Meatballs for the People — Restaurant in Stockholm

I’m so disappointed with our meal here on Saturday evening. A bit of backstory: I first visited Meatballs for the People with a friend seven years ago. I sent the person I was dating at the time a photo of some of the decoration in the restaurant, and basically a personal joke from that photo ended up with her picking her nickname for herself to be ‘meatball’. Fast-forward seven years and this place obviously has a lot of meaning in our relationship, so I flew my now wife in so that she could experience the restaurant where her nickname originated for herself. Wow, it was comically bad. We played the game and waited in line for 30 mins to get a table. 40 minutes after ordering, none of our food had turned up, but we hear a crash of falling plates near the door. We think nothing much of it at the time. Another 20 minutes passes taking us to 1 hour. The people around us had all had their meals, finished and left, so I asked if it was our food that was dropped - the waiter said yes and that he’d speak to the kitchen. 10 minutes later, our food turns up. At the same time, we ordered some more drinks and they also didn’t turn up - the excuse this time being that the staff member forgot to pass on the order.

Running a busy restaurant can be tough and mistakes happen - I know that firsthand, and it’s all understandable, but what really makes the difference is when the staff go the extra mile to look after their guests. Nobody bothered to tell us what was happening with our food and, to be honest, I was quite shocked to have the bill handed to us at the end with every single item present, at full price. Nothing at all complimentary for the poor service. In fact, the waiter even had the audacity to hand over the card machine on the screen where you select a tip to be added. I think this is the first time I’ve had to pick 0%.

Given how much this place means to us, I’m so unbelievably disappointed in our experience here. We were really looking forward to this, but I wish we hadn’t...

The cold seeped through our clothes as we stood there waiting, abandoned and forgotten. What should have been a pleasant evening turned into a bitter experience, all because of a treatment that was anything but friendly. The toaster behind the counter, with its freckles and wrinkles, almost seemed to want to hurt us. I have never before been treated with so little respect.

Her voice cut through the air, deafening and aggressive. No words of welcome or kindness, just harsh accusations that we shouldn't be there. As if we had stepped into the wrong room at the wrong time. Even though we had reserved a seat in advance, we were treated as if we were intruders. Her eyes gazed into our souls with pity, as if we were a burden to her. How could something as small as hosting an evening activity have such devastating consequences for us?

We looked away as she chose to bring in other guests before us, totally unfazed by our vulnerability. The cold bit into our fingers and our lips began to turn blue. No decent person would have left us out there in the cold winter day. But the toaster was not a nice person, she was single-minded and self-absorbed.

There we stood, our breath visible in the air as a reminder of our vulnerability. Although we could have walked away, we chose to stay. We didn't want to give her the satisfaction of seeing us give up. We would stay and fight, despite her aggressive treatment. We would prove to ourselves that we could overcome anything and not let the arrogance of a toaster get the best of us.

Finally she opened the door for us, with an indifference that suggested she was only acting to avoid hearing our cold complaints. We walked into the heat, our cheeks still numb and our bodies trembling. But inside us burned a fire, a determination to never let ourselves be pushed down again.

We were treated poorly by the toaster at the door, but we won't let it spoil our experience if you want to visit Meatbools for the people...

Oh where to start.. The moment you step in, you are greeted by a pleasant atmosphere. The walls are covered with wine shelves, animal hides, antlers and very rustic northern interior, making you feel instantly at home. On the stereo you hear the best radio hits from 2000-2015 that take you back "to those good old days" Then comes the waiter/waitress. We happened to step inside when the place was seemingly packed and still the waitress noticed us immediately, and found us a table for 2. All of the waitstaff are very positive, helpful, friendly and work extremely hard. I watched them work in tandem on the same table, greeting new people fresh in the door, communicate and help tables with their issues and do all their other work almost seamlessly. A very professional workstaff in a nutshell! Then comes the food. From the very first bite, you can enjoy excellence. This place puts a lot of effort into how they make their food and it shows. You are served with a homey-looking plate of absolutely lip-smacking delicious food. I have to mention that I took the absolute, most traditional, plate of Swedish meatballs they recommended. But man oh man have they figured out how to make it extremely tasty and filling. My girl took the spaghetti and meatballs menu item and it was killer as well. This place puts some serious effort and love into their recipes, I can promise you this much! The drink menu is relatively small, but the options on it are very accommodating to all kinds of tastes. The prices are slightly above average, but not unreasonably high considering what you see in other dining locations and the general Swedish standard of living.

This is a definite must-go when you are in search of authentic Swedish meatballs and well worth the walk from the old town/town centre area! I will definitely visit whenever I am in...