Restaurant in Stockholm, Sweden
Critically recognised wine bar, central and bookable.
Operabaren is a wine-bar-with-food at Jakobsgatan 12 in central Stockholm, ranked #257 in Opinionated About Dining's Casual Europe list for 2025 — its third consecutive year of OAD recognition. Easy to book, open for lunch and dinner Monday through Saturday, and built around the drinks program first. The right choice if you want a critically recognised, relaxed alternative to Stockholm's full tasting-menu circuit.
Yes — if you want a wine bar with credible critical recognition, a central Stockholm address, and hours that work for both a weekday lunch and a long Friday evening, Operabaren is a strong choice. Ranked #257 in Opinionated About Dining's Casual Europe list for 2025 (up from #268 in 2024 and Highly Recommended in 2023), it has been building a consistent track record in one of Europe's most competitive casual dining scenes. For food and wine enthusiasts who want depth without a full tasting-menu commitment, this is a practical target.
Operabaren sits at Jakobsgatan 12, close to the Royal Opera House, and operates as a wine bar with food — which means the drinks program is the main event, not a supporting act. Under chef Erich Schaumburger, the kitchen is clearly doing enough to keep OAD's panel returning across three consecutive years, but the format rewards drinkers as much as diners. If your priority is a serious wine list in a setting where you can also eat well, this is the right call in central Stockholm. If you need a full Nordic tasting menu experience, look elsewhere , Frantzén or AIRA serve that purpose.
For context on what the OAD Casual ranking signals: venues in the top 300 of that list are consistently vetted by a panel of serious diners across Europe. Operabaren's three-year presence and upward movement through that ranking suggest it is not a flash-in-the-pan addition to Stockholm's bar and wine scene. Compare that to Lady of the Grapes in London or Antica Bottega del Vino in Verona , both OAD-tracked wine bars with a similar profile of critical recognition built over years of consistency.
Operabaren is open Monday through Friday from 11:30 am to 11 pm, Saturday from noon to 11 pm, and is closed on Sundays. That Sunday closure is worth noting if you are planning a weekend trip around Stockholm , build your wine bar evening into Friday or Saturday instead. Booking difficulty is rated easy, which means you do not need to plan weeks in advance the way you would for Operakällaren or Aloë. A few days' notice should be sufficient for most evenings, though Friday and Saturday nights will fill faster. Lunch slots Monday through Friday are the most accessible entry point if you want to walk in without a reservation.
Operabaren works well for solo diners, pairs, and small groups of up to four who want a wine-forward experience without committing to a long tasting menu. The wine bar format supports counter or bar seating naturally, making it one of the better options in Stockholm for solo dining with a drink and a plate. It is less suited to large celebrations or guests who need a formal occasion backdrop , for that, Operakällaren next door provides a more ceremonial setting. For food and wine explorers visiting Stockholm and wanting to cover serious ground in the casual tier, Operabaren belongs on the list alongside Tyge & Sessil.
| Detail | Operabaren | Operakällaren | Tyge & Sessil |
|---|---|---|---|
| Format | Wine bar | Fine dining restaurant | Restaurant/bar |
| Price tier | Not published | €€€€ | Not published |
| Booking difficulty | Easy | Moderate–hard | Moderate |
| Sunday service | Closed | Check ahead | Check ahead |
| OAD recognition | #257 Casual Europe (2025) | OAD tracked | , |
| Leading for | Wine + food, solo or pairs | Special occasions | Dinner, small groups |
Stockholm has a deep bench of serious restaurants, and Operabaren occupies a specific and useful slot: critically recognised, accessible to book, open for lunch and dinner across the working week, and built around a drinks program rather than a chef's tasting menu. For visitors building a Stockholm food itinerary, it pairs well with a higher-commitment dinner at AIRA or Frantzén. Our full Stockholm restaurants guide, Stockholm bars guide, and Stockholm hotels guide cover the broader picture. If you are travelling beyond the capital, Vollmers in Malmö, Koka in Gothenburg, and Signum in Mölnlycke are worth flagging for the itinerary. Our Stockholm experiences guide and Stockholm wineries guide round out the picture for serious travellers.
| Venue | Price | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operabaren | Easy | — | |
| Operakällaren | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| AIRA | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| Etoile | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| Adam / Albin | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| Ekstedt | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
Side-by-side comparison to help you decide where to book.
The venue database does not document specific dietary accommodation policies for Operabaren. As a wine bar with food, the menu tends to be shorter than a full restaurant's, which often means fewer substitution options. Contact them directly via the address at Jakobsgatan 12 to confirm before booking if this is a hard requirement.
Lunch is the lower-commitment option: doors open at 11:30 am Monday through Friday, and the wine bar format means you can keep it to a glass and a plate without the evening pacing. Dinner suits anyone wanting a longer session, with service running through to 11 pm. If your priority is atmosphere and a fuller evening, dinner is the call — lunch is better for a quick, central Stockholm stop.
Yes. A wine bar format is one of the more comfortable solo dining setups: counter or bar seating typically means you're not occupying a table meant for two, and the drinks-led focus removes any pressure to order extensively. Operabaren's OAD Casual Europe ranking — #257 in 2025 — suggests the overall offer is strong enough to justify the trip alone.
The venue operates as a wine bar, so bar-side eating is the expected format rather than the exception. This is not a restaurant where bar seating is a fallback option — it's the core experience. That makes it a good choice for pairs or solos who want food without a formal dining-room setup.
It depends on what you mean by special. Operabaren is OAD-ranked and centrally located near the Royal Opera House, which gives it a credible backdrop for a birthday dinner or a date. It is not a long tasting-menu experience, so if the occasion calls for a multi-hour formal progression, Adam/Albin or Ekstedt would be a stronger fit. For a relaxed but critically recognised evening, Operabaren works.
For a more formal, tasting-menu-led occasion, Adam/Albin and Ekstedt are the relevant comparisons at a higher commitment level. Etoile and AIRA offer restaurant formats with more structured dining. Operakällaren, close by in the same Opera House complex, sits in the same neighbourhood but at a higher price point and more formal register. Operabaren's specific case is: critically recognised, accessible hours, wine-led, no long tasting-menu commitment.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
