[2024] Desperately seeking semla in NYC: Secret basement cafes, Michelin-starred restaurants, and well-known Swedish outposts

In a city where hundreds of pastries, savory and sweet, (shaved ice, laminated pastry, mochi donuts, taro puffs and cake, etc.) from hundreds of different cultures beckon every morning and early afternoon, only one holds the key to my heart: the Swedish Fettisdagen (Fat Tuesday) cream bun known as the semla.

Semlor (the plural form of semla) are butter-and-egg-enriched cardamom buns filled with sweet marzipan almond paste, known as mandelmassa in Sweden (and even maybe some chopped nuts for texture and extra flavor) and whipped cream. Typically, they're finished with a light dusting of powdered sugar.

There you have it. Semla. 😋

I like to use the little hat to dig into the cream at the top before I demolish the bun dignified sans utensils, usually on the sidewalk right outside of the cafe if I can't bring them home in a timely manner. It's okay if the cream gets up your nose, not that I would know.

Fun fact: Myth has it that in the late 18th century, King Adolf Frederick of Sweden died suddenly of indigestion after eating an huge, extremely rich meal that included 14 semlor.

Table of contents: Desperately seeking semla

• When are semlor eaten?
• Where to find semlor in NYC
  • Aquavit (Midtown East, Manhattan)
  • Church of Sweden (Midtown East, Manhattan)
  • Fabrique Bakery (West Village, Manhattan)
  • Ole and Steen (multiple locations, Manhattan)
  • La Cabra (multiple locations in Manhattan, and one opening soon in Bushwick!)
• Can't find semlor near you? Make them from scratch!

When are semlor eaten?

Sadly, semlor are seasonal, meaning their glory is short-lived.

Call the Tuesday before Lent what you will. Strove Tuesday. Mardi Gras. Fat Tuesday. Pancake Tuesday. Carnival. Fettisdagen in Sweden.

Historically, semla was only eaten on Fettisdagen as the last treat before fasting during Lent. Thankfully for semla monsters, religious traditions change over time, strict fasting is no longer observed in Sweden, and semlor are now sold from Christmas to Easter.

Variations on the classic semla and other cream buns

Burger King Denmark introduced the short-lived semmelburger. It was a monstrosity of a brownie patty on a cardamom bun, topped with marzipan and whipped cream. Seems sacrilegious to me, but I'm not Swedish, these dudes kinda like it, and I'd try anything once 🤷🏽‍♀️.

There's the semmelwrap, invented by Mattias Ljungberg in Stockholm in 2015 for his bakery, Tössebageriet (website in Swedish). Basically, Ljungberg took semla bun dough, rolled it out into a flatbread, baked it, then filled with marzipan and whipped cream. Less sacrilegious on semla -> semmelburger scale I'd think.

Ole and Steen, a Danish bakery chain in NYC had different flavors of the Danish cream bun, fastelavnsboller.

Aquavit (Midtown East, Manhattan)

Aquavit, a high-end Scandinavian restaurant boasting 1 Michelin star was selling semlor by the pair for $25 plus tax, order fee, and tip via Tock from early to mid February for pickup at their Midtown East location. I assume they'll be selling semlor next year around the same time as well.

I was really looking forward to a Michelin-starred semla and the excitement built when I picked it up mid-February from the most luxe restaurant lobby I'd ever been in.

I was so disappointed when I tried one.

It was fresh, definitely fresh. I would not be surprised if they piped the whipped cream on last minute before they closed the box and give the semlor to me in their fancy little Aquavit branded paper bag. The cardamom bun had the best texture out of all of buns I'd eaten: moist, fluffy, lightly cardamom scented. A diameter of 4 to 5 inches, and filled with almond paste and topped with a mountain of whipped cream, you really do get a lot for all of the money you pay. These two semla would be enough for 4 to 5 people.

But I wanted a lot more cardamom in the bun. The almond paste was coarse and grainy, not an enjoyable texture at all, and hardly sweetened. The whipped cream had mid-sweetness compared to the other two semlor I ate (from what I found, it seems like a lot of traditional semla recipe don't call for sweetened whipped cream at all, so this might be the norm?).

I'm passing on Aquavit's semlor next year.

Princess cake aside: $45 for an 8-inch 6-slice cake via Tock. At this price, since it's the cheapest for princess cake I've found so far, I'd give Aquavit pastry pick up a try again. Or I'll just try to make a Swedish princess cake from scratch.

Church of Sweden (Midtown East, Manhattan)

Church of Sweden is a secret kinda place. I'm hesitant to talk about it because the space truly really honestly feels worlds away from Manhattan even though it's in Midtown. The cafe has reopened after some the church went through some remodeling (I would know: I emailed them multiple times about princess cake) and is open Saturday and Sundays from 1PM to 4PM (check out their website, which is in Swedish, to double check).

It is the perfect place to meet a friend for a relaxed, unhurried coffee break with a small pastry, capped off with buying Swedish pantry items. When my partner and I went, out of maybe 10 people in the cozy space, 2 were working on laptops. I love that they allow laptops and I love that the space is open to people, but I don't think I'll be bringing my laptop so as to preserve the magic.

Church of Sweden's Semla ($4) were my favorite: the whipped cream was maybe a touch sweeter than the semla at Aquavit, the middle was a smooth and sweet almond paste, and the bun, although not as fluffy or masterful as Aquavit's, was passable. And of course it's impossible to be mad at a $4 semla in a cozy, warm setting, an oasis from the hustle and bustle on the street. They're also smaller than the semlor at both Fabrique Bakery and Aquavit, which I prefer. I love semla but a smaller one is much better for decedant afternoon snack than a monster semla.

Princess cake aside: I asked in-person how much princess cakes are. $80 for a cake that's roughly 12 inches.

Fabrique Bakery (West Village, Manhattan)

Fabrique Bakery's semla ($8) was one such example of a half a bun eaten on the street during the 11 minute walk from Fabrique Bakery to the F train station nearby to catch a movie in Midtown.

I'm not sure if Fabrique's or Aquavit's bun was my least favorite.

The bun at Fabrique Bakery was filled with a lovely smooth, sweet almond paste studded with almond slices for texture, making it my favorite almond paste out of the 3 semlor I've eaten. However, the bun was stale and the cream wasn't sweetened at all. AT ALL. It was just fluffy butter. It seems like unsweetened whipped cream might be norm (someone with knowledge on Swedish pastry, please correct me if I'm wrong), which is certainly not to my liking.

Between the semlor at Fabrique Bakery and Aquavit, it's hard to say which I recommend. If it comes down to money, I don't think I got much more quality-wise at Aquavit for double the price of Fabrique's Swedish cream buns, so I'd buy that over Aquavit.

(An aside: While I was there, there were clearly 3 different types of unlabeled rolls behind the counter. I asked the cashier what kind of rolls they were. The response: "Oh, they're just regular bread rolls." 💀)

Princess cake aside: $119 for 8-10 people as of late September 2023. 🤑💀