What makes Strandhugget’s breakfast so popular?

“The best breakfast in the archipelago.”
“The best breakfast in Finland.”
“The best breakfast in the world.”
“The second-best breakfast in Finland after Hotel St. George.”

These are some of the comments our guests have left in our guestbook and in various reviews. Our breakfast and the location of our guesthouse are also among the things our guests praise us for most.

Here at Strandhugget, the sea is always close, the restaurant and other services are within easy reach, and the ferry pier is just a short walk away. In Sottunga, it is easy to get around without a car.

The breakfast was created before our first guests arrived

We started planning Strandhugget’s breakfast as early as autumn 2022, about nine months before our first guests arrived. From the very beginning, we knew we wanted to use as many local ingredients as possible.

We are lucky in that respect here in Åland. We have our own dairy, a local slaughterhouse and meat producers, as well as plenty of other local food production.

We also drew inspiration from our own travels. We thought about what makes a breakfast something you still remember long after the trip is over.

1. Coffee, tea and service

We like people and appreciate good service. For us, having coffee or tea served at the table also creates an opportunity for a little chat with the staff.

That is why we decided that coffee and tea at Strandhugget should also be served at the table.

2. Bread is the king of the breakfast table

In our opinion, there is no truly good breakfast without good, tasty bread.

At first, we had several different kinds of bread on the table, but one quickly became the clear favourite: a roll based on Sikke Sumari’s recipe, which we bake fresh every morning.

The bread has become so popular that many returning guests ask about it first thing.

“You must never remove this bread.”

That is a promise we have decided to keep.

3. Porridge and Sottunga apple jam

Tea likes porridge, and for us, good porridge is an important part of a good breakfast.

Our porridge is made with unsteamed oat flakes from Överängskvarn. The secret is soaking the oats overnight in the refrigerator.

We serve the porridge with homemade apple jam or apple jam made by our neighbours here in Sottunga. The taste is a little different from the jams you find in shops – in a good way.

Depending on the season, we also add berries from the surrounding archipelago: wild strawberries, blueberries and wild raspberries. Sören enjoys picking berries, so naturally, we have to give him the opportunity to do so.

4. An egg exactly the way you like it

The only hot food at breakfast is a fried egg, apart from coffee and tea.

We have slightly different preferences when it comes to eggs. Tea likes hers more well done, while Henry prefers his runny. So we decided to let our guests choose.

The egg is fried to order, exactly the way the guest wants it.

This is something our guests have really appreciated.

5. Åland apple juice

We believe good, high-quality juice is an essential part of breakfast. Poor-quality juice simply does not belong on our breakfast table.

In our opinion, the best option in Åland is local, freshly pressed apple juice. At Strandhugget, we serve Karl Ehrs apple juice.

We especially like the fact that every batch is slightly different – the colour and flavour vary – but the juice is always delicious.

6. One really good cheese and one really good ham

We have always wondered about the enormous selection of different cold cuts and cheeses at hotel breakfasts. Isn't one really good option enough?

We serve Ålands Special Ost. Every morning, we slice the cheese ourselves from a large cheese wheel.

In our opinion, it is the best breakfast cheese in the world. At least, we haven't found a better one – and even if we did, we might not change it.

For ham, we serve Dahlmans Basturökt ham. We buy the ham in large pieces from the shop in Sottunga, and our staff slices it thinly for us.

Pre-sliced ham would of course be easier, but we think this ham tastes better this way.

7. A sweet ending

Tea is a passionate and talented home baker. In the early 2020s, she also tried her hand at working part-time as a baker through her small home bakery, Tean Kakku ja Pulla.

So it was only natural that Strandhugget’s breakfast should include something sweet as well.

A small piece of cake at the end of breakfast is, in our opinion, just the kind of little touch of island luxury that makes the whole experience special.

Welcome to breakfast in Sottunga

Strandhugget’s breakfast was not created around one big idea, but from many small things that we ourselves enjoy.

Local ingredients, fresh bread, overnight-soaked porridge, berries picked from the surrounding nature, good apple juice, eggs prepared exactly the way you like them and a small piece of cake baked by Tea.

Welcome to Sottunga as our guest, to enjoy the nature of the archipelago – and, of course, breakfast.