Off the Beaten Path: The Plank Road of Southern California

Southern California Plank Road

Imagine Southern California in the early 1900s.  It wasn’t as easy to travel as it is today, but the love of travel was strong.  People wanted to explore and get away, and they were willing to do some pretty crazy things to do so.  Crazy like crossing the ever-shifting sands of the Southern California desert on a road made entirely of wooden planks.  The even crazier thing?  There’s still a little piece of that Plank Road, built 100 years ago, available for travelers of today to visit.

I first learned about the Plank Road at the San Diego Automotive Museum in Balboa Park.  It was just a little display in the corner of the museum that I almost missed.  I watched the documentary and read the plaques and I was immediately obsessed.

Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area Near Plank Road

The idea of a Plank Road started with a rivalry between two cities, San Diego and Los Angeles.  San Diego had lost its bid to be the location of a terminus for the Transcontinental Railroad, so the next plan was to beat Los Angeles to becoming a road network hub.  “Colonel” Ed Fletcher was a road builder and wanted to prove that San Diego was a better choice for a route between California and Arizona.  In October 1912, Fletcher raced a reporter for the Examiner.  Fletcher was to travel from San Diego to Phoenix and the reporter was to travel from Los Angeles to Phoenix, each hoping to prove their city provided the better route.  Fletcher won the race in 19.5 hours, even with his automobile being pulled through the Imperial sand dunes by a team of horses.

Ocean-to-Ocean Highway Bridge Yuma Arizona
The approval of construction of the Ocean-to-Ocean Highway bridge crossing the Colorado River in Yuma 
contributed to the success of the Plank Road plans.
Plans began to create a road between San Diego and Yuma, passing through Imperial County.  San Diego was planning the 1915 Panama-California Exposition to celebrate the opening of the Panama Canal and thousands of visitors would be arriving by automobile.  A road across the sand dunes was needed.

Related: A Weekend Exploring Yuma’s Historic Districts

The Plank Road started as a track of 25-inch wide parallel planks extending almost seven miles across the sands east of Grey’s Wells.  Just imagine accidentally coming off such a narrow track into soft, deep sand!  In April 1915, the first automobiles crossed the Plank Road.  The Plank Road got beat up pretty quickly by all the traffic it saw, so the road had to soon be upgraded. 

Plank Road Parallel Track
The original Plank Road was just a track of parallel planks like those in the forefront.
The next Plank Road was a little sturdier.  In 1916, the new plank road was made of wood railroad ties laid to create an eight-foot wide road.  Every 1,000 feet the road doubled in size to allow for passing.  While the road was constantly being covered by sand from the dunes and traffic jams occurred on the wooden road floating on a sea of sand, travelers still loved the sense of adventure they gained from traversing this road connecting Arizona to the California coast.

Closeup of Plank Road Southern California

The Plank Road was no longer necessary in 1926 when a 20-foot wide asphalt highway was built.  Now Interstate 8, which may never have existed if it weren’t for the Plank Road, allows millions of travelers to drive back and forth between San Diego and Yuma and beyond.

Related: A Small Town Wild West Weekend in Yuma

What is astonishing is part of this historic road still exists. The area around the remaining piece of the Plank Road is a very popular destination.  The Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area attracts off-road enthusiasts who want to climb the sand dunes in ATVs.  Yet many of the sand dunes visitors don’t even know the Plank Road exists.

Plank Road Southern California

The remains of the Plank Road, 20 miles west of Yuma, can be reached by exiting Interstate 8 at the Grays Wells Road exit and following the road southwest until the road dead ends.  Here you will find a small parking lot with a plaque marking California Registered Historical Landmark No. 845.  Climb the slight sand hill and you’ll see the remains of the Plank Road, some parts very well preserved, looking much like they did in the early 1920s, while other parts are just small remnants of rotting wood.  Walking along this little-known piece of Americana, I could hardly imagine driving along this rickety, narrow road at 10 miles per hour during a time before automobile suspension was perfected, in the middle of nowhere.   The surroundings are other-worldly, so much so the dunes were used as the setting of another planet in Star Wars.

Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area
Imagine crossing miles of this landscape on a road made of wood.
Out in the middle of the desert isn’t the only place where the Plank Road can be seen.  At the Yuma Quartermaster Depot State Historic Park visitors can see a well-preserved piece of the Plank Road amidst classic cars.  Commentary from people who had traveled along the Plank Road is displayed, recalling traffic jams and bouncing around so much, items bounced out of cars unbeknownst to the drivers.

Plank Road at Yuma Quartermaster Depot
A piece of the Plank Road at the Yuma Quartermaster Depot.
Visiting what remains of the historic Plank Road is definitely off the beaten path.  You only need 15 minutes or so to follow the length of the road, but it is fascinating to see this artifact from a time long past.  If you’re ever heading out to the Imperial Sand Dunes or traveling between San Diego and Yuma, be sure to pull off the highway to see the old Plank Road.

Travel the World: The Plank Road in Southern California, which helped connect Arizona to San Diego, is a surviving remnant of Americana and an off-the-beaten-path travel destination.

What It’s Like to Stay in Sweden’s ICEHOTEL

ICEHOTEL Entrance Sweden
Welcome to Sweden's ICEHOTEL.
Almost everybody has heard of the famous ICEHOTEL.  For many, a night in Sweden’s ICEHOTEL is a once in a lifetime experiencethough there are a few who don’t understand the appeal of sleeping on a bed of ice in below freezing temperatures.  However, if you’ve never stayed in an ice hotel, you might not know very much about the realities of sleeping in a hotel entirely made of ice.

How the ICEHOTEL Began


ICEHOTEL 25th Anniversary Sweden
The ICEHOTEL celebrated its 25th anniversary during the 2014/15 season.
The ICEHOTEL in Jukkasjärvi, a town within the Kiruna Municipality of Sweden, is the world’s original ice hotel and celebrated its 25th anniversary this past season.  Kiruna is a relatively new town, founded in 1900 to support its iron mine.  During our tour of the ICEHOTEL, we were told the story of the French artist Jannot Derid who wanted to create a reason for people to come visit this freezing destination.  He traveled to cold places around the world for inspiration and became intrigued with the art of ice sculpture in Japan.  In 1989, he constructed the first ICEHOTEL, erecting an ice building in which to display the ice art exhibition.  Every year since, the ICEHOTEL has been constructed along the shores of the Torne River. 

How the ICEHOTEL is Built


ICEHOTEL Lobby Sweden
The ICEHOTEL's lobby.
Sweden’s ICEHOTEL opens every year in December and closes in April.  The building materials, blocks of ice, are harvested from the Torne River every March before the river melts and stored in production halls.  The ICEHOTEL is brand new every year, as the previous year’s hotel melts back into the ground.  The only part that looks the same from year to year is the central pillar hall which is created using forms that are covered in snice, a mixture of snow and ice.  The forms are removed once construction is finished, so the ICEHOTEL is, in fact, a freestanding ice structure. 

ICEHOTEL Pillar Hall Sweden
The ICEHOTEL's Pillar Hall at night.
The ICEHOTEL usually has about 65 rooms of different kinds: deluxe suites, art suites, Northern Lights rooms, ice rooms, and snow rooms.  For the 25th anniversary, there were 16 art suites designed by 46 artists from 12 countries.  A contest is held every year so artists can submit their ideas for the art suites.  The winners are chosen and then the winners travel to Jukkasjärvi to turn their visions into reality.

Touring the ICEHOTEL


ICEHOTEL Prime Mate Art Suite Sweden
Prime Mate art suite.
The ICEHOTEL, including the individual cold rooms, are open to the public daily between 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., meaning guests do not keep their items in their rooms as the ICEHOTEL is more of a museum during the day.  Guests and visitors can walk through the rooms and take pictures throughout the day and can also join a guided tour that explains the history and process of making the ICEHOTEL.  Visitors who are not guests need to pay an entrance fee.

ICEHOTEL Cold Rooms


ICEHOTEL Cordoba Art Suite Sweden
Cordoba art suite.
What you may not know is that the ICEHOTEL has both cold rooms and warm rooms.  Most guests of the ICEHOTEL choose to stay only one night in a cold room and then spend the rest of their nights in a warm room.  A word to the wise, spend your first night in a cold room so you can be sure to get a good night’s rest the evening after.  We found that among most couples we talked to who had spent a night in a cold room, one had no problem sleeping (and kind of looked at the other one like they were a wuss), and the other half of the couple was slightly miserable.  I’ll let you guess who was who in our relationship.

