Taste the forest this autumn
Taste the forest this autumn
In the Arctic culture, food is more than being served great tasting dishes, it is something you take part in. A flavour is something that starts with your first step into the wild.
Locally sourced has real meaning here. Locally sourced is someone you can meet and get to know, a place you can go to, and traditions to be a part of. Our most treasured ingredients are out there, waiting to be found.
Cloudberries only grow wild on the mire, glimmering like gold in the sunshine, breaking through the morning fog. The meat from the reindeer comes from animals that have walked freely in the forests for most of their lives on paths formed hundreds, and even thousands, of years ago. Fish from the roaring rapids are caught with a long-handled net and sheer determination.
Flavours come from the types of wood that are used when smoking the newly caught fish and the salty wind blowing through the smokebox.
The light of the summer gets preserved in the autumn thanks to traditions, passed down through generations. You cure the fish with salt, the meat is smoked to last through winter, and the forest gold – the cloudberries – are preserved in sugar to keep summer close. This is the best time of year to immerse yourself into something that is as much about having fun and learning new things as it is about exploring, and understanding what nature has to offer.
By being a part of every step, dishes become more than its ingredients. You get to taste the stories you'll cherish for the rest of your life.
So of course we would be happy to serve you the flavours of the Arctic. But we would rather help you find them.
The mire
The large, open wetlands are called mire, or bogs, and is a kind of soft, mossy wetland (“myr” in Swedish). They are quiet, peaceful places where the ground feels like a sponge beneath your feet.
Forest gold
Towards the end of the summer, a golden treasure appears on the mire, the cloudberry. This rare and tasty berry grows wild on the bog. We pick them carefully by hand, make jam and enjoy them with waffles and ice cream. Or just as they are.
Smoking fish and meat
Smoking meat and fish is a traditional way to preserve food and to add deep, natural flavor.
The meat or fish is hung in a small wooden hut, called a smokehouse, and left to slowly absorb the smoke for many hours or even days.
The result is tender, smoky flavors you can’t find anywhere else. Try smoked reindeer, moose or if you prefer fish: salmon or arctic char.
Traditional fishing in the rapids
People have been catching fish in fast-flowing rivers for hundreds of years. One old method is still used today: long-handled nets.
Standing on long wooden platforms, fishers sweep the large nets through the rushing water, hoping to catch whitefish or grayling. It takes skill, balance, and patience and everyone is welcome to try.
Watching the water, hearing the roaring rapids and feeling the pull of the net is truly a special experience.
Cultural heritage of humanity
In March 2025, Sweden and Finland jointly submitted an application to UNESCO to have long-handled net fishing (or dipnet fishing) tradition recognized as part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
