When I went to Sweden over Christmas I tried to fit in a few dinners out in Malmö with friends. The place topping my list was B.A.R. Malmö; a natural restaurant and wine bar situated on the cosy Davidhall Square. I had high hopes about this place but felt right at home when I saw the marrow bone napkin rings.

Walking into B.A.R. the interior is quite sparse and the upstairs bit almost feels a bit cold but as you walk downstairs and past the kitchen the interior feels more cosy although still simple. I think the decorating and lack of tablecloths have been done deliberately to make it feel more comfortable and counterbalance the cooking style which is quite elaborate without being poncy.

Instead of a bread basket the lovely sourdough is almost tossed onto the table in brown paper bags and the accompanying spreads are served on rocks. The whipped butter with sea salt and fennel powder was absolutely delicious and completely trumped the pork fat with dill, which actually was very good too.

As there was eight of us we all had the same four course menu called the Chef’s choice menu to make it easier for the kitchen. Even if in a smaller group I would still recommend this menu or at least four courses from the a’la carte menu as some of the dishes are quite small. With that said I was still to full to finish my main course but everyone else at the table did.

The first course was quite small and consisted of more or less four mouthfuls but the flavours of squid and leek were delicious. .

The duck served with beetroot, grated bone marrow and a mayonnaise with confir garlic was even better than the first course. Absolutely gorgeous!

The maincourse with amazingly tender boar, crispy fried cavolo nero, celeriac cooked two ways and pears was absolutely wonderful!

The dessert was a small let-down after the previous two stellar courses, although there was nothing wrong with the chocolate sorbet, berry granita and vanilla custard it didn’t blow us away.

We had a lovely evening here and I can’t wait to go back in the spring or summer and try a different menu. What I really like about this place is the relaxed atmosphere and the fact that the concept appeals to food geeks like myself as well as people who just like good food in general.

The wines recommended by our waiter were also very good and of course a perfect match with the food, but also all natural and not very expensive.

I think it is about time this type of restaurant opened in Malmö and I certainly hope the town is ready for it!

B.A.R Malmö, Erik Dahlbergsgatan 3, 211 48 Malmö