After our visit for the opening of Lux Dag För Dag back in the fall of 2013, we decided it was time to make our way back to the critically acclaimed eatery to see how it’s been holding up and to investigate if the standards are still at an ultimate high.
A map of Sweden greets diners at the entrance of the new Lux, with pins pointing out places the restaurant sources its ingredients from. There is goat’s cheese from the Gullspira farm northeast of Uppsala, mushrooms, herbs and wild onions from the forests of Bromma in the Stockholm suburbs, reindeer meat from Roger Niemi in Övertorneå and much, much more. It’s clear from the get-go that Lux is about Swedish food and Swedish ingredients, living out the gospel of locally-produced to the max.
Up until last autumn, Lux was a fine dining establishment with several culinary prizes under its belt, but the owners longed for something more simple. They said goodbye to Michelin stars and opened under a new concept that puts focus on a more affordable kind of luxury – the best Swedish ingredients, presented simply and without gimmicks, with the menu changing slightly from day to day. There’s an à la carte-menu for the evening and for longer lunches, but also a daily special for 115 or 155 kronor for lunch and dinner respectively.
Despite its location on Stora Essingen, Lux has always managed to survive. If you don’t live close by, it is perhaps not the kind of restaurant you just pop along to like you might with a place on Nybrogatan or Stureplan. But despite being located a little off the beaten track, the Friday of our visit sees a bustling lunch trade, with the large restaurant at least half-filled with couples, families and business people. We’re guided to our table by a friendly maître d’, after which our waiter takes us through the menu, written on a black chalk board. Lux serves familiar food but often with a twist; the reindeer meat has a ginger marinade and the chicken has a flavour of orange, but regardless what is on offer, it seems everything is prepared to perfection.
The starter of a baked egg with shrimps and bleak roe (110 kronor) features perhaps the creamiest egg you’ve ever tasted. The ginger-marinated reindeer fillet, cut thin and served on a bed of lentils (155 kronor) is clearly inspired by sushi in the most positive way. The main dishes feature both fish and meat but nothing vegetarian. We try the shoulder of lamb (180 kronor) and the deer steak (205 kronor), both of which are perhaps nothing new but get high marks anyhow. The lamb is amazingly tender and the dish has a nice mixture of textures, served with soft risotto and slightly al dente beans. The steak, cooked perfectly medium, is served with a single oven-baked carrot, some onions and potato puree, plain and simple.
The dessert list reads like a dream – there are cheeses, roasted apples, lingon berry ice cream (which, sadly, has run out) and figs marinated in punch – but unfortunately the dream doesn’t’ quite come true. Our desserts, a chocolate muffin with plum sorbet (105 kronor) and cloudberry sorbet with a creme caramel (125 kronor), leave us a bit indifferent, in need of stronger tastes.
Nevertheless, a visit at Lux is something you won’t forget very soon, and something you’re likely to want to repeat many times over. And if you want to bring a piece of it home with you, pay a visit to their “walk-through”, a mini market where you can buy vegetables, meat, fish, sauces, chocolates and today’s special to take away.
Primusgatan 116, www.luxdagfordag.se
