New🇸🇪Gothenburg, Sweden
The Räksmörgås Pilgrimage
A towering pile of sweet, cold North Sea prawns on buttered bread with mayonnaise, lemon and fresh dill - Sweden's most iconic open sandwich, eaten where the boats come in.
Why this dish?
The räksmörgås is Sweden's defining sandwich and Gothenburg's proudest contribution to the table: a single slice of bread (white, soft, buttered) piled high - absurdly high - with cold, hand-peeled North Sea prawns, a slick of mayonnaise, a squeeze of lemon, a crown of fresh dill and sometimes a halved boiled egg. The prawns are the point - sweet, briny, cold from the sea - and in Gothenburg they're as fresh as they get. No cooking, no fuss, just quantity and quality stacked vertically.
Gothenburg is Sweden's second city and its food capital - a port town with the famous Feskekörka (a fish market built inside a church-shaped building), a Michelin-starred restaurant scene and a relaxed, maritime character that Stockholm lacks. Eat a räksmörgås at the fish market, watch the boats in the harbour, and you've had the most Gothenburg experience possible in an afternoon.
Our Picks
Feskekörka
- Address
- Rosenlundsvägen, Gothenburg
- What to order
- A räksmörgås from one of the counters inside - the prawns were on a boat this morning; add a glass of white wine or a cold beer.
- Book ahead
- Counter service - no booking needed, just queue.
- Pro tip
- Get the hand-peeled prawns, not machine-peeled - the texture difference is real and worth the premium.
Sjöbaren
Haga Nygata 25, Gothenburg
A relaxed, well-loved fish restaurant near the harbour - locals come for the full Gothenburg shellfish experience without the queue.
- What to order
- Räksmörgås, or the fish soup if you want something warm; the seafood platter for the full Gothenburg experience.
Good to know
Hand-peeled prawns (handskalade räkor) are the gold standard - machine-peeled are cheaper but lose the texture. The Feskekörka market is the must-visit; it's small and opens mornings (closed Mondays, check hours). Gothenburg is expensive (Swedish prices) but the sandwich is worth every krona. The airport bus reaches the centre in about 30 minutes.
Your day plan
Wheels up to eating the dish.
Outbound Flight goals - what you're aiming for
- 07:00Depart London Heathrow
- 10:00Land Gothenburg
- 10:40Airport bus into the centre (30 min)
- 11:15Walk the harbour, the Haga district's wooden houses
- 12:30Räksmörgås at the Feskekörka fish market
- 14:00The art museum, or a stroll along the canal
- 15:30Fika: coffee and a kanelbulle (cinnamon bun) at a Haga cafe
- 16:30One more look at the harbour
