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Sometimes you just want an endless cup of coffee and a homestyle breakfast. If this suits your mood, come on in. You won’t find fancy Eggs Benedict or avocado toast on this menu. SVEA Restaurant has been serving up Swedish-style breakfasts at this Andersonville diner since 1972. Here you’ll find Swedish pancakes, meatballs, and a whole bunch of dishes that may look hard to pronounce but are comforting and filling.
Anthony’s Take: SVEA Restaurant is great for a tasty, no frills breakfast. Eggs, pancakes, bacon, and a host of Swedish dishes are sure to make everyone happy. There are no reservations and the place can get packed. Come early on a Saturday morning for a greater shot at a quick seating.
Decor & Vibe
The restaurant is on the smaller side with maybe 20 tables and a tiled bar flanking the right side. The blue and yellow color palette along with the Viking touches around the room are playful and evoke Sweden (or a Disney-fied version of the Scandinavian country).
Look up as there are murals on most walls. A viking is painted on one wall while a boy fishing is on another.
Boy fishing mural.
Some of the original elements of the restaurant remain from its opening in the 1970s.
Food
The menu has a mix of diner staples like eggs, pancakes, and omelettes as well as multiple Swedish dishes.
I had the SVEA Special, which is two Swedish pancakes with lingonberries. The pancakes were light and the lingonberries sweet and slightly tart.
We also ordered a side of Swedish meatballs. My dining companions had eggs (not pictured).
Drinks
SVEA offers coffee and juices. The staff were quick with refills and I had four cups while eating breakfast.
SVEA is a great spot for a quick, casual breakfast. The kind of food to help with a hangover or combat a chilly Chicago morning. SVEA prefers cash but will accept a credit card (just note that they will add a 3% service charge to run the card).
Overall Impression:
SVEA offers standard diner fare with Swedish touches. It’s one of my favorite breakfast spots and I know I’ll return again soon.
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Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links above This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
