24/2 - Semla day

Around January I noticed these rich and creamy baked buns all over town. What are they? and.. Where were they during the rest of the year? Apparently this tradition originated a few hundreds years ago, when people fasted for weeks before easter. So in order to store up some fat, they came up with the famous Semla buns.
 Of course as old traditions go, they mutate over time becoming more 'user friendly'. Fortunately you don't have to fast to enjoy semla, too bad they are hard to find during the rest of the year. Although in all honesty, a couple of these creamy buns would be enough for the rest of the year, and probably for the rest of your life.

Albert & Jack's

Albert & Jack's
Engelbrektsgatan 3
08 6115001
mon/fri 7am-6pm
sat 8am-4pm

Albert & Jack's is a NYC style deli. It's all there: old subway tiles, tall shelves, freshly baked rolls and bread. Of course being a Swedish deli there are cinnamon rolls, vanilla rolls and knäckebröd, all freshly baked as well. I was there for breakfast today and had their delicious and crunchy granola and natural yoghurt, coffee and a smoothie. The clerk thought it was funny that I was having breakfast at 11.00am. That's because Swedish people have lunch at 11.30 and dinner at 6:30 pm, heheh. I still can't get used to that.
It was really good, though and not too pricy, given the neighborhood. For lunch there are salads (they are huge!), sandwiches and soups. These guys are doing pretty well, so they opened another branch in Gamla Stan. Remember, don't go too late, you might miss your breakfast. I almost did.