Restaurant Två Små Svin

You have certainly heard about the fable of "three little pigs"? Well, this is an article about a restaurant called "two little pigs" (or better, in Swedish, Två Små Svin). I had actually been hearing a lot about this place from friends and colleagues over the past year, so was very curious to try it. The restaurant is located in the southern suburbs of Årsta. As I happened to be in the neighborhood last week, visiting the local allotment gardens (see blog article here), it was the perfect opportunity to visit the restaurant!

The restaurant is quite remarkable looking from the street as a large part of it is located outside. It is squeezed between the street and a rock outcropping, with stairs leading to various levels/decks on the side of the outcropping. If that wasn't enough, it is also decked out in an explosion of plants and flowers. Real summer feelings! An added bonus, in the era of Covid 19, being outdoors and separated from other diners on different levels gives good social distancing. Very laid-back cool atmosphere.

Smörrebröd with...

But, for me, the real draw is the food. They serve Danish cuisine at Två Små Svin. More specifically, they serve the traditional Danish smörrebröd (smørrebrød in Danish). Full disclosure, I love smörrebröd and never visit Copenhagen without visiting my favorite smörrebröd restaurants. Basically, it is an open-faced sandwich with rye bread with a wide variety of toppings (meat, fish, cheese, vegetarian, etc.).

...the restaurants own snaps!

With the many different types/toppings, it reminds me, in a way, of Spanish tapas or Japanese sushi. However, it is good to note that smörrebröd tends to be larger and more filling than tapas or sushi. One or two max is usually enough to fill you up! My friends and I ordered one each and then split another. We had the soused herring (matjessill) with browned butter and potatoes, the smoked salmon with fish roe and egg and the beef patty (pannbiff) with roasted onions and salted pickles. It was all very delicious!

Matjessill (soused herring)

Traditionally, you drink beer and snaps/akvavit with smörrebröd. Två Små Svin has quite the extensive snaps menu! They have snaps from Sweden, Norway and, of course, Denmark. They even have their very own Två Små Svin snaps, which we had and it was tasty. I should probably explain quickly about snaps. This is distilled spirits, usually quite strong, made from grains or potatoes and flavored with herbs. This isn't something which is drunk often these days (historically, yes). Instead it is often served either on special occasions (Midsummer) or with traditional foods like smörgåsbord, herring and smörrebröd.

Smoked salmon

The easiest way to get to Två Små Svin from Hotel Rival is to take the subway from nearby Slussen (green line) south to the station Gullmarsplan and then switch to the tram to Valla Torg. Otherwise it is about a 10-15 minute taxi or Uber ride. Click here for other blog articles about restaurants in Stockholm.