Manso Nordic Cafe got me thinking about how the Swedes are importing garbage because they are recycling 99% of their trash. Normally I think most of our evolution happened millions of years ago (walking erect, using fire and whatnot) then we plateaued – the exception I find is Nordic countries. Nations of self-improvers bent on respecting and bettering their environment.
It turns out that Norway, Denmark and Sweden rank in the top 10 happiest countries. All this despite getting as little as 3 hours of daylight in the winter.
In Sant Antoni you can get your Scandinavian fix. You start with a coffee, they use Nomad beans. Followed by a tight knot of sweet yeasted bread, redolent of cinnamon and studded with opaque sugar crumbs. The trick is to tease the knot apart, being careful not to lose too much sugar. Every now and then, there will be a kick of cardamom. When it’s over, you lick you finger and seek out the sugar that made it off the bun.
Then you sit back and ponder how the Scandis seem to know more than you do.
And then you go back and order another cinnamon roll. Or a slice of homemade cake. Or a sandwich. Because Cafe Manso is such an agreeable place, it seems a pity to rush back out into the real world.
Manso Nordic Cafe
Carrer de Manso, 1
08015 Sant Antoni
www.facebook.com/mansoscafe
See More on my Best Eats Page
Hello! My name is Suzy. This blog is about discovering Barcelona through its eateries. I take it one restaurant or shop at a time and post on the blog once a week. I vary where I eat to have a have a mix of high and low end places. My goal is to find the special places, the ones worth seeking out and show and tell you all about them. 
Way up north in Sweden and Norway there’s no daylight at all for ~1 month, but at the same time the sun doesn’t go down during summer…!