ICEHOTEL Forest Fairy Art Suite Sweden
Forest Fairy art suite.
When you check-in to a cold room, you will check-in at the dressing room, which is used by cold room guests when they aren’t sleeping.  In the dressing room, guests get wall lockers to store their stuff, and if you’re staying in an art room, you get a dressing room.  Our Northern Lights room came with a wall locker, but we jumped the chance to upgrade to a dressing room so we’d have more room for our stuff and so we could charge all of our cameras, phones, and other equipment.  If you stick with the wall locker, you can also use the tiny electronics charging lockers.  The dressing room has a large seating area with a fireplace to hang out, plus his and hers bathrooms with toilets, showers, dressing areas, and saunas.

ICEHOTEL Polar Night Art Suite Sweden
Polar Night art suite.
When you check-in to either a warm or a cold room, you are also provided with mittens, boots, and warm coveralls which you can use for walking around outside and also for booked outdoor activities.  Speaking of activities, you can choose to book your own activities independently or you can book them through the ICEHOTEL, usually at the same cost.  Some of the activities offered are snowmobiling, dog sledding, reindeer sledding, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, ice sculpting, and horseback riding.

ICEHOEL Spring Art Suite Sweden
Spring art suite.
No matter the temperature outside, the temperature inside the ICEHOTEL is a constant negative five degrees Celsius.  When you’re ready to turn in, you will be provided with super warm sleeping bags that are designed to withstand far below freezing temperatures.  If you’re a couple, you’ll be given the choice between a two-person sleeping bag or two individual sleeping bags.  Opt for the singles.  You’ll also get a tube sheet to slip into first.  

ICEHOTEL Time Piece Art Suite Sweden
Time Piece art suite.
Guests staying in a cold room should be sure to join the how to survive the night in negative five degrees tour.  You might be surprised to learn that less is actually more.  It’s best to wear good thermals (we love our his and hers Under Armour ColdGear), warm wool socks (Wigwams are the best), and a hat (Under Armour again).  Don’t wear additional pajamas.  The heat from your body warms up the air within the sleeping bag, and additional clothing just slows down the process.  

Related: Winter Travel Packing List: What to Pack for Outdoor Activities

ICEHOTEL 7.5 °Rø Art Suite Sweden
7.5 °Rø art suite.
The beds in the cold rooms are platforms of ice with foam sleeping pads and reindeer pelts lying on top.  You actually get warm pretty fast and the only time you really feel any cold through the night is if you decide to turn over.

ICEHOTEL Northern Lights Room Sweden
Our Northern Lights art room.
After you’ve accomplished the grand feat of spending the night in a cold room, you’ll receive a diploma with the date, the indoor temperature, the outdoor temperature (ours was -10 degrees Celsius), and the statement that you survived a night at the ICEHOTEL in Jukkasjärvi 200 kilometers north of the Arctic Circle.  It is then time to move into a warm room.

ICEHOTEL Warm Rooms


ICEHOTEL Warm Rooms Sweden
The ICEHOTEL's warm rooms.
The ICEHOTEL has three kinds of warm rooms: arctic chalets, kaamos rooms, and Nordic chalets.  These rooms have all the comforts of a regular hotel room, including private bathrooms.  At every turn our room had reminders that we were staying at the ICEHOTEL: an icicle shaped lamp, an icicle shaped light in the headboard, and even an icicle shaped cutout in the shower drain.  Someone had even built a snowman right outside our window.

Eating at the ICEHOTEL


ICEHOTEL Restaurant Sweden
Icehotel Restaurant.
When you’re in Jukkasjärvi, you’re pretty much there for the ICEHOTEL and the activities.  There are only two restaurants in town, and one of them is the Icehotel Restaurant.  The other is the Homestead restaurant, a 15-minute walk down the street.  

