Waiter, bring me your finest herring!

While J does a wonderful job of praising my travel planning, I also think he does a great job of humoring my sometimes overly-effervescent enthusiasm. While planning our trip to Gothenburg, I focussed J's attention on the culinary delights to be found in this fine city. He looked at the link and said "looks good," so I further focussed our attention on Fiskekrogen for their generous lunch buffet.

Paying homage to their sea-faring roots, Fiskekrogen does herring 6 ways, many salmons, and all things tasty.

We serendipitously arrived there (I thought I was leading us toward another recommended resto), fresh from the train station and backpack in tow, to enjoy a late lunch. Thank goodness for coat check, which allowed us to toss off our travel packs and step into the dining room unencumbered.

Schnazzy place... too bad they have a thing for chandelier asphyxiation.

Always looking for a bargain, the lunch special with a main dish was only a few crowns more than the buffet alone, so we both opted to enjoy the chef's suggested main course.

This is tasty, but I'd rather be eating the cod balls from the buffet!

We both discovered that we quite like herring in its many forms - my favorite is herring in a creamy garlic sauce, while J's favorite is flavored with a sweet vinegar dressing. In order to ensure that our love extended to all of these tasty little fish, and not just those prepared in fancy restaurants, we ventured a couple of days later to the legendary Feskekörke (translation: the fish church).

I hope these photos have pre-empted your question, "Why is it called the Fish Church?"


Several tasty morsels called out to us--especially the one on the right, which said, "Come to Pappa..."

After roaming up and down past the vendors, we chose one and purchased all sorts of herring and crayfish (oh, don't forget those succulent little crustaceans which were shelled and soaked in a delicious flavored oil). The sun was shining on us that day (literally), so we proceeded immediately to the park bench outdoors to soak in some Vitamin D. J thought things might get messy when I tussled with the herring containers for a bit...

Little herring, little herring, let me IN!

... but we eventually found our way in and enjoyed a delightful lunch along Göteborg's canal. I know that the French are famous for their sauces, but let me tell you, these Swedes certainly know how to dress their herring.