The legendary Grand Hotel Stockholm in Sweden was built in 1874 and is a stunning grand dame that defies time. Some hotels seem to get better with age; the Grand Hotel Stockholm is one of them.
Staying at the Grand Hotel Stockholm throughout the years I have watched the hotel tastefully grow to its present size of 334 luxuriously appointed rooms and 42 suites through the acquisition and incorporation of adjoining buildings. When I stayed at the hotel in May 2008, the hotel was gorgeous, the renovations beautifully done.
Besides the new guestrooms, the hotel has added The Restaurant Mathias Dahlgren, which actually is two restaurant concepts, Matbaren "the food bar" for more casual dining for lunch and dinner in a contemporary setting, and Matsalen "the dining room" for more elegant evening dining, which opened in May 2007, replacing the former French restaurant, Franska Matsalen. Less than one-year after opening, Matsalen has already received a Michelin-star and "rising star for two" in March 2008. Talented Chef Mathias Dahlgren, no stranger to the Michelin-star, was the former owner of the Michelin-star restaurant, Bon Lloc in Stockholm before it closed, has created interesting and innovative menus for both Matsalen and Matbaren.
During our stay at the hotel, Edward F. Nesta and I had a delicious lunch at Matbaren, where a few of our selections included croquettes of nettles from Kälinge farm served with a half lemon; fresh white asparagus from Rhineland-pfalz rilette of crab, egg, and parsley; and fried raw rhubarb from Holland, lemon sponge cake, quenelle of vanilla ice cream, and browned sugar.
We began each day with a sumptuous buffet breakfast at their restaurant Veranda, where we had views of the water and the Royal Palace, and in the late evening after a night on the town, enjoyed the sophisticated ambience of the newly renovated and enlarged The Cadier Bar, listening to the live piano music. In addition to their interesting cocktail menu, Edward, a scotch aficionado, was duly impressed with their vintage selection of Macallan 1946, 1958, 1966, 1967, 1969, and 1972, as well as their Delamain cognac selection of XO as well as vintage 1969 and 1970. During the day, The Cadier Bar serves à la carte breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, and brunch on the weekends. (See Chef’s Recipes section for recipes from the Veranda).
Our spacious guestroom featured a crystal chandelier and oriental carpet in the large dressing area with mirror, vanity table, and chair upholstered in royal red print fabric, and mirrors on the doors of the plentiful closets held robes and slippers, a mini-bar, and a large safe.
A large marble bathroom located off the foyer featured a combination deep soaking tub and shower with a rain showerhead, hairdryer, scale, vanity mirror, L’Occitane amenities, and a white anthurium in a metal vase on the black marble vanity with double sinks.
Entering the light-filled corner guestroom with three windows, we immediately went to the wide-sill windows dressed with arched floor-to-ceiling window treatments of opulent embroidered fabric with gold tie-backs, where we had a spectacular view of the Royal Palace and the harbor dotted with boats, and felt like we were home again.
The king bed featured a green print bedspread that matched the upholstered headboard, and a celadon green bed skirt. Night tables and reading lamps with pleated shades flanked either side of the bed. In the corner was a mauve wingback chair, and placed in front of the side window was a desk chair upholstered in celadon green fabric and a large desk with a mahogany leather blotter and a desk lamp, where we liked to sit and use our laptop utilizing the complimentary WIFI Internet access.
The sitting area consisted of a lovely celadon green velvet loveseat dressed with decorative pillows placed between the two large windows that overlooked the Royal Palace. Wood tables with ginger jar lamps were placed on either side of the loveseat, and a rectangular coffee table beckoned invitingly with a large cellophane wrapped basket tied with an attractive gold bow that held a delicious assortment of fresh fruit and tempting chocolates. Other amenities included a SONY flat screen television placed on a large chest of drawers, and an alarm clock.
The hotel is perfectly located to explore the exciting city of Stockholm whether you want to visit the nearby museums, take a boat cruise that departs from the pier located directly in front of the hotel to discover one of the 24,000 islands on the archipelago, or walk to Gamla Stan, the old part of the city to take a tour of the Royal Palace and watch the Changing of the Guards. Stockholm has much to discover, and we found that Concierge Mr. Alexander Skiöldsparr was especially helpful in pointing out what is new in the city. However, one of the best discoveries is returning to the Grand Hotel Stockholm at the end of the day.
Read other articles on the Grand Hotel Stockholm in the Restaurants and Chefs’ Recipes sections where Chef Mathias Dahlgren shares his recipes for an appetizing 3-course menu in English and Swedish.
Grand Hotel Stockholm
Södra Blasiehomshamnen 8
Box 16424
SE-103 27 Stockholm, Sweden
Telephone: +46 0 8 679 35 00
Fax: +46 0 8 611 86 86
Email: info@grandhotel.se
Email: reservations@grandhotel.com
www.GrandHotel.se
Read other articles on Stockholm in the Destinations, Hotels and Resorts, Restaurants, and Chefs’ Recipes sections.
Read other articles on Sweden in the Destinations, Hotels and Resorts, Restaurants, Chefs’ Recipes, Gastronomy, and Travel News sections.
For information on Sweden, please visit the website: www.VisitSweden.com. For information on SAS Airlines, please visit the website: www.Flysas.com.
© July 2008. Luxury Experience. www.LuxuryExperience.com All rights reserved.