ICEHOTEL Restaurant Bleak Roe Sweden
Bleak roe, onions, and sour cream served on an ice block.
At the Icehotel Restaurant, I had the set menu, with some of the courses served on a block of ice.  The first course was bleak roe, onions, and sour cream served with a potato rosti, a very traditional Swedish dish we saw on many menus.  Next was cured and lightly smoked arctic char with a fennel puree, arctic char mousse, and sea buckthorn.  My favorite course was the fillet of reindeer with Jägermeister sauce, potato, vegetables, reindeer moss, and cloudberry jelly.  Reindeer meat is some of the leanest and most tender I have ever had.  Dessert was caramel tuile, nougat ganache with truffles and arctic bramble sorbet.

ICEHOTEL Cafe and Lounge Sweden
Café and lounge behind the ICEHOTEL's main reception.
There is also a café behind the main reception area where sandwiches and drinks can be purchased throughout the day.

Drinking at the ICEHOTEL


ICEBAR by ICEHOTEL Booom Sweden
ICEBAR BY ICEHOTEL: BOOOM.
After dinner at the restaurant, be sure to stop in for a drink at the ICEBAR BY ICEHOTEL, the original ice bar.  Cocktails and champagne are served in glasses made entirely of ice.  Cocktails are inspired by the year’s art suite themes and feature Nordic ingredients.

The Ice Church


ICEHOTEL Ice Church In The Glade Sweden
Ice Church: In the Glade.
Also on the property is an Ice Church that is built every year along with the ICEHOTEL.  More than 100 (very short) wedding ceremonies are held in the Ice Church every year.

The Northern Lights at the ICEHOTEL


ICEHOTEL Northern Lights Sweden
Northern Lights spotted above the ICEHOTEL.
In addition to the once in a lifetime experience of staying in an ice hotel, you’re probably also visiting because you’re hoping to see the Northern Lights.  Jukkasjärvi is such a tiny town there is very little light pollution.  If the Northern Lights start dancing overhead, the best place to see them from the hotel is right on the frozen Torne River just yards behind the hotel.

Related: Northern Lights: Where to See, How to Photograph

Entering the ICEHOTEL Sweden

I have to admit I had mixed feelings while staying at the ICEHOTEL.  For the months leading up to our stay, I was incredibly excited.  I thought it was fun to stay in a cold room for one night (and one night only).  But partway into our stay I began to feel like maybe it was gimmicky and wondered if it was really worth the cost.  I partly attribute these feelings to the lack of sleep the first night, as we stayed up late hoping to see the Northern Lights then went to our cold bed disappointed we hadn’t seen them, sure that night had been our best chance.   However, this feeling only lasted for a short time.  As I sat eating breakfast in the Icehotel Restaurant on our last morning I felt sad we were leaving and realized I had developed a great fondness for the ICEHOTEL and all its little touches like the icicle logo etched into the glasses and the diaphanous curtains hanging from the ceiling to mimic the Northern Lights.  I went into our stay at the ICEHOTEL thinking it was a once in a lifetime experience we were lucky to be able to enjoy, and I left feeling the exact same way. 

Thank you to the ICEHOTEL for hosting our stay and making this post possible.  As always, all opinions are my own.  

This article contains some affiliate links.  If you purchase through them, there is no additional cost to you and we make a small commission that helps fund our travels so we can bring more stories to you.

Travel the World: What it's like to stay in Sweden's ICEHOTEL including sleeping in a cold room.

The Monuments of Washington, D.C. Under the Cherry Blossoms

Cherry Blossoms Around Tidal Basin and Washington Monument Washington, D.C.

The cherry blossoms are in peak bloom in Washington, D.C., and seeing the photos of the delicate white and pink blossoms decorating the rim of the Tidal Basin brings me back to when we visited this beautiful city a few years back.  One of our favorite things we did while in Washington, D.C. was visiting the memorials in the National Mall, and it was made even more special by the added beauty of the blooming cherry trees.  


In 1912, Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo gifted 3,000 Yoshino cherry trees to Washington, D.C.  On March 27, 1912, the first two trees were planted on the bank of the Tidal Basin in West Potomac Park by First Lady Helen Herron Taft and Viscountess Chindda, the wife of the Japanese ambassador.  The cherry trees are a symbol of the friendship between the United States and Japan and annually this friendship is celebrated with the National Cherry Blossom Festival.

