260276 Sun Jul 29 12:31:17 -0700 2001 3 26 International 0 1375584 Just got back from a trip to Stockholm, Oslo and the fjords. It's true about the best restaurants being closed in Stockholm during July! One warning: avoid a restaurant called Jarntorgspumpen in Gamla Stan (old town). You have to walk through a cloud of cigarette smoke to get to the grotto like dining room and the food was not good. One pleasant surprise in Gamla Stan was Michaelangelo's - it isn't gourmet but the food was good and their red sauce has sambal in it (I now am adding it to my sauces at home!). Richi Verandan on Birger Jarlsgaten, near the Theater Bldg. in Stockholm serves good food and it's fun to watch the world go by (when weather is warmer they open the floor to ceiling windows). A neat boat trip is the one to Vaxholm...the boats are bigger and have restaurants in them (much nicer than the lowslung ones that do the "under the bridges" tour through the city) and you get a pleasant trip through the archipelago. You can get off at Vaxholm and do the tourist thing or stay on the boat. In Oslo we had a great meal at Stortorvets Gjestgiveri on Grensen (divine chicken schnitzel with fresh steamed asparagus and grilled halibut sitting on caramelized onions all in the fabulous sauted mushroom sauce...lemon torte with fresh strawberries and a side dish of honey sorbet for dessert). Also Maud's down at the harbor is good (veal and chicken dishes...also tried an appetizer of red deer which was just ok...guess we're not red deer meat fans). Sun Jul 29 12:31:17 -0700 2001 0 anova 1 1375585 ummm. your descriptions of stockholm brought back such lovely memories of many, many trips to sweden in the 80's tho we ate in the homes of friends mostly. i remember that trip to vaxholm with great fondness and have a most cherished charm on one of my bracelets handmade by a little tinker on the island. thanks for your post. Sun Jul 29 15:14:03 -0700 2001 1375584 0 Rochelle 1 1375589 Interesting report, but what does it mean that a sauce has "sambal" in it? The word "sambal" is used by Malaysians and Indonesians to mean some small dishes or sauces that accompany the meal. Are you thinking of Sambal Oelek, and if so, which one? The chili sauce without the shrimp paste (and, therefore, red)? Mon Jul 30 00:15:22 -0700 2001 1375584 0 Pan 2 1375687 All it said in the menu's description of the red seafood sauce was that it included sambal. I just started using sambal this year (by watching East Meets West on the Food TV network) and happened to have it in stock. So that's what I put in my red sauce - sambal oelek (red chili paste). We also found sambal used in a red sauce in an Italian restaurant in Bergen, Norway. Is this the latest rage in European Italian restaurants??? Mon Aug 06 16:48:29 -0700 2001 1375589 0 Anova