Semla day at Brogyllen Saluhallen

Brogyllen Saluhallen is ready for Semla day! There is another Brogyllen in Gothenburg that has indoor and outdoor seating but this one is a smaller location in Gothenburg's market hall.

Brogyllen has always been a favorite of ours for the delicious chocolate cakes!

Get a smaller Semla Muffin if you're more of a muffin person ;)

Or try a bigger Semla to share or just enjoy as your full meal ;) 

Stop by to check out Brogyllen if you're in Gothenburg, Sweden. They are always well stocked with delicious breads and other sweet buns even if it's not Semla day!

Enjoy your Semla Day and remember, don't forget your snacks!

Brogyllen Saluhallen

Kungstorget 15, 411 10

Check out their website for more delicious cakes

Alvar & Ivar Semla!

We made a special stop to pick up some Semla for Fat Tuesday or "Fettisdagen" from one of the neighbourhood bakeries, Alvar & Ivar! "AKTAS" warning label on the bag to remind you to be careful when holding it to not damage the semla!

Alvar & Ivar specializes in sourdough bread but they also offer some delicious Swedish sweet buns like cinnamon buns and cardamom buns. 

For Fat Tuesday, they offer traditional Semla for takeaway!

The whipped cream is piled high on these wheat buns!

Don't be surprised if you go into food coma after your Semla fika or coffee break!

Enjoy your Fat Tuesday eats and remember don't forget your snacks!

Alvar & Ivar

Kastellgatan 11, 413 07

Gothenburg, Sweden

Check out their website for full menu and ordering.

The Candy Room on Robson Street

 

The Candy Room, located in the heart of downtown Vancouver, Canada is on the busy shopping street of Robson. This candy shop has a huge assortment of Candy. From British brands to American brands, stuffed animals and small toys (they come with Candy), there's definitely a lot to see and try in this Candy store!

The store also has a bulk candy section, where you weigh the candy (like jelly beans or gummies) you've selected at the end. 

The store can get busy and it's not a big space, if you want to avoid rush hour, visit at the end of the day.

They even had this "World's Largest Gummy Snake" weighing 27lbs, or the weigh of a toddler, on display and for sale at $250. 

There were other snacks like cereal and chips, "Rap Snacks" chips for $2.50.

The Candy Room is a great place for gifts, or a snack for yourself. Be sure to check it out on Robson Street if you need a little treat while shopping. 

Enjoy your shopping and remember, don't forget your snacks!

The Candy Room
1218 Robson St, Vancouver, BC V6E 3Y4, Canada
Check out their website for more information

Semla!

The Swedish Semla season is upon us! Those delicious sweet buns flavored with cardamom, filled with whip cream and almond paste can be found in grocery stores, cafes and bakeries all over Gothenburg and the rest of Sweden.

Semlor are traditionally eaten on "Fat Tuesday" or "Fettisdagen" (the day before fasting on Ash Wednesday). They're usually available in the New Year until Easter time, after that you need to wait until next year.

           Semlor at 7Eleven come in various sizes!

From Wikipedia, "A semla, vastlakukkel, laskiaispulla or fastlagsbulle/fastelavnsbolle is a traditional sweet roll made in various forms in Sweden,^[1] Finland, Estonia, Norway, Denmark, the Faroe Islands and Iceland."

Dairy and egg free? Don't worry, you can even find Vegan Semla or Semlor at a few cafes in the city, like Mr. Cake!

It's a once a year treat, so why not indulge a little? The date for Fat Tuesday changes each year. Try to order early if you plan to buy more than a few semlor to celebrate!

Semlor at Le Pain Francais, a French bakery cafe with a few locations around the city!

Don't forget your snacks!

Steinbrenner och Nyberg

Gothenburg,Sweden  

Check out their website for locations around Gothenburg, Sweden

Mr.Cake

Gothenburg,Sweden  

Vegan semla!

Check out their website for the full menu

Le Pain Francais 

Gothenburg,Sweden  

Check out their website for locations around

Cookies by George

 

Remember those special comfort foods from your childhood? Your favorite snacks or desserts that bring back good memories even after just one bite.

Cookies from "Cookies By George" are one of my favorite childhood snacks! 

We made sure to get our fill during the holidays and this special cookie shop hasn't changed its recipe after all these years! They still taste just as delicious and leave you wanting more. 

Those soft, chewy, chocolate chunk cookies are just as soft and chewy now, as they were years and years ago!

Some of my other favorite cookie flavors are the double chocolate and the peanut butter chocolate chunk.