Cherry Blossoms Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.’s cherry blossoms can be almost as elusive as the Northern Lights.  Travelers come from all over the country and all over the world to see the cherry blossoms blooming in D.C., which involves booking flights, paying for hotels, and taking time off of work, things that require a lot of advance planning.  Accurately forecasting when peak bloom will occur is only really possible around 10 days prior, and the cherry blossoms are only in peak bloom for a few days, so there unfortunately is always the chance that your best-laid plans might miss the peak bloom.  While the National Cherry Blossom Festival’s bloom watch does its best to predict when the blooms will be at their best, a surprise cold spell or a brisk wind can change everything.

The cherry trees grow along the shores of the Tidal Basin, which is also surrounded by the memorials of the National Mall.  The National Mall stretches from the foot of the United States Capital all the way to the Potomac River.  This area, protected by the National Mall and Memorial Parks, is home to the monuments and memorials of Washington, D.C. and can be explored while also enjoying the cherry blossoms.

Washington Monument


Washington Monument Washington, D.C.

The first stop on a self-guided tour of the National Mall’s monuments is the Washington Monument, north of the Tidal Basin.  It’s fitting that the first stop is a memorial to the first President of the United States of America, George Washington.  The Washington Monument is one of those structures that everyone recognizes and is often used as a symbol of Washington, D.C.  The marble obelisk is 555 feet tall and offers a bird’s eye view of the city to those who get a ticket to take the elevator ride up.

World War II Memorial


World War II Memorial Washington, D.C.

The Freedom Wall within the World War II Memorial is a striking dose of reality.  The Freedom Wall symbolizes the price of freedom and is covered in 4,048 gold stars.  Each gold star represents one hundred American military personnel who died in the war or remain missing in action. 

Vietnam Veterans Memorial


The Three Servicemen Vietnam Veterans Memorial Washington, D.C.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is a long shiny black wall with the names of 58,000 servicemen and women who lost their lives in the Vietnam War.  There are also two statues that are part of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, The Three Servicemen and the Vietnam Women’s Memorial.

Lincoln Memorial


Lincoln Memorial Washington, D.C.

The Lincoln Memorial is a temple dedicated to the memory of the 16th president, Abraham Lincoln, the savior of the Union.  Inscribed on the wall are the powerful words of Abraham Lincoln’s most famous speech, the Gettysburg Address, delivered during the Civil War on November 19, 1863, at the dedication of the Soldiers’ National Cemetery.  The commanding marble statue of Abraham Lincoln sits regally overlooking the rectangular Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, the largest reflecting pool in the city.

Korean War Veterans Memorial


Korean War Veterans Memorial Washington, D.C.

For me the Korean War Veterans Memorial was one of the most striking.  This memorial commemorating those who served in the Korean War consists of 19 stainless steel statues of members of the military including figures from the U.S. Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force.  These larger-than-life men represent a squad on patrol marching through the rough terrain of Korea.  Behind the statues is a black granite wall covered in 2,500 photographic images.

DC War Memorial


The DC War Memorial memorializes the men and women from the District of Columbia who gave their lives in World War I.  This was the first memorial erected in West Potomac Park and it is also the only memorial specific to the District rather than the nation.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial


The newest of the National Mall’s memorials, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial was dedicated on August 28, 2011, the 48th anniversary of the March on Washington.  The memorial recognizes Martin Luther King, Jr.’s leadership of the Civil Rights movement.  The large sculpture looks like Martin Luther King, Jr. is emerging from a block of stone.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial


Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial Washington, D.C.

The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial is a sprawling monument with outdoor rooms representing each of Roosevelt’s terms in office.  There are multiple statues of the president, including one of him in his wheelchair, and also of the First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.  The walls of the outdoor rooms are covered in many of the president’s famous quotes.  The monument was created in a way to be accessible to people with physical impairments in deference to President Roosevelt’s disability.

Thomas Jefferson Memorial


Thomas Jefferson Memorial Washington, D.C.

