Ever heard of Fika?

Fika is a staple of Sweden. You can’t understand Swedish culture and attitude and work style without fika.

At its heart, fika is a simple coffee break. It’s a quick break from work to catch up with your colleagues, have coffee (or tea if you don’t enjoy the rich nectar of coffee), eat a sweet treat (usually a cinnamon bun), without any work chat. It’s not a time to catch up on the progress of that project, or give a run down of your complete tasks.

Instead ask about your colleague’s kids or your plans for the weekend.

Photo by Anjeli Lundblad on Unsplash

But fika doesn’t just happen at work. You can visit a friend on a Sunday afternoon and catch up over fika. Want a quick first date without getting tipsy? Suggest a fika! The key to fika is just that you connect with someone else over coffee and sweets. It’s a nice pause in your day (or multiple pauses) but it helps Swedes slow down and enjoy life.

So take time this week to slow down and share a fika with someone. Remember you need a sweet treat alongside that cup of joe so we recommend baking Swedish “kardemummabullar” or “kardemum buns” which are our new favorite fika joy.

Check out this absolutely adorable Swedish couple teaching you how to make these classic fika staples. Enjoy!