Sunday, April 23, 2023

A Taste of Sweden: My Food Coma Lunch at Ikea Restaurant

Happy Sunday! We discovered this morning that one of the light bulbs in our lamp no longer works. So we decided to go to Ikea after Mass to get one.


Exterior of Ikea in Richmond, BC

Ikea is a Swedish multinational company best known for its affordable flat-pack furniture. Most of our household items are from there! However, many people may not realize that Ikea also has a restaurant that serves various delicious and affordable dishes. So it made sense that we enjoyed lunch at the Ikea Restaurant before buying a light bulb.


Swedish Meatballs

There must be something wrong with me because the meatballs weren't as good as I remember, which made me sad. However, the gravy and mashed potatoes are the usual, and the green peas are cooked and seasoned perfectly. My favourite part of the lunch is the lingonberries sauce.

Swedish Meatballs, Mashed Potatoes, Peas, Cream Sauce, and Lingonberries from Ikea

Salmon with Vegetable Medallion

My husband chose the 'New' Salmon with Vegetable Medallion. The fresh salmon is perfectly cooked, and the salt brings out the fish's natural sweetness. I love it!

The salmon is topped with a red pepper relish sauce which has a tangy yet slightly sweet taste with a subtle spiciness.


Salmon with Vegetable Medallion with Peas, Corn Mix Veggies, and Red Pepper Relish Sauce from Ikea

The salmon is served with Vegetable Medallion on the side. I surprisingly liked it. It's savoury and creamy, with a slightly crispy exterior and a soft, smooth interior. There's a subtle sweetness from the broccoli and leek, but the cheese and herbs add a surprising depth of flavour.


Soup of the Day: Hungarian Mushroom

The Soup of the Day at Ikea Restaurant is Hungarian Mushroom, a type of mushroom soup popular in Eastern European cuisine. It has a rich, earthy, and savoury flavour. It's not as creamy as other mushroom soups I have tried,   and the focus is on the nutty undertone and subtle sweetness of the mushroom. It's comforting.


Hungarian Soup from Ikea

Vegetable Spring Rolls and Vegetable Samosas

This feels like a fan service to the local market in Richmond, BC, with a large population of East Asians and South Asians. Both items have a crunchy exterior, but the interior is acceptable for the price. So if you want mind-blowingly good samosas or spring rolls, go to restaurants that are experts in both.


Vegetarian Spring Rolls and Vegetarian Samosas from Ikea

DAIM Cake

A visit to the Ikea restaurant won't be complete without having a slice of their DAIM Cake. It is one of their popular dessert items, made with layers of almond cake and caramel buttercream, covered with a chocolate ganache and pieces of DAIM candy. The cake has a rich, sweet flavour and crunchy texture from the candy pieces.


DAIM Cake from Ikea Restaurant

After lunch, we walked around Ikea. We got the light bulb we need and so much more. It's such a dangerous place for your wallet.


Regular Vanilla Frozen Yogurt

After shopping and paying for our items, we grabbed a Regular Vanilla Frozen Yogurt, which tastes like soft-serve ice cream. No hint of sourness is expected from a yogurt.


Regular Vanilla Frozen Yogurt from Ikea

I plan to try their $1.00 hotdog next time to see if it can compete with a great deal from Costco.

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