A perfect Saturday in Vasastan

Start your day off right with easy brunch at Vurma Vasastan. This casual, laid-back café has stores in Hornstull and Östermalm – but it’s the Vasastan version of lunch that you’re after. Breakfast is a delight all day, from simple sandwich and coffee, to the quirky Swedish Katrin brekky-boiled eggs with caviar and oatmeal with lingonberries. Yum! Here for lunch? No problem — they offer vegetarian curries, smoky bean stew and – or so they claim – the world’s best shrimp sandwich! Best hurry on over there to find out if the claims are true.

The Sven-Harry Art Museum is necessary for anyone who calls themselves a student or connoisseur of Nordic art. Surprisingly, the museum is located on a roof of a lone building in Vasastan, and what’s more, it’s an exact replica of art collector Sven-Harry’s 18th-century farm estate. Inside the cozy interior you’ll find scores of famous works by Nordic artists from Ernst Josephson, August Strindberg, Helene Schjerfbeck and Carl Fredrik Hill. Buy your ticket at the entrance; the guided tour lasts about 40 minutes.

Top off your afternoon with a visit to Stockholm’s Ice Cream House – yes, you read that right – featuring a delectable menu designed to knock your palette into seventh heaven. Ice cream, gelato, sorbet, and frozen yoghurt – whatever you fancy, the Stockholm Glasshus has got you covered. Flavors are all over the map, from orange to banana to chocolate cookie, apple pie, licorice, pepper cake, Swiss nut chocolate, toffee cola, rum raisin, Caribbean chocolate, Marrakech, Teheran (ok now we’re just naming places) — we give up; the point is, it’s delicious and everyone will love it so what are you waiting for?

If you have time, scoot off to Observatorielunden, a verdant oasis smack-dab in bustling Vasastan, with origins that date all the way back to the 1700s. It makes for a quiet respite after a long day of museum touring. Atop the hill, you’ll find the 18th-century Stockholm Observatory (used to be a museum, but it closed in 2014), and on the edges of the park are the beautiful archives of the Stockholm Public Library.

The upscale Buco Nero is an unparalleled Italian restaurant. Step down its long flight of stairs into the white-washed walls and skylit dining corners – the restaurant feels more like a garden than anywhere else. Italian dishes like Rigatoni della Massaia, seafood Spaghetti allo Scoglio and the double-coated Milanese veal are excellent, of course, but it’s the mind-blowing mozzarella in the Caprese Salad that will really persuade you to come back again.

Wrap up your day in Vasastan with style at the Tiki Room, a Polynesian tiki-themed bar. It’s a creative orgy of fruity and exotic cocktails, highlighted by popping playlists from live DJs. As Stockholm’s only – authentic – tiki bar, jump at your chance for a trip back in time to a 1950’s tropical paradise.

We wish you a fantastic Saturday in Stockholm’s Vasastan!

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