Great location, nice views right on the water, good drinks, good cakes and things…read more
In fact I had walked by this cafe many times on prior visits to Stockholm, because the walk around Djurgården is something I have done a lot in the winter, just to get out of the house. But the cafe is closed then, so I was really excited to visit it, finally!
It did not disappoint in terms of food, drink, views, or table arrangement. The staff really seemed pretty competent too.
BUT BRING A CREDIT CARD.
FOR ... THE BATHROOM!
I know that pay toilets are not that unusual in Sweden, especially, it seems, in Djurgården. Of course a private establishment is entitled to charge for whatever they want, but we patrons are also entitled to warn each other of this kind of scummy behavior.
You have to understand, walking around Djurgården island is a wonderful way to experience the best Stockholm has to offer in terms of parks. It's really world class. It's about two-and-a-half-hour walk. This cafe is at the farthest point from the city center on the "loop". We got there after a nice long walk, and we ordered some wine, some tea, water, bill comes to about 25 dollars per person (US). It's not cheap for some light refreshment (no food), but heck, the place does have the location to charge for their refreshments. So far so good. Ships and boats of various kinds puttering by, it's fun to watch.
And now it would be nice to visit the bathroom before heading back for the hour and a half it will take to walk back to downtown. And ... we're met by a credit-card reader on the toilet. I kid you not. A credit-card reader! On the toilet!!!
I asked, incredulously, whether it is really the establishment's policy to charge already paying guests for a bathroom visit. (I could imagine putting out a credit-card reader to discourage or charge non-customers but giving customers some sort of free pass or code...pretty common in Sweden, also.) The answer from the gentleman at the register is a rather rude "yes". He was looking down his nose at me, too. The proprietor appears and explains, and this is where I just cannot believe what I am hearing... "we have the only publicly available toilet anywhere near here so we charge for it". Hey monopoly pricing in action, I guess???
As a result of the discussion, I actually lost any urge to go to the bathroom (I had considered using the bush in front of the establishment but wasn't even up for that), and continued on the walk. Thielska galleriet has a pay toilet as well, and someone was using it so I could sneak in for free after that person. I was going to jam the door lock on it but didn't have to, when I was done another person was already waiting to use it.
Full disclosure here: I am Swedish, grew up in Sweden, but have lived in the U.S. most of my life. When I bring people to visit Sweden, the pay toilets in public places are one of the things people really find strange. But I have to say, even in Sweden, this is the ONLY time I have ever seen a cafe with truly high-end prices put a credit-card reader on their bathroom. It's utterly ridiculous.
I simply cannot give an establishment that extorts paying guests for bathroom visits anything but 1 star. I hope to heck it is not indicative of some new pattern.
Not to mention... do you really want to discourage your guests from drinking and eating more of your expensive wares by charging for the disposal of the waste products? Have these guys taken leave of their senses?