Founding Father, third president, and author of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson is honored with the Thomas Jefferson Memorial.  As a nod to Thomas Jefferson’s love of classical architecture, the memorial emulates the styles of Monticello and the Rotunda of the University of Virginia.

An added joy of visiting the National Mall is the opportunity to get multiple stamps in your Passport to Your National Parks.  Many National Parks have special stamps for visitors to commemorate their visit.  The passport is the perfect place to collect rubber stamp cancelations from all the National Parks you visit around the country.  Within the National Mall, stamps can be collected in the Lincoln Memorial.

Visiting all the memorials of the National Mall takes the better part of a day, especially during the blooming of the cherry blossoms when you’ll be stopping every 10 feet to take another picture.

Travel the World: The monuments and memorials of the National Mall accentuated by the cherry blossoms of Washington D.C.

Sweden’s Newest Michelin Starred Restaurants in Gothenburg

SK Mat & Människor Menu Gothenburg Michelin Star Restaurant

Stockholm may be the capital city of Sweden, but Gothenburg is Sweden’s food capital and was actually voted as such in 2012.  Gothenburg, Göteborg in Swedish, recently added to its culinary accolades by gaining two more Michelin stars.  Gothenburg already boasted four Michelin-starred restaurants: Bhoga, Restaurang 28+, Sjömagasinet, and Thörnströms Kök. On February 26, 2015, Michelin announced its 2015 stars for Scandinavia and added two more Michelin starred restaurants to Gothenburg’s list: SK Mat & Människor and KOKA.  

Six Michelin stars is quite an accomplishment for a city with a population around 500,000, but it isn’t a complete surprise because of the great food the region offers.  As Gothenburg is a coastal town in West Sweden, high-quality fish and shellfish are plentiful.  The area also provides mushrooms, berries, dairy products, and other local and organic ingredients that are showcased in Gothenburg’s restaurants.


During our time there we took the opportunity to visit Gothenburg’s two newest Michelin starred restaurants to experience this city’s widely-acclaimed cuisine.

SK Mat & Människor


SK Mat & Människor Chef Stefan Karlsson Gothenburg Michelin Star Restaurant

SK Mat & Människor is an open floorplan restaurant decorated in simple Scandinavian design that somehow still feels warm and homey with the mixture of dark-colored woods.  Diners can easily spy on their meal being prepared in the open kitchen which is center stage.  Chef and owner Stefan Karlsson is often present in the restaurant, checking on things in the oven, plating dishes, and chatting with diners.  Chef Karlsson also owns two other restaurants nearby and occasionally travels with Volvo to other countries to exhibit Swedish flavors alongside Swedish automobiles.  His previous restaurant Fond had a Michelin star and he has prepared the Nobel prize dinner menu many times.

SK Mat & Människor, which translates to Food & People, serves dishes with Swedish flavors and local, seasonal ingredients.  Serving local ingredients is very important at this restaurant and our waitress Sofie was sure to let us know about the source of many of the ingredients starting with the Göteborg gin in my GBG Persilja, which is distilled just a couple of blocks away, and Rome’s Beerbliotek beer, which was also brewed in town.  We had some of the best butter we’ve ever tasted in Sweden, one of which came on SK Mat & Människor’s artistic butter platform.  Their butter is handmade and comes from south Sweden.  It is creamy and packed with flavor and tastes even better when generously smeared on SK’s homemade breads, especially the dark rye bread with lingonberries. 

Unlike many Michelin restaurants which only offer a set menu, SK Mat & Människor has an à la carte menu from which it is suggested to pick three items in addition to the four, six, and eight-course set menus.  I created my own menu of langoustine with suede, horseradish, and roasted cabbage bullion; local lamb with artichoke, carrots, tarragon, and lamb jus; and dark chocolate crème with a tart sea buckthorn sorbet and a muesli of roasted white chocolate, almonds, and oats. Rome had the four course set menu of Swedish strip loin tartar with brown butter and local mushrooms; brill with roasted cauliflower, salicornia, baked egg yolk, and mussel broth with oysters; pike-perch with salsify, ramson, blackened onions, and oxtail jus; and blueberries with vanilla pudding and lemon ice cream.  In continuing with the local ingredients theme, we learned that the mushrooms came from a farm near the Gothenburg airport where they also make their own soy sauce.  The mushrooms were cut that morning, meaning their flavor was concentrated and their texture was dense.

