Feed the Beast Restaurant

The smörgåsbord became popular in the mid-seventeenth century, when the food moved from the side table to the main table[5] and service began containing both warm and cold dishes. Smörgåsbord

The brännvinsbord was served as an appetizer for a gathering of people and eaten while standing before a dinner or supper, often two to five hours before dinner, sometimes with the men and women in separate rooms.

The most simple brännvinsbord was bread, butter, cheese, herring and several types of liqueurs, but smoked salmon, sausages and cold cuts were also served.

The members of the Swedish merchant and upper class in fourteenth-century Sweden and Finland served schnapps table (brännvinsbord), a small buffet presented on a side table offering a variety of hors d'oeuvres served prior to a meal before sitting at the dinner table.

It is distinct from the Danish Christmas dinner which is served on December 24, and is served as a lunchtime meal, usually for family and friends on December 25 or 26. It is a tradition for most Danish workplaces to hold an annual Julefrokost some time during the months of November to January as well.

In Denmark a typical tradition resembling the Swedish "julbord" is "Julefrokost" ("Christmas lunch"), which involves a wellstocked Danish smörgåsbord with cold as well as hot dishes, and plenty of beer and schnapps.

Traditionally, an almond is hidden in the bowl of rice porridge and whoever finds it receives a small prize or is recognized for having good luck. Julbord is served from early December until just before Christmas at restaurants and until Epiphany in some homes.

Lutfisk, lyed fish made of stockfish (dried ling or cod served with boiled potato and thick white sauce) and green peas that can be served with the warm dishes or as a separate fourth course. Lutfisk is often served as dinner the second day after the traditional Christmas Yule-table dinner.Julbord desserts include rice pudding (risgrynsgröt), sprinkled with cinnamon powder.

Side dishes include beetroot salad in mayonnaise and warm stewed red, green or brown cabbage.

Other dishes are pork sausages (fläskkorv), smoked pork and potato sausages (isterband), cabbage rolls (kåldolmar), baked beans, omelette with shrimps or mushrooms covered with béchamel sauce.

It is customary to eat particular foods together; herring is typically eaten with boiled potatoes and hard-boiled eggs and is frequently accompanied by strong spirits like snaps, brännvin or akvavit with or without spices. Other traditional are smoked eel, rollmops, herring salad, baked herring and smoked salmon.

A special Swedish type of smörgåsbord is the julbord (literally "Christmas table"). The classic Swedish julbord is central to traditional Swedish cuisine, often including bread dipped in ham broth and continuing with a variety of fish (salmon, herring, whitefish and eel), baked ham, meatballs, pork ribs, head cheese, sausages, potato, Janssons frestelse, boiled potatoes, cheeses, beetroot salad, various forms of boiled cabbage, kale and rice pudding.

After eating the first portion, people usually continue with the second course (other cold dishes), and round off with hot dishes. Dessert may or may not be included in a smörgåsbord.