10 of the best places to eat and drink in north-west Skåne
From the vineyards and palace dining rooms of the countryside to the sophisticated urban restaurants of Helsingborg’s waterfront, north-
west Skåne caters for all culinary tastes. Whether you want traditional Scanian comfort food (think fried pork with potato pancakes and lingonberry jam), American-inspired but locally sourced soul food or tartare of char, it’s all there for the eating
Sofiero Slottsrestaurang
It’s worth seeking out the former summer palace of King Oscar II, a couple of kilometres north of Helsingborg. Here, a beautiful park and gardens form a magical backdrop to one of Sweden’s finest restaurants, where you can dine like royalty among chandeliers, starched white tablecloths and candlelight.
If a full five- or seven-course gourmet dinner is not your thing, you can always drop by for a more wallet- and waistline-friendly lunch. A dish of the day – perhaps guinea fowl with red-wine baked pears, puréed potatoes and pointed cabbage – won’t break the bank but will give you the chance to sample the restaurant’s masterful cooking.
Sillen & Makrillen
This sleek, glass-walled building, directly on Helsingborg's waterfront, houses the best fish restaurant in town. Push the boat out with a seafood platter and a bottle of Krug, or choose more modestly from a menu that includes tartare of char from Umeå with wasabi mayonnaise, roast sesame seeds, spring onion, crispy tapioca, sliced black radish and shiso.
Carnivores won’t go hungry either, with dishes like slow-baked Skåne veal knuckle with cabbage, smoked bacon, jerusalem artichoke, crispy potatoes, apple vinegar and veal gravy. Round off with an espresso martini as you watch the sun go down over the Öresund.
Barski
Helsingborg lost a gem of a café last year when master coffee makers Koppi closed to focus on the coffee-roasting side of business. Luckily for coffee aficionados, beer lovers and ramen fans, however, this new high-end bar/restaurant by local microbrewers Brewski, on the café’s old premises, satisfies all three cravings in one.
With some 20 of their own and other guest beers served on tap, Koppi coffee expertly made by a former Koppi barista and ramen by stellar chef Mike Field, ambitions and standards are high.
Drottninggatan 35
Only open in the evenings, D35 is the place to go in Helsingborg for a buzzy, sociable dinner; the focus is on sharing plates of unpretentious, big-flavoured food around a long communal table.
Ingredients are mainly local and seasonal but there’s input from across the world – start with a few Grebbestad oysters before sampling cod with hollandaise and cauliflower, and sweetbreads with chanterelles and fermented garlic, and don’t forget to order some truffled fries for the table. Keep an eye on the restaurant’s Facebook page as Drottninggatan 35 also opens occasionally for lunches, and for cracking Sunday brunches with a party atmosphere and classic pick-me-ups like mimosas and bloody marys.
Garage
In the industrial area of Höganäs you’ll find a little corner of the American south, a restaurant serving authentic soul food to both bikers and anyone else who appreciates a world-class burger (many aficionados count them among the best in Sweden).
Those famous burgers are joined on the menu by TexMex favourites such as tacos, red chilli and buffalo wings, all washed down with beer from the owners’ micro-brewery, Höganäs Bryggeri, and accompanied by live music with a hard rock edge.
Höganäs Saluhall
In the former pottery buildings for which Höganäs is famous (conveniently located right next door to Garage), you’ll find an atmospheric indoor food market/restaurant built around the old kilns. Numerous counters sell the very best produce the area has to offer, including cheeses from Vilhemsdal dairy, pork chops from Olinge gård and the company’s own breads and other delicacies.
Take your food finds outside for a picnic, or head upstairs to the restaurant for a hearty lunch made from the same top-notch ingredients that are on sale downstairs. The restaurant is also open in the evenings during the summer months.
Holy Smoke
If you’re looking for fine dining and fancy service, you’ve come to the wrong place. If, however, you want to try some of the best barbecued meat you’ve ever eaten, steer a course to this BB shack out in Bräcke, in the heart of the beautiful Kullabygden region.
Buy a tray of sides and then choose from between six and 10 barbecued meat options. Pork and chicken are locally sourced while prime Black Angus beef comes from Arkansas; brisket is smoked for up to 24 hours while short ribs get around eight hours in subtle oak smoke. The shack is only open during the summer season but keep your eye on the company's social media accounts for special events like cooking classes and occasional festive openings.
Mölle Krukmakeri
This pottery, run by renowned local potter Lisa Wohlfahrt, occupies a charming spot near the harbour in Mölle and has been joined over the years by a garden café and an evening restaurant serving authentic Neapolitan pizzas.
Open all year round, you can sit outside among apple trees or in a vine-covered orangery and eat pizzas that are slowly fermented, fast baked and topped with simple but top-quality ingredients such as buffalo mozzarella, Ligurian olives and green pepper salami from Skåne.
Arilds Vingård
Thanks to the region’s fertile soil and relatively mild winters, Skåne has, over the past two decades, become one of Europe’s most northerly wine-growing regions. As well as offering wine tours and tastings, and cosy accommodation, this family-run winery has a restaurant serving traditional country cooking that pairs well with their own reds, whites and rosés, as well as cocktails made with their own gin.
Simple, well-cooked dishes include the likes of fried mackerel, sourced from local fishermen, with boiled potatoes and a mustard and dill sauce, or local brisket with potato cakes and coleslaw.
Erikstorps Kungsgård
There may be a famous golf course, the Landskrona, beside this restaurant but don’t expect your average club sandwich. The kitchen at Erikstorp is run in collaboration with Skåne’s most celebrated chef, Daniel Berlin, and standards are high.
Sit in the pared-back bistro and choose charcuterie from locally reared, free-range animals, local artisan cheeses or pizzas made from Ven durum wheat. Or, order a four- or eight-course tasting menu in the building’s Food Academy restaurant. Innovative dishes here might include lamb tartare with jerusalem artichoke with preserved wild garlic and currants, or brill baked in goose fat with grilled cucumber, mushroom and butter emulsion.
Written by Tatty Good
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