With burgers and pulled pork sandwiches cluttering the menus of even gas stations all over Sweden (yes, Preem recently started serving bread rolls filled with pulled pork, coleslaw and barbeque sauce), it might be time to take the next step where fast food is concerned. Don’t get me wrong; I love a great burger once in a while. But how many burgers can a man eat? And how many ‘artisan’ burger joints can a city take? And is there really enough grass in Sweden to feed all of these cows that go on to become the grass-feed beef patties that we so eagerly queue for?
When I arrive at Love Food Cafe, the clock has just struck 11.00. I have been advised to drop by early, as lines of hungry lunch-goers can get quite long. The two Södermalm chaps, both equipped with tattoos and that just right nonchalant attitude, are still getting ready setting up shop for the day. The oblong, stark white space offers plenty of queuing space and seating, and is the refreshingly innovative fast food lunch concept of next-door restaurant Marie Laveau.
The food philosophy is as simple as it is genius. Inspired by the American south, the entire meal revolves around the bun. It is cut open and stuffed with a plethora of proteins, ‘slaws, salads and sauces. Mix and match your own choice of a main (meat or vegetarian), a sauce, a topping, an add-on and finally a side order. The complete lunch comes at 99 kronor. With a menu that is constantly in flux, the variations seem almost infinite. Luckily, the two experts behind the counter will tirelessly guide you through the most winning flavour combinations.
The Korean BBQ chicken sandwich topped with the house street salad, a chilli mayo sauce called creamy rooster and finally a sprinkle of root vegetable chips merges sweet, salty and tangy in a gulp. Flavours and ingredients such as coriander and sesame oil shine through and are balanced by a spoon full of my side dish, a bean and celeriac salad. Another favourite is the pulled beef adobo, which is the Filipino technique of cooking meats (and vegetables or seafood, for that matter) in a sumptuously dark and rich sauce consisting of vinegar, soy sauce and lots of garlic. The beef is cooked until it threads. My made-to-order beef sandwich is finally topped with sauerkraut, creamy rooster sauce with extra chilli, shredded cheddar cheese and pickled onions. In addition to this, a sweet potato salad completes the lunch.
An aspect that fast food restaurants often overlook or leave to chance is the bun. Have you had a look at the bread department of your local supermarket lately? Surprising as this may sound, considering that the Nordic contemporary bread culture is booming and considered among the best in the world, there just aren’t that many options. The fluffy white, lacklustre buns from Korvbrödsbagarn are the staple, and the last few years, Swedish fast food chain Max has been giving hamburger lovers a second option in their brioche-like Frisco bread. What I admire about Love Food Cafe, who prepares all the other food items in-house, is that it has gone out to source a bun that is perfected to suit their needs. The man behind the bun is Lee Newby, also known as Papa Lee from the small Papa Lee Bakery on Drottninggatan 102. Known from Kanal 5 and the 2013 edition of the cooking show Dessertmästarna, the British pastry chef has managed to knead up a bun that places itself right in the point of intersection between savoury and sweet.
Meanwhile, the line at the counter has grown. Trendy parents with vintage baby strollers are sandwiched between suited businessmen on their lunch break. The swift boys behind the counter do a surprisingly good job of quickly dressing and serving up the divine and calorically dense masterpieces at a pace that keep the line to a minimum. With a large piece of bourbon pecan pie in a food container stuffed in my bag, I leave feeling glad that I neither work nor live in the area. It would be a devastatingly bad thing for my waistline.
Hornsgatan 66
08 668 85 00
