Smaka

Excellent fund in a lovely atmosphere. Like others, I had the meatballs, mashed potatoes, lingonberries, and pickled cucumbers. Everything was perfect. I didn’t realize just how well-​presented the food would be. The mashed potatoes were in a wedge-​like mountain in a sea of gravy with the meatballs off to the side. Each bite was perfect — an ideal combination of meat, gravy, sweetness, and tang. The server was friendly and helpful, recommending a great beer to go with the meal. Altogether, a great place to eat and I hope to return.

Excellent food, Outstanding service, Laid-​back atmosphere, Reasonable prices. The menu is diverse, yet distinctly Swedish. The servers are multi-​lingual and knowledgeable — don’t let their youthful appearance deceive you! We (a party from three different countries) had many questions and requests, all of which the server handled exceedingly well and with good humor. He even accommodated my request to try «one Swedish meatball», which I highly recommend! Between the three of us, we had minced steak, codfish, and venison filet, all which were portioned well, balanced in flavors and textures, and captured the Swedish culinary culture. Our server also made excellent suggestions for wine and beer pairings with our foods. The only minor experience was the starter oysters — they were delicious but the shucking left pieces of shell behind (I’d give it half star off for that) — I would not order those again. All in all, if I lived here I would dine here every week — I dined at 4 different restaurants (all more fancy schmancy than this one) and this one held its own against the others, and at a lower price tag. Highly recommend! It’s SMAKA!

If ever in Goteborg you have to try this place. The atmosphere is nice, service comes with a smile and the food is fantastic. I had the meatballs but there are plenty of other items on the menu to choose from.

Great place with an intimate atmosphere and great food.
We came to experience the swedish cuisine and what was beyond meatballs. We loved it and it comes with my best recommendation!

Very good salted cod, service was good, excellent beer selection.

We were in Gothenburg and found this restaurant on Unilocal.We were very pleased with the atmosphere, wait staff, and food. We had the meatballs and potatoes. It was served with a basket of bread, pickled cucumbers, and a lingonberry side. It was very nice. Great prices. Overall a lovely experience. We were so glad to find it!

So fantastic! It was quite an experience as a Swedish-​American to experience Smaka. The ambience was casual and the waitstaff friendly and helpful. My family celebrates a «Swedish» Christmas Eve every year, but this was truly special. We started with a plate of three different herrings, and Swedish cheese. The crayfish herring was simply the best I’ve ever had. For the main course my wife had meatballs, and I had elk (moose). Both were very well prepared. Dessert was Swedish cheesecake (dance), and chocolate mouse… of course with two shots of ice cold snaps.

We visited Smaka on Sunday evening and it was packed. The restaurant offers typical swedish food which is why we visited; we had herring and smoked salmon starters, and venison and elk mains. All the food was delicious and well presented. I’d definately go there again next time I’m in Gothenburg

We went here last night because of the good reviews for their Kottbullar dish. We went straight for the XL and though it was way too much, ate it all ’cause it was just so damn good!

Delicious food. We were only in Göteborg one night and wanted to try some real Swedish food.
Smaka has a relatively small menu, but with a nice variety of items. Our waiter recommended some good local beers and provided us with an English menu, which was nice. I had the salmon and it was amazing. I’m not entirely sure what was in my boyfriend’s meal, but the potatoes we fantastic.
Service was good, price was reasonable, and food was excellent. The atmosphere also feels like you’re in a log cabin or someone’s house — in a good way. I loved it!

