Café culture in Sweden Posted by Katja on May 14, 2012 in Culture, Living in Sweden
Most of you dedicated Swedish blog readers will probably have read about or heard of the Swedish “fika”. Swedes love to have their 3 o’clock fika-time or go out to cafés and such. But still, the culture of sitting in cafés is really very different from a lot of other countries in Europe. It is quite seldom, if ever, that people go from café to café and drink coffee and sit and talk for hours.
One of the reasons for this might be that it is very expensive to go to cafés in Sweden. One cup of coffee can, depending on the place, cost you about 20:- if not much much more. That is what you will have to pay at least for just black coffee. Anything more special than that, ie. esspresso, latte, mocca etc. will be closer to 35:- or more. Therefore it isn’t such a great environment to casually, and on a daily basis, stroll from place to place.
Yet another reason contributing to the fact is most likely the climate. Sweden hardly has “outdoor seating” climate all year round, so the sitting outside just chit chatting with friends isn’t really the same.
If we were to consider a more of an emotional/cultural factor is that Swedes are more introverted than a lot of other types of people. It is not uncommon that people might walk past an acquaintance without saying hello if the person is surrounded by friends unknown to the other person. I just think it takes quite a lot more for most Swedes to loosen up and start talking to strangers. I can guess that most Swedes would hardly ever just join the party sitting at a café if they happened to be walking past.
I’m sure that there are a lot of other reasons as well contributing to a different café culture, please feel free to share if you think of any more!
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Comments:
Karen Chantry:
Seems to me from how it has been with my family and others I know that it
is more like reserved rather than introverted.
Corin:
This is so funny to me. I am moving to Sweden from the States this summer to live with my Swedish Sambo. He is your typical Swede- very reserved, and even introverted. I, on the other hand, am even considered quite an extrovert in the US. AND, one of my favorite past times is sitting at coffee shops around the city. I will do this all day, inviting acquaintances and friends to join me. It will certainly be an interesting experience to see how much I will fit in there- or how much I don’t. When I was there for a short time last summer, I remember how people would look at me when I would casually jump into conversations with those speaking English. They seemed to lighten up and feel a bit more comfortable after learning I was American- as if that explained my directness, and that I was not in fact a complete nutter.
Berit:
All Swedes are not introvert at all. Im Swedish and I have been told that I am very extrovert. I often talk to people that I dont know in the super markets, table next to me etc.
Swedes love sitting outside in the summer to soak up that much missed sun and there are lots of cafes with outside tables. One without would struggle in the summer!!
I live in the UK and to get a coffee for less than £2.00 in a cafe, I dont think so! Sweden is always thought of as expensive but people seem to have managed to miss how much prices have gone up in the UK and France for example
I really feel Sweden is very good value for money if you are going there on holiday. With all the great lakes, open spaces and beatiful county side it is a real gem!!
Shazzer (@Shazzer):
I think a bigger factor than the weather and the introverted Swedes is the fact that coffeeshops and cafes operate at very limited hours compared to other parts of the world. It’s rare to find one open before 7 a.m. or after 7 p.m. Especially on weekends.