Sweden

Photogaphs: Michael Alexander

After a long, dark winter, Swedes celebrate the coming of summer on Midsummer Eve, a traditional solstice holiday that takes place the Friday before the seasonal shift. In New York, expats will make merry at Battery Park City’s Midsummer Celebration (Robert F. Wagner Park, Battery Pl, north of Battery Park; 212-267-9700, nycmidsummer.com; 5–8pm, free) on Friday 19. Pack a picnic of pickled herring and wear flowers in your hair to show support for what might be the city’s last Midsummer celebration—Sweden may have to shut its New York consulate, which sponsors the event, next year.

HANG WITH SWEDES

A young crowd will cavort at InternationalSwede’s annual Midsummer after-party at the Union Square Ballroom (27 Union Sq West between 15th and 16th Sts, swedishmidsummerparty.com; 9pm–4am, $15–$30), featuring “the Swedish Kanye West,” hip-hopper Adam Tensta. “We like to show off a modern view of Sweden,” says Swedish-American organizer Thomas Noe. “It’s the third-largest exporter of pop music in the world.” Fans of José González, Jens Lekman and Those Dancing Days already know this.

Say your prayers at the Church of Sweden (5 E 48th St between Fifth and Madison Aves; 212-832-8443, swedishchurch.net), a 300-strong Lutheran congregation that also acts as a community hub. The entire service is held in Swedish, but, says Noe, “It’s more like a café than a religious institution.”

Soccer club Blatte United (blatteunited.com), started by a group of multiethnic Swedes in 2005, is also popular among immigrants. “It’s about being friends,” says player Selim Adira. “But we’re also really good—we always win.” Interested players should stop by a practice, held most Saturday afternoons at noon at Sara D. Roosevelt Park (Chrystie St at Delancey St, nycgovparks.org).

Scandinavia House (58 Park Ave between 37th and 38th Sts; 212-879-9779, scandinaviahouse.org) has promoted a cultural exchange with New York since 2000, showcasing music, films and exhibitions. “We’re a window for Scandinavian culture,” says executive vice president Lynn Carter. “And we reach out to Americans, too.” Swedish jazz collective TESLA Trio kicks off the House’s Summer Jazz series on July 9.

GET SWEDISH STYLE

Sweden has serious style clout, and we don’t just mean the ever-present glories—or evils, depending on your POV—of Ikea (1 Beard St at Otsego St, Red Hook, Brooklyn; 718-246-4532). Just Scandinavian (161 Hudson St at Laight St, 212-334-2556) sells smart, durable furnishings by Swedish craftsmen, including Josef Frank and Bruno Mathsson. Consider a simple blue Swedish Grace coffee cup ($35), a reproduction of a design presented at the 1930 Stockholm Exhibition, a historic modern-design fair.

Explore the Nordic fine-arts-and-crafts scene at More North (39 North Moore St between Varick and Hudson Sts; 212-334-5541), an airy design store and gallery that shows new and established artists, like Swedes Thomas Henriksson and Harald Lyth.

The kingdom has recently expanded its sartorial influence to New York’s trendy precincts: Tennis star Björn Borg (89 Crosby St between Prince and Spring Sts; 212-625-2334, bjornborg.com) offers colorful undies ($26) and shirts ($45) at his first stateside store, and Stockholm’s Acne Studio (10 Greene St between Canal and Grand Sts; 212-625-2828, acnestudios.com) sells functional T-shirts and skinny jeans ($200–$400).

EAT LIKE A SWEDE

For a Scandinavian snack, Noe treks to Ikea to stock up on groceries, like Kalle’s caviar ($3.49) or Marabou chocolate ($3.79). Or visit Fika (41 W 58th St between Fifth and Sixth Aves; 212-832-0022, fikanyc.com) for a coffee break (“a fika”). Swedes like “a bold, strong, smoother espresso,” says co-owner David Johansson, whose arabica beans come from family-owned roasters back home. His two cafés (the other is located at 407 Park Ave South between 28th and 29th Sts, 646-649-5133) also serve classic dishes, like a Swedish meatball sandwich topped with beet salad ($9).

“Sweden is becoming a more mixed society, so there’s a global influence in the food,” says Hakan Swahn, owner of Aquavit (65 E 55th St between Madison and Park Aves; 212-307-7311, aquavit.org). The restaurant has added a light touch to the country’s signature sweet-and-salty flavors. Sample a variety of dishes at the festive buffet-style brunch Smorgasbord on Sundays ($48); the more traditional café menu features fish, like gravlax with mustard and dill ($12), and other Swedish staples, including the restaurant’s namesake liquor, which it makes in-house and flavors with aromatics like fig and cardamom. We’ll be excising spring’s final chill with a glass or two of that.

FUN FACTS

• Say skål (“cheers”) when you lift a glass of traditional pear cider and wish friends glad midsommar!

• Central Park’s Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre (79th St and West Dr, just south of the Delacorte Theater; 212-988-9093) was built as Sweden’s exhibit for the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. Frederick Law Olmsted moved it to the park the following year.

• More recent famous Swedes in New York have included Greta Garbo, U.N. secretary-general Dag Hammerskjöld—as in the plaza—and Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist.

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