A Swedish ‘Red Cottage’ in London- 10.23.12
Here’s the latest from our London based editor, Justine Aw.
A little red cottage has sprung up in the middle of Old Truman Brewery in East London. This unexpected iconic little cottage is a portal to Sweden for just three days to celebrate Sweden and offer us a taste of what Sweden has to offer, showcasing the regions of Skåne, West Sweden and Luleå. The use of the space within Old Truman Brewery is fantastic, complete with a moose head and reindeer and transforming the space into a fabulous dining room that manages to be decadent yet cozy and putting a beautiful emphasis on the kitchen too.
Tonight we were lucky enough to enjoy a taste of the Luleå region of Swedish Lapland with chef Richard Karlsson. And if our dinner was anything to go by, Luleå is delicious! Our evening opened with an unusual, but rather tasty birch sap wine, followed by three courses of delicacies including Kalix Löjrom (a delicious caviar collected only for a few short weeks each year), succulent grilled reindeer and a fantastic pie made from the gorgeous subarctic marsh growing cloudberry. More photos of our fantastic dinner on the next page!
A look at the quaint red cottage facade.
Juxtaposed against the background of Old Truman Brewery.
An antlered welcome to Swedish Lapland in East London!
Gorgeous table settings that are simple, yet elegant and surprisingly cozy in what could easily have been a very stark and industrial space!
Plating up our start of “toast” with an egg yolk, smoked mayonnaise and the delicious Kalix Löjrom caviar (or vendace roe), which received a Protected Designation of Origin status in 2010.
Absolutely delicious. The flavor of the Kalix Löjrom is so delicate and the size of the roe is more like masago than salmon roe, although the Coregonus albula are actually salmonids.
Look at all that reindeer!
One of the most surprising, but most delicious parts of the meal. We expected the reindeer to be exquisite and succulent, but this puree of pumpkin and garlic also included crayfish and was truly exceptional!
A deconstructed cloudberry pie. Cloudberries look a bit like raspberries, but start off red and mature to an amber color and they taste tart, sweet, and quite different from any other berry. These tough subarctic plants survive chilling temperatures down to -40 and are native to Lapland marshes.
Our menu was just one of three delicious showcases on offer in the Red Cottage. We’ve had a sneak peek at the other menus to be served tomorrow and Wednesday and there are more great flavors and ingredients to showcase. The Skåne menu celebrates gåsamiddag, the annual goose feast, including the unusual Svartsoppa soup made from goose blood and fruit and the menus from West Sweden shine the spotlight on the signature ingredient, freshwater crayfish.
