This story is free to read because readers choose to support LAist. If you find value in independent local reporting, make a donation to power our newsroom today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Oh Ikea! I Love Your Salty Little Balls!
Everybody should know by now that one of the secrets of lasting through a shopping trip to Ikea is making a pit stop at their cafeteria, which features whimsical Scandinavian delicacies like Swedish meatballs and lingonberry jam. The Burbank location even has a well-stocked food market where you can pick up your own frozen meatballs, cream sauces, lumpfish roe, canned herring, rye breads, cheeses, and countless other little oddball treats like roe cheese spread.
All of this is offered at Ikea's typically ridiculous prices -- $2.99 for a hefty can of delicious orange lumpfish roe. Slather it on some rye crisps with cream cheese and you have got one explosive Nordic tongue-party! (Leery of three-buck fish eggs? Don't worry, they're mild and creamy, more like the roe you get on your sushi than the fancy-pantsy osetra or beluga you find in fine restaurants).
For a complete meal, pick up the frozen Swedish meatballs along with some cream sauce. Prepare according to directions, then serve alongside some freshly steamed spinach, with lingonberry jam on top. How about a vodka cocktail made with elderflower concentrate? If you're really adventurous, choose from a variety of pickled herrings -- top a rye cracker with some fish and you've got a hearty breakfast. And don't forget about desert -- with goodies like almond tart and marzipan cake, the Swedes prove they know how to put together a pastry better than they know how to put together a dresser.
Photo courtesy of the Ikea website.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our connected community. We are free to tell the full truth, to hold power to account without fear or favor, and to follow facts wherever they lead. Our only loyalty is to our audiences and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen our community.
Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive from readers like you will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.
If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive from readers like you will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.
If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
