refreshing Mexican restaurant right in the city center and to top it off its cheap and has great Mexican beers that can only be found here.

Its often always full of locals, international students and occasionally tourists, but seating has never been a problem for me. The restaurant feels really lively and fun, you can even get shots of tequila with your tacos! La Neta is located below street level and you sit close to the other guests on the picnic-like tables and get your grub on. Friendly, fun and delicious!

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La Neta | Bars, Restaurants (Mexican) | Taco Grande SEK 45
Barnhusgatan 2 | City/Norrmalm | +4684115880
Mon – Fri 11:00 – 21:00, Sat – Sun 12:00 – 21:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Stockholm

Image by Aaron L

When I think of street food, Stockholm definitely does not immediately spring to mind. However, although limited in choices and variety, there is one little gem that can save the city’s street cred. Apart from the usual ‘korv med bröd’/hot dog, my favorite thing to order is a “tunnbrodsrulle”. Actually, its more of a meal than a street snack.

Tunnbrödsrulle means ‘thin-bread roll’ in english and what it is, is mashed potatoes, one or two sausages, salad, tomatoes and räksallad (shrimp salad) all wrapped in a soft thin Swedish tortilla bread. Granted, not every hot dog stall will serve this monster wrap but just look for a larger sized grill and it is sure to be on the menu.

It’s typically Swedish and its as comforting as Friday night on the couch with a good movie and a warm blanket. Thats how it feels, tastes and looks. The combination of all the ingredients is just perfect as well. The warm soft mash potatoes with the crunchy chewy sausage and refreshing raksallad is the perfect takeaway for me after a night out while I’m sitting waiting for my bus home at 3 in the morning. With my tunbrodsrulle I never feel alone.

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Tunnbrödsrullar | Snacks | Tunnbrödsrulle SEK 50
All over the city | City/Norrmalm
Daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Stockholm

Image by Aaron L

What stockholm lacks in Starbucks, it makes up for with H&Ms. This is my guide to some of the best H&M’s in Stockholm city. Take it from a local, we know Stockholm and we definitely know our H&Ms.

The first category I wanted to tip you all about is an H&M collection that features unique pieces that look and feel more designed than the ‘average’ H&M line. For this, I go to the flagship store located across Gallerian (here), one on Gotgatan (indie shopping street of Stockholm) or to the one located on the corner of Drottninggatan and Master Samuelsgatan. Only at these stores do they display the Trend collection (as its known).

Look out for the purple label for menswear and the white label for women. The prices are of course slightly higher than usual but you’re getting pieces that look and feel more luxe.

If it’s time to spruce up my bedroom with new sheets, H&M Home would be my first option. H&M Home products are only stocked in one store in Stockholm which is located on the corner of Drottninggatan. It’s a refreshing, affordable and unique H&M to visit to source for gifts or unnecessary glittery silver laundry bins.So now the time has come to whip out your Visas and kronors and spend, spend, spend! Don’t think twice if it looks nice. You’re on holiday after all!

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H&M Uncovered | Shopping
Drottninggatan | City/Norrmalm
Mon – Fri 10:00 – 19:00, Sat 10:00 – 18:00, Sun 12:00 – 17:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Stockholm

Image by Aaron L

One of the best dishes to warm yourself right down to your bones during Stockholm’s seriously cold winters is a piping hot bowl of one of Stockholm’s most popular fish soups located in Hotorgshallen (my article about Hotorgshallen here).

Its a ‘restaurant’ hugely popular with tourists and locals alike, one for its location in the middle of the city and for its affordability. 85kr gets you a scrumptious bowl of their fish soup (including mussels, shrimps and a generous spoonful of garlic aoili), dark and white bread with butter and a small salad. Apart from their famous fish soups, their menu is comprised of traditional Swedish seafood dishes like ‘nystektstromming’ and salmon.

Its a definite must-try when you come to Stockholm. The restaurants tables quickly fill to maximum capacity during lunch hours with suits and ties, backpackers and hungry students tired from a day of hardcore H&M shopping.

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Kajsas Fisk | Restaurants (Swedish/Seafood) | Fish soup SEK 85
Hötorgshallen, 11157 | City/Norrmalm | +468207262
Mon – Thu 10:00 – 18:00, Fri 10:00 – 18:30, Sat 10:00 – 16:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Stockholm

Image by Natalia Urbanska

You feel like doing something, seeing something, feel a bit cultural? Kulturhuset is the place to get inspired or just to wander around. There’s always something going on for everyone!

The bottom floor welcomes you with a café and nice library with lots of comfy sofas, here you can hang for hours.

This place really makes me happy, the exhibitions are cheap or for free and they always have interesting activities going on. They have several exhibitions, theatres, a cinema, cafés, music performances, an impressive library with lots of art-books and newspapers from all over the world, an unique library for comics, a large imaginative place for children, a creative place for teenagers called LAVA, they arrange meetings with writers and much more…

This is a big bubbling place that wants everyone to get inspired, to think for themselves and to share their big and small thoughts with each other; or just to sit down, play some chess and drink coffee.

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Kulturhuset | Art & culture, Cinemas, Coffee & tea, Music, Theaters
Sergels torg | City/Norrmalm | +46850831508
Check the website for opening times

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Stockholm