In the middle of the Swedish forrest about 150km from Copenhagen you find a small piece of heaven. In an old mill the couple Eva and Nicolas Tram set up to create a more harmonies life for them selves in contact with nature.
The location truly is heavenly. The building is old and primitive but on the other hand it is filled with personality.
In Knystaforsen all the dishes are at some point touched by either fire or smoke and within knowing exactly why but that can easily create an emotional connection in a way that nothing but your moms cooking can.
That to me was a general theme for the evening. The snacks were impressive whether being the moose and reindeer tartare, smoked duck or the rainbow trout. Impressed from the first bite.
However with a simple bread course they touched my heart and created an emotional connection that I have only experienced a few times before. In reality they were quiete simple but the thing that touches you on an emotional level often are. Bread and butter and nothing more.
Nicolai is classically French trained which you would have a dominate role in the menu that was a surprise for me but the rich buttery flavors generally went very well with the smokey flavors whether it was will a sauce split with dill oil to accompany burnt leeks or duck hart with crispy onions. The mix works very well and gives the place a unique character as it is neither purely product driven but nor is it classic French but a very personal style that I absolutely loved.
Another favorite of mine was the deer served with an aronia sauce and beetroot leather. This was once again such an emotional dish that even though it was the first time I met Nikolai I simply had to give him a giant hug when he came to collect the plates. In reality the combination is quiete classic but still they managed to bring something magical and emotional out of the dish.
We would start our desserts outside around a campfire with a flam boy cooked danish æblseskive. With 8 people around a campfire with good food sitting in the middle of the Swedish woods the atmosphere was clearly amazing.
We would continue inside with 3 different dessert. We would start with a cold and refreshing garden sorrel and juniper granite before moving to a delicious birch sandwich. The last bite would be savory dessert in the form of mushroom ice cream and forrest berries.
It’s pretty obvious that Knystaforsen left a mark on me. A lot of world class restaurant uses expensive luxurious products and the food is made of an army of chefs using lots of tweezers to get everything just right. I love those kind of restaurants but the incredible location of Knystaforsen combined with a simple yet incredible delicious food touched me on a different level. Different because besides serving delicious and technically impressive food they serves food that touches your soul and heart. At least that’s what it did to me. It’s therefore safe to say that I cannot wait to return and when I do I hope to be greated by a happy and smiling Nikolai and Eva who will then take us through a restaurant filled with happy guests which they truely deserve.
Practical information
Location: Sweden
Head Chef: Nikolai Tram
Menu: 8 course tasting menu about €250
Website: Knystaforsen | Cooking on fire
No Comments