Wedemarks - where the sandwich cake was born and love was born

There are cafés, and then there are institutions. Wedemark's pastry shop on Prästgatan in Östersund is definitely the latter. It has been rolling dough, whipping cream and building cakes with surgical precision since 1924. Behind it all were pastry chef Artur Wedemark and his wife Ninni, who may not have known they were going to write Swedish pastry history - but did it anyway.

Right from the start, Wedemarks became a kind of sugary living room for the people of Östersund. In the 60s, what makes every food nerd raise their eyebrows happened: the sandwich cake was invented. Yes, that's right. That massive creation with layers upon layers of bread, fillings and decorations that look like a smorgasbord gone mad - it's said to have seen the light of day here. As if that wasn't enough, the Jamaica cake was also born in the same place - a fluffy, rum-flavored cream story that sends a rocket of nostalgia through the taste buds of every Östersund resident.

Over the decades, 'Wedan', as the regulars call it, has kept its style. The interior still whispers 50s and there are rumors that time passes a little slower inside than outside - a kind of coffee shop Bermuda Triangle. Here, several generations have drunk coffee, solved crosswords and possibly started dating. One anecdote tells of a couple who literally bumped into each other in the doorway in 1974, fell head over heels - and 50 years later celebrated their golden wedding during the pastry shop's 100th anniversary.

Today, Wedemarks continues to be run with the same hand-rolled soul as always. Everything is baked in-house, from scratch and with ingredients that actually taste like something. As well as the classics - hello again, Jamaica cake and Black Forest - you can also have lunch or try their homemade Italian gelato. Especially in the summer, when half the city seems to be sitting on the patio with ice cream in one hand and a friend in the other.

Wedemarks is not just a pastry shop. It is a local memory in constant present time. A place where people meet, dream, celebrate and - apparently - sometimes find their life partner over a piece of cake.

So next time you pass Prästgatan - don't walk