Tropicana Sep-Oct 2019 #126 The Wellbeing Issue

Natural fermented moose heart
Magnus Ek and Agneta Green
Stockholm offers the culinary connoisseur a
surprising variety of traditional and modern
cuisine. Expect delectable interpretations of the
region’s freshest ingredients while seafood being
a special delicacy in this Nordic capital where its
impossible to ignore the fruits of the Baltic Sea.
Stockholm – one of the world leaders in Nordic cuisine,
has a number of Michelin-starred restaurants, and Bib
Gourmands (for excellent affordable eating), and a host of
local Swedish classics attracting international headlines and
food lovers.
The city is simmering as a harvest field and playground
for talented chefs and attracting food lovers to try fresh
seasonal plates brimming with rich flavours and served with
a contemporary and experimental flair. Bolstered by a fertile
Nordic hinterland that gives everything from the sweetest
vegetables to the freshest seafood and poultry, Stockholm is
now positioning itself as the “Capital of Scandinavia” with
local chefs championing locavore and sustainability not
only through dishes that tantalise the tastebuds, but also its
community of craftsmen and small producers. And it is not
white-linen and stiff-suited settings that distinguish these gems;
it is the passion for preserving the land’s geography, history
and culture that warms the heart as much as the stomach.
Oaxen Krog
For many years Oaxen Krog – one of the top 50 restaurants
in the world, according to Restaurant magazine – and its
sister restaurant, Slip, were located on the remote island of
Oaxen, an hour outside Stockholm. The founders, Magnus
Ek and Agneta Green, have now moved them to a much
more accessible waterfront location in the city at the new
Djurgården shipyard marina. Sustainability, history and
craftsmanship have been the two-Michelin starred Oaxen’s
ethos since Magnus and Agneta first opened the restaurant in
1994. The restaurant emphasises Nordic cuisine using locallysourced
and seasonal flavours. Raw ingredients are prepared
in a modern way, while old and traditional techniques are the
foundation of the restaurant’s approach.
Diners can dig into its 16-course degustation menu
paired with excellent European old world wines and served
on handcrafted wooden crockery made by Chef Magnus,
from dainty spoons made from elder wood roasted in the oven
to organic-shaped bowls hollowed out from tree branches.
The beautifully presented dishes resonate with nature and the
seasons while offering a real depth of flavour.
Besides working with producers from all over
Scandinavia, Magnus and Agneta have their own vegetable
plot, which yielded about 30 different crops last year including
mustard sprouts, Jerusalem artichoke, green and black kale,
95 SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2019 | TM