The average American probably forms their impression of Swedish food around the offerings in the café section at their local IKEA, or possibly warnings from fellow travelers of how much pickled herring is found on Swedish menus. Don’t be fooled, Sweden has some great cuisine going for it, and Smaka is a perfect example.
I visited it almost two years ago but I can still remember every detail of the meal, partly because I took photos but also because it was a memorably excellent experience in every respect. The ambiance of the place is very low-​key and informal but still classy, a nice place to visit with friends and not feel too formal about it. Our waitress spoke flawless English and was very patient with us as we asked about several dishes unfamiliar to our American palates.
Her recommendations were spot on, as we started with some whitefish roe and a cured meat plate that included elk and wild boar, both delicious, and very traditionally Swedish she assured us. Our main courses of meatballs and minced veal with huge dollops of mashed potatoes and lingonberry were hearty and lip-​smackingly savory, also very traditional. I can’t remember if we had dessert, but we definitely finished the meal with a small glass of aquavit, and again our waitress patiently gave us advice on the subtle flavor differences of each brand until we agreed upon one with hints of citrus, which proved quite pleasant.
This was a random choice either off Unilocal or out of the Lonely Planet book and we happened to choose it for our first dinner in Sweden. It turned out to be a perfect way to start the trip, and if I’m ever back in Gothenburg I will certainly rush right back for another superb meal.

Excellent dinner choice while in town for a quick weekend getaway, after reading other reviews tried the traditional meatballs and wasn’t disappointed. The menu had a great selection of wine and cocktails and on a Saturday evening was quite busy with a bar crowd. Definitely recommend if you are in town looking for a Swedish food option.

Creative menu and great service. Overall the experience was pleasant and approachable for a tourist. Delicious!

This restaurant is THE de facto Swedish restaurant to come to if you’re from out of town (or out of country) and want to try some Swedish food. I bring my friends and family from out of town here when they want to try Swedish food.
The menu is also reasonably priced and well balanced with various meat, fish and vegetarian dishes. I have tried typical meatballs and mashed potatoes as well as some steak dishes and I have never been disappointed.
Highly recommended!

This is a nice place to get Swedish food in Vasastan. I’ve been here a couple of times with friends and family. It’s one of the places I recommend to my friends visiting from abroad if they want nice Swedish food for a reasonable price.
They have their menu in Swedish and English. The meatballs are quite popular, but they have other nice dishes as well. The staff is always very friendly and nice and you feel very welcome here.

Great dinner — nice server. I unknowingly came on «Fat Friday», which apparently means that everyone gets a funny little personal size cake.
Loved the meal and the people: I recommend it.

It Was A Swedish Place But It Was Really Good. It Was Nice Food And Service. They Hade A Lot Of Food On There Menu. There Where A Lot Of Good Deserts To Choose From.

We found this on Unilocal and was our first real meal in Sweden. We are really impressed with the rich deep flavors in both our dishes: the rump tail and the pork belly. The Zinfandel was full bodied and well rounded with a delicious nose. You cannot go wrong coming here

— centrally located in Gothenburg
— nice and cozy restaurant in some kind of maritime style
— very friendly and open staff who helped us with some recommendations
— reservation recommended
— starter: sillvariation (Swedish herring tray with Västerbotten cheese and homemade crisp bread; 129 SEK) and charkplanka (Smakas selection of Swedish charcuteries; 139 SEK) were just great! Big variety of Swedish dishes
— main: köttbullar (Smakas meatballs with mashed potatoes and lingon berries; 130 SEK) and gnocchi (Ramsons fried potato gnocchi with spinach and baked tomato; 169 SEK) were also very tasty
— desert: Citronsorbet (in my view it was a little bit too sweet; generally deserts in Sweden are often very sweet): 45 SEK
Conclusion: Nice restaurant with great food and friendly staff! You should definitely go there!

WOW! Don’t worry that Smaka is listed in every tour guide, it’s a few steps off the beaten path so it’s not crowded and overrun by tourist. Don’t even look at the menu, just order the meatballs. This is no Ikea lunch. Holy meatballs! The sauce, the balls, the mash potatoes, the beer!!!

A friend recommended Smacka & we were not disappointed. You get fresh bread & crisp breads with butter on arrival. Our starters were beautifully presented (pickled beets with goats cheese cream and creamy smoked reindeer on rye toast) and delicious. We both had meatballs with gravy and mash which was served with lingonberries & pickled cucumbers which were delicious. We didn’t have dessert as we were so full! If you convert the cost to £ it is expensive but comparatively speaking in Gothenburg it is not expensive. Highly recommend for delicious traditional food. Also should note staff were very friendly & spoke perfect English.