Angela M.
Yelp
One of Jimmy's Swedish colleagues said that if we could only visit one place while in Stockholm, it should be Fem Små Hus. So we made reservations for a Saturday night at 8:45 (the day before). We got into the area sooner than we expected, and we were hungry, so we showed up early and asked if we could be seated early. We checked my coat and headed down the stairs to the host stand. We were fully prepared to wait at the bar if needed, but the host was able to find us a seat a full 25 minutes before our reservation (and able to cancel the reservation I'd made for Sunday night, forgetting that European calendars show Sunday as the last day of the week).
Winding through the top 2 rooms down the stairs and around the back, we were seated at the last table of what used to be the coal cellar. They've added nice lighting to accentuate the bricks, brighten the sides. I sat on a padded banquette with pillow, while Jimmy had a chair.
Our server for the evening was excellent. She was knowledgeable, spoke English well, and was willing to talk with us about how to make the evening memorable. She talked us through the specialty Swedish cocktails, and we decided on the Myggan (Swedish mojito - with cloudberries and cloudberry liquer) and the Sommarfläkt ("Summer breeze" - berry martini). The cocktails were beautiful and delicious - the right balance of alcohol and flavor.
Jimmy got the 4-course house menu which featured: Kalix roe for starter, Reindeer steak with potato & cheese croquettes for main, cheese course, and chocolate mousse with cloudberries for dessert. I created my own menu: SOS (4 types of herring and some cheese), Veal Anna Lindberg with potatoes au gratin, and Swedish apple pie for dessert. Rather than choosing the alcohol pairings for each course, Jimmy started with sparkling wine for his roe, and I started with beer and aquavit for my herring. Then we decided on a Chianti Classico with our servers help to go with our mains.
The food was divine - the ingredients were fresh, the components the right temperature, the presentation beautiful. My highlights were the dill and red-onion herring, the Swedish cheese, and the morel sauce on the veal, and the cloudberries that accompanied the chocolate mousse.
Truly a fine dining experience without pretense.
And it turns out the 2017 Nobel Laureate for Chemistry was dining in the room next door at the same time.