Bite Club: Cardamom bun at the Swedish American Museum

Monica Eng

Blue plate holds a large braided pretzel bread sprinkled with sugar on a wooden table; a blue mug sits to the left, with a blurred sunflower painting in the background. — The cardamom bun at the Swedish American Museum. Photo: Monica Eng/Axios

On a recent fall morning, I met up with a pal at an Andersonville cafe that was already packed, so we crossed the street to Mormors Café in the Swedish American Museum.

We lucked into a real Swedish fika (coffee break) with strong Joe in real ceramic cups and an array of freshly made Scandinavian pastries that knocked my socks off.

The bite: Although I adored Mormors' array of crisp Nordic cookies (2 for $1), the biggest winner emerged in the buttery, fragrant kardemummabullar or cardamom bun ($4).

Rich but not too sweet, it reminded me of the sugar toast I used to make with the now defunct Swedish Bakery's limpa bread.

Bottom line: I may have just found my favorite Chicago cafe — inside a museum.

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Bite Club: Cardamom bun at the Swedish American Museum

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