[0:10]The world is full of coffee rituals, but in Sweden, the coffee break has a special place in the culture. It even comes with a special name: Fika.
[0:20]Fika. Why is Fika so important in Sweden? It plays a very important social function. You could say that it's like a social lubricant. Is this the secret to Swedish happiness? Fika takes its name from the old Swedish word for coffee: 'kafi'. If you switch the syllables around, it becomes 'fika'. But how can you have a proper Fika? Hi. Hello. Hey. Uh, we would like to learn how to do a Swedish Fika. Great. You've come to the right place. Well, let me start with the basics. Do you want coffee or do you want tea? Uh, coffee. I would love some coffee. Yeah, coffee, please. Well, we do normally drink a lot of coffee here in Sweden. I think I'd like a cappuccino, please. For pastries, what do you want then? Like here we have our crown jewel of Swedish Fika is the cinnamon bun or a princess cake. Two cinnamon buns, please. Let's share a slice of that. Yeah, yeah, that would be great. All right, great. I'll bring it out to you.
[1:25]Having Fika is not just a social event. It's also protected by law for all Swedish employees. Having Fika at the workplace makes it possible for you to relax and chill in a different way, and that is necessary in order to have a good working environment. Many Swedish firms have mandatory Fika breaks. This allows the employees to slow down and leave work behind. Swedish workers are some of the least stressed worldwide. Many view Fika as a contributing factor to happiness at work.
[2:02]All right, here's your coffee. Thank you. Thank you so much. So, for a Swedish Fika, let me start with how well do you guys actually know each other? We actually just met at work today. All right, nice. Well, I mean then I would suggest to like maybe not start, talk about like politics, uh, religion, try to keep it light. Fika breaks were introduced in the workplace in the 1900s, after factories reported incidents peaking at 10:00 and 15:00 o'clock. The tradition took root as it helped reduce the number of accidents. So, is it actually possible to Fika whenever we want? I mean, at workplaces you usually have Fika at 10 and then at 3. But if you're outside the work situation, you you just Fika whenever you want. Many see a link between Sweden's productive workforce and the country's longstanding Fika tradition. I think for sure that uh, those relaxed moments when everyone just, you know, chills out a little bit and allow each other to talk about stuff that are work related, but also stuff that is not necessarily work related. Gives a spillover effect of, you know, creativity and maybe also, uh, the opportunity to say stuff that you would, maybe wouldn't allow yourself to say otherwise. Fika may have turned Sweden into a top coffee consuming nation. But the bitter brew wasn't always popular in the country. So our current coffee culture, you can say that it emerged towards the end of the 19th century. Banned by Swedish kings and subjected to hefty taxes, coffee has survived many ups and downs in the country. One of the things that has changed about Fika is that coffee cups are now larger. The buns are probably three times bigger than 50 years ago. And we probably have a smaller range of cookies.
[4:09]But the social nature of Fika has stayed the same. What's stayed the same is that you still do it together with other people.
[4:18]So, is it okay to decline a Fika? Uh, no. No, no, no. You don't want to do that. So, what happens if I decline a Fika without a good reason? If you say no to a Fika invite, that would mean that you don't want to socialize, for a Fika you should always say yes. A traditional Fika involves eating seven different kinds of cakes. But many have now been replaced with savory options. We see a lot of new products instead of having a cinnamon bun, you have like raw bars and a side bowls, chia puddings, overnight oats, fruit salads. It brings in more variation to the whole concept. Okay. So, are we ready to start Fika now? I mean, yeah, technically, but you need to know that like we, uh, we eat them in a, in a particular order. So, um, I mean, most Swedes already know that. Oh, what is the eating order then? Because I actually just took a bite of the princess cake. Oh, oh, no. Well, we, we always start with the least fancy cookie, and then we, we end with the most fancy cake. Okay. So, start with the cinnamon bun, and then, yeah. Good to know for next time. But not everyone seems to agree about the order of pastries. I would eat the cake first because it feels most festive. Then I would eat the cookies because they are my favourites! I would start with the cinnamon bun, and then I have small cookies and cakes, and then, uh, I'll end it up with a princess cake. I would start with the cinnamon roll and go over to the small cookies and finally I have a piece of the princess cake. I would probably have to go for the cake first and then work myself down to the smallest pastries. So feel free to start with anything that takes your fancy!
