The Food

Villa Sjötorp receives the international ¨Historic Hotels Gourmet Award 2017¨

Historic Hotels of Europe is a hotel organization which includes around 400 selected hotels in Europe. In a vote cast by hotel visitors in 2016, Villa Sjötorp received the award for the highest gastronomic level, the "Historic Hotels Gourmet Award 2017". Ellika Mogenfelt, owner of Villa Sjötorp, shone like the Greek sun upon the announcement at the gala dinner on the Greek island of Santorini.

It is a great honor and a great recognition that Villa Sjötorp was nominated as the hotel with the highest gastronomic level. I was totally overwhelmed and wished that my staff, who work so hard to give our guests an amazing gourmet experience every day, had been with me there in Greece. While listening to the award speech, I saw them with my inner eyes. Their smile, laughter, stress and happiness. All this that we share every day, says Ellika.
 

“from the cold seas, fertile soils, forests and lakes to the table - and zero tolerance to food waste "
 

Western Sweden has fantastic gastronomical conditions with the wide range of ingredients available here. The inland forests provide us with game and several small dairies produce well-known cheeses. The fertile farmland has great conditions for cultivation of crops and keeping livestock. Bohuslän's seafood is considered by many to be the best in the world. All parts of western Sweden can in various ways contribute to filling our pantry.
 

Villa Sjötorp's kitchen can be described as ambitious and we refuse to compromise on quality. We prefer to use the phrase "good food" rather than luxury and gourmet, even though it is just that. Our starting point is caring about the produce - the unique and the genuine. Everything served in the restaurant comes from our own kitchen. It is mainly based on locally and ecologically produced foods.
 

Fish and seafood are collected from fish auctions in Gothenburg and Smögen. 
Chickens growing up under dignified conditions are delivered to our door from Lilla Edet by uncle Mowitz himself. Cows and oxen from Gröna Gårdar only eat grass and live on the pastures year-round. (Yes, they may go in when they want!). Game such as deer and roe deer come from local hunters and the royal hunting grounds at Koberg. Local mushroom and berry pickers help fill our pantry. The brown eggs are exclusively organic and come from "Aunt Susanne" in Skövde. Amazingly delicious cheeses are made in small-scale dairies in western Sweden.
 

Fresh herbs from the garden and from our currant bushes are found on the menu well into the autumn. In our garden we also pick ground elder, considered by many to be a weed. We make soup with it so tasty that it is written about in the newspapers. From early spring to late autumn we pass by Austad Gård to pick up the most delicious salad, tender carrots in different colours, as well as spinach, mangold and much more of what Sutip draws from the ground with her uncompromising work. We always reeceive a warm smile from Ola when he stops by the kitchen, delivering seaweed crispbread from Grebbestad.
 

At Lilla Labäck farm outside Lidköping lives the former punk Mia Jonson with her family. Despite the harsh winds and sometimes very wet conditions, she produces what we consider to be Sweden's best asparagus and the exciting product glass rhubarb. She also delivers the most tender and tasty fresh spring vegetables.
 

From handmade earthenware cups we drink fairtrade coffee and tea of various kinds. A sweet spoonful of honey from the island Tjörn can enhance the experience. 
We prefer to fill our glasses with organic wines, or why not tears from Lapland - 1200 hand picked blueberries. Swedish apples are pressed into delicious apple juice. And if you want beer, ours comes from Qvänum Food and Malt and is called Sixten, Grannen, Helgas Homemade, or why not Annicas Light. Even brandy can be obtained from Qvänum, made using recipes with ancient spices. Before the meal, our tables are carefully decorated with hand-woven Ekelunds cloths and with plates from local potters. Tulips from Frillesås adorn the tables when the season is right.
 

Villa Sjötorp is certified by Smaka på VästSverige and mentioned in the White guide with high scores.