Cookies by George now offers Food Delivery with SkiptheDishes and UberEats.

There is only one location in Vancouver, BC, but more locations across Canada and they ship within Canada and the US!

They also sell gift packages of a box or red tin of cookies to gift friends and family.

I was able to order cookies for a surprise gift and they arrived the next day! You can also get same day delivery if you have a Cookies by George location in your city!

For Valentine's Day or Mother's day, it's a great option to deliver a smile to someone who enjoys cookies. It's also a great way to treat yourself!

Don't forget your snacks!

Cookies by George

1055 W Georgia St, Vancouver, BC V6B 3P2, Canada

Check out their website for more information and to order!

Liberte Cafe and Restaurant

***A Sad Update due to increased rent, Liberte Cafe and Restaurant will be closing their doors at the end Feb 2025. New location to hopefully  be announced. But the neighborhood will miss it! ***

We visited Liberté Cafe and Restaurant a few times during our travels in Vancouver, Canada for the holidays.

Located in East Vancouver, this Filipino fusion Cafe and Restaurant offers some delicious treats like cream buns and cookies, in addition to Filipino breakfast and lunch/dinner items like Filipino spaghetti. 

There are a few different Cream buns to try at the cafe and they are all delicious! My two favorites were the Mango Cream bun and the Ube Cream bun. 

We usually visit the cafe/bakery section of the restaurant to pickup some treats and coffee for takeaway. 

There is a nice selection of desserts at Liberté. We also tried the macarons and the ube crinkles. Delish!

On one occasion, when the restaurant was empty, we sat in a booth to have the Ube Latte. We noticed that the design of the booths need improvement, as it was difficult for seniors to get in and out of with the table being so close.

The Ube Latte was delicious. I was expecting it to be overly sweet but it was nice and creamy and only subtly sweet. You can also ask for half sweet if you prefer. The ube flavor wasn't overpowering.

The Ube Latte is also available cold as an Ice Latte drink. It's a great way to beat the summer heat!

It's wonderful to see restaurants that opened up during the Pandemic still surviving. It's always great to see new Filipino restaurants as well. It's nice to support local places and small businesses.

If you are in the Collingwood neighborhood of Vancouver and want to try some delicious Filipino pastries or Filipino dishes, stop by Liberte Cafe and Restaurant!

Don't forget your snacks!

Liberte Cafe and Restaurant 

3670 Vanness Ave, Vancouver, BC V5R 4P9, Canada

Check out their website for more information. Follow their Instagram for updates on their new location.

Getting Over Jetlag with Kids

It's definitely not an easy task trying to get over jetlag with kids. Even pre-kids, I remember it taking a few days for me to adjust to the time after long haul travel. Some say it's easier when you are going West versus flying East. But it seemed just as difficult for both times.

I've also heard that some parents give kids melatonin, we didn't try that this time, but may consider it for next time.

With a toddler and a preschooler, we do want them to sleep on the long flight. Especially if there are two flights! That would mean that when we arrive at our destination they are just waking up and won't go to sleep right away. That's fine if it's not already dinnertime...

I've heard that the number of days it will take to get over jetlag depends on the number of hours time difference. So for example, Sweden is 9h ahead of Canada, so it would take 9 days to get over.

On the 9th day, kids got up at 6am! So there really is some truth to that as that means it took them 9 days to get back to a somewhat decent wake up time.

We remembered to gift the neighbours some chocolate for being so understanding with the noise the kids had been making during the week they were suffering from jetlag.

Here are my own tips for getting over Jetlag with kids:

- Eat food for that time zone. So if they wake up at midnight, but that's their breakfast, feed them breakfast food.

- Keep the room dark until it is morning, this is so they learn it is still nighttime.

- Take a red-eye flight to your destination. This helps with some kids, but depends on how long your flight is. Our flight was 2h and then another 10h flight. We arrived in our destination around 7pm local time. Kids were up, napped and then were up at 1am that night hungry for food.

- No naps, it just means they will stay up later. We tried to set an alarm for naps but because we were so exhausted, we always slept through it. With babies younger than 1 year they get over jetlag faster because they are napping all the time (I don't remember having to deal with jetlag when we flew with our 7 mth old back to Canada)

 

- Get them out for some fresh air during the day. It really helps!

- Each parent should take turns being with the kids during a night/early morning shift! 

- Be patient, it can take time to get over jetlag.

Good luck getting over the jetlag!

Don't forget your snacks!