SK Mat & Människor Bread and Butter Gothenburg Michelin Star RestaurantSK Mat & Människor Swedish Strip Loin Tartar Gothenburg Michelin Star Restaurant
SK Mat & Människor Langoustine With Roasted Cabbage Bullion Gothenburg Michelin Star RestaurantSK Mat & Människor Brill With Roasted Cauliflower Gothenburg Michelin Star Restaurant
SK Mat & Människor Pike-Perch and Oxtail Jus Gothenburg Michelin Star RestaurantSK Mat & Människor Lamb With Artichoke Gothenburg Michelin Star Restaurant
SK Mat & Människor Blueberries With Vanilla Pudding and Lemon Ice Cream Gothenburg Michelin Star RestaurantSK Mat & Människor Dark Chocolate Creme with Sea Buckthorn Sorbet Gothenburg Michelin Star Restaurant

SK Mat & Människor’s dishes are deceptively uncomplicated, presented more simply than the somewhat fussier presentations of most Michelin restaurants (don’t get me wrong, I enjoy those presentations too).  While the dishes are easy to eat, the flavors are not easy to accomplish.

KOKA


KOKA Table Gothenburg Michelin Star Restaurant

KOKA is Gothenburg’s other newest addition to its Michelin starred restaurants.  Björn Persson’s previous restaurant Kock & Vin, which occupied the same space, also had a Michelin star, but after 14 years he wanted to do something different.  While KOKA also works with local products and a lot of seafood, KOKA represents a more modern style of West Sweden gastronomy.  KOKA tries to find new flavors, new textures, and ingredients not usually found in other restaurants.  The Gothenburg tourism board website describes KOKA as “relaxed fine dining at purse-friendly prices.”

KOKA at first glance looks very modern with blond wood covering the floors and walls and permanently fixed tables that can be extended by simply dropping a perfectly sized leaf in between.  But look up and you will see vestiges of a historic building in the painted glass tile ceiling trimmed in gold.  After being seated we were greeted by our waiter with the question, “Do either of you have any allergies or phobias?,” which I thought was not only a clever question, but also an indication that even though KOKA takes its food seriously, our meal didn’t necessarily have to be serious.

KOKA offers three, five, and seven-course set menus.  One of Björn Persson’s favorite ingredients is the oyster, so it wasn’t surprising to see oysters make an appearance in the five course menu we chose.  After enjoying two initial amuse-bouches, our first course arrived consisting of skrei, a Norwegian cod that is a delicacy and only available a few months of the year, with oyster and celery presented in sheets of celery root.  The next course contained what is a very unusual ingredient for Gothenburg, squid served with cabbage and crushed almonds.  Next came oyster mushrooms, sour cream, and potatoes with fried shredded potato skins placed on top.  The main course consisted of lamb, onion, and finely grated caraway cheese that quickly melted when a broth was poured over the top.  Dessert may have been one of the most unusual I have experienced, caramel with a caramel encrusted egg yolk covered in buckwheat.  It looked almost like the beginnings of pasta dough, but somehow worked as a sweet dessert. 


KOKA Amuse-Bouche Gothenburg Michelin Star RestaurantKOKA Skrei with Oyster and Celery Gothenburg Michelin Star Restaurant
KOKA Squid with Cabbage and Crushed Almonds Gothenburg Michelin Star RestaurantKOKA Oyster Mushrooms, Sour Cream and Potatoes Gothenburg Michelin Star Restaurant
KOKA Lamb, Onion and Caraway Cheese Gothenburg Michelin Star RestaurantKOKA Caramel, Egg Yolk, and Buckwheat Gothenburg Michelin Star Restaurant

When visiting Sweden’s food capital, visitors will do well to include at least one Michelin starred restaurant into their dining itinerary and taste the best flavors of Gothenburg.

To learn more about SK Mat & Människor and KOKA and make reservations, visit their websites at skmat.se and restaurangkoka.se.


Travel the World: Gothenburg is Sweden's food capital with a number of Michelin-starred restaurants.