OP: Oaxen Adieu

Oaxen Krog, 2011. Hardcover. Very Good Plus. First printing.

There can be nothing easy about committing to a fine dining, hyperlocal menu on a tiny island just off the southern coast of Sweden. But that indeed was the original concept for Oaxen Skärgårdskrog, or Oaxen Krog for short, the ambitious dream made reality by Magnus Ek and Agneta Green.

For 17 years (1994–2011), the couple actualized their vision on this foreboding, rocky isle whose primary worth was to the limestone industry for more than a century. During the island’s rehabilitation period, when Oaxen emerged, Ek and Green saw new potential in the naturally growing wild flora, the fish and sea vegetables in the surrounding waters, and even in the cooking power of the clay and limestone earth.

Some of the inventive dishes they produced include:

• Clay-baked celery with artichoke puree, finished with lumpfish roe and potato chips
• Langoustine tails roasted on juniper twigs and rock, served with mashed chickpeas, onions, and cilantro
• Warm duck liver parfait in a mushroom consomme, topped with truffle foam and served with a celeriac salad and black pepper biscuits
• Baby lamb with fried blood and a sweetbread terrine, roasted parsnips, puy lentils, and raisins

After a long commitment to the cause, the restrictiveness of seasonality and hyperlocality in a harsh environment became more inhibitive than inspirational, so the restaurant, as it was, closed, and Ek and Green published this small (8.25” x 6.25”) souvenir, a goodbye to something that had run its course.

Oaxen Adieu (2011) was published bilingually in Swedish and English and is heavily illustrated with photographs of the food, the staff, the luxurious boat-hotel where guests might lodge, and the scenery, including several pullout panoramic shots. Besides recipes, the text offers a great deal on the island’s history and on its native flora and fauna.

Our copy is in excellent condition, save for some discoloration to the textured white paper boards and a heavy crease to the title page. An excellent souvenir for anyone who dined at Oaxen or for anyone who dreams big. A scarce first and only printing.