Nordic flags blow in the wind on Liverpool’s Swedish church, the Gustaf Adolfs Kyrka – a remaining link to our history with the old Baltic states.
The Nordic sailors would have taken rest here as their imported timber was loaded into the warehouses that surround the church. You know the history, now meet the future. The city has recently become awash with the Scandinavian vibe – from Nordic-inspired pop-up dining clubs to Scandi-cool venues that put an IKEA catalogue to shame. Fika is part of that movement.
We’ll save you the Google, ‘Fika’ is the Swedish word for a coffee break, sometimes with cake and lots of times with friends and is a huge part of Swedish culture. We’ve been inadvertently Fika-ing for a good chunk of our adult lives. You might not associate Wavertree with a Scandi-themed cafe with open sandwiches, Scandic-Hot dogs, Swedish meatballs and more but Fika is much more than that. It’s a huge part of the community and owner Anthony Grice is a huge part of Liverpool.
Fika have become quite famous for their daily blackboard messages that always manage to amuse, inspire or spread positive vibes. When he’s not writing on blackboards owner Anthony is offering the older generation free tea and toast between 10am-12pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays and more importantly, to come down and have a chat. If you didn’t cry at that, you might after a bite of their enormous cheesecakes. There’s just no way the Ferrero Rocher one should be allowed to be that good. It’s a good job GP meetings are over Zoom these days so Mr. Smith can’t see the toll they’ve taken.
photo by @eatlvpl
As previously mentioned, to Fika is to enjoy coffee and cake with friends. Take some down with you (no more than 6, BoJo is watching after all) and support a cafe that is, well, so much more than a cafe.
