”F
ika” is a very important part of Swedish Culture and roughly translates as the act having a coffee, most often accompanied by pastries. To have a fika is a must for any visitor to Sweden who wants to try a part of the Swedish way of life.
”The word ”fika” is an example of the back slang used in the 19th century, in which syllables of a word were reversed, deriving fika from kaffi, an earlier variant of the Swedish word kaffe (”coffee”). From fika also comes the word fik (a colloquial term for ”café”) through a process of back-formation” (source: wikipedia)
A fika can be had any time between meals. It’s a way of socialising with friends, family and collueges at work (every office will have a ”fika break” together at least once a week). It can be served at home or at a coffee shop or bakery, and it’s a great way of spending time together.
Typical pastries eaten include kanelbullar (cinnamon buns), wienerbröd (danish pastry), biscuits – and more. Usually these pastries are referred to as ”fikabröd”, literally translated as ”fika bread”. Join our ”Swedish Fika” baking class and learn how to make some of these yourself!