Malmö is Sweden’s third largest city and once upon a time, it might have been a city that didn’t get attention from tourists. More recently this has changed, and it has become a popular destination for weekend getaways and vacations. With more than 150 nationalities calling Malmö their home, it is wonderfully urban, worldly and cultured. The mix of Swedish aesthetics and international influences combined with its Nordic coolness makes Malmö a great place for a short city trip. Malmö is a perfectly walkable city and offers sights, galleries, great shops, cool cafés and fine restaurants all in walking distance.
WHAT WE DID:
Grandpa: A hipster mix of home items, stationery and fashion can be found at this cute store. Funky name for a funky shop! It is also conveniently (or should I say dangerously?!) placed next door to AB Småland on the main walking street.
AB Smaland: If you only have time to visit one shop in Malmö then make it AB Småland. It is modern rustic heaven with two floors of beautifully curated homeware and fashion. Also swoon worthy is their plant shop and cute café space dotted with vintage wooden tables and giant indoor olive trees.. Plan some extra time for this gem! Daniel wanted to kill me as I took multiple laps around the store plotting how I could fit as much as possible in my suitcase.
Florista: A beautiful florist with an extraordinary selection of flowers, plants and dried flowers. One thing I found unique in Sweden were the beautiful dried flower arrangements in almost every place of business.
Malmö Public Library: After noticing quite a few people enter this building, curiosity nudged me in. Entering the Malmö library took me back to my childhood. Maybe it was the quietness of the library, the gorgeous view of the park, or maybe it was the warm feeling that people still like to read books.
Slottsträdgarden: Gorgeous and lush city park Slottsträdgarden (Castle Garden) is complete with windmill and lovely flower gardens. We explored for a few hours on a picturesque sunny cool day and loved gazing at the ducks and variety of plants.
Saluhall: This market/food hall is a great option if you are unsure what you want to eat. Located in a renovated warehouse, you can choose from a wide selection of food stalls and indoor restaurants offering culinary delights. And afterwards you can stroll away and do some food shopping for home too. Look out for delicious local chocolates! We bought tons of Malmö chocolates to bring home to family and friends as gifts. We ate at St. Jakobs Stenugnsbageri for breakfast, where we had our first (of many) Swedish buns.
WHERE WE STAYED:
Story Hotel: There are plenty of great places to stay in Malmö, but the Story Hotel is the only one that has a rooftop bar with stunning views of the harbor. The décor is pared back and industrial without ever feeling cold and uninviting. Concrete ceilings in the bedrooms are blended with deep colors and soft textures in the furnishings to create a stylish, warm atmosphere.
What we ate:
Atrium: This light-filled cafe is quite a walk out of the city center, but it’s more than worth it for their delicious breakfast and lunch options and tasty cakes. This is the kind of cafe where you want to photograph everything. Seemingly set up for Instagram with its marble tabletops and counter and the abundance of plants. After devouring daily Swedish buns we were at the point of the trip where we were in need of a salad. We shared a kale salad with zucchini, beat root, quinoa and goat cheese and it was outstanding!
Spoonery: With multiple locations throughout the city, Spoonery offers all kinds and varieties of soups. Daniel had the Swedish meatballs and I had the vegetarian hot pot. It was the perfect hearty meal on a cold November night.
Dubbel Dubbel: From the outside this restaurant looks quite anonymous, but when entering, it feels like stepping into a hip bar in Hong Kong. The menus were not in English, so our kind and patient server translated and also suggested one of the set menus. They offer four set menus or the option to order a la cart. The set menu was the perfect amount of food for the two of us. Everything was delicious and well prepared. Our favorites were the pizza salad, Korean cucumber salad, and dumplings.
Leve: I read quite a few blogs claiming that Leve was home to one of the most delicious buns in Sweden. They were not wrong! I would later call the softest and most delicious cinnamon bun in the world.
Söderberg & Sara: If you want to experience a fika where all of the locals hang out then this is the place to go. It’s a café that serves quality in the trendiest of ways.
Jord- frukost,fik, butik: One of those places where you instantly feel at home, Jord is a cute and light-filled cafe and boutique that serves amazing breakfast and pastries. We didn’t realize that Jord was Vegan, but we enjoyed spectacular mushroom and avocado toasts with oat milk lattés. Jord also hosts a little shop section which is filled with gorgeous items, most of them from local designers and artists.
LAYOVER TIPS:
There are TONS of vegan and vegetarian restaurants in Malmö
Falafel is more than just fast food for people in Malmö. You’ll find countless Middle Eastern food stalls and restaurants selling falafel.
We took the bus a few times around the city when it was too cold to walk. We went to the Malmö train station and bought tickets for the bus. We carried around the tickets (receipts) that no one ever checked. We also never saw anyone scan in to ride the bus. It honestly still remains a mystery if you have to pay for the bus when riding within city limits.
Malmö is quite windy, so prepare yourself because there won’t be many days without it.
Most menus in restaurants and coffee shops are in Swedish but don’t worry, most Swedes speak fluent English.
We learn that in Sweden when ordering pizza, it always comes with “pizza salad.” Which is a cabbage vinegar slaw that is amazing with greasy/ fatty pizza. Pizza will never be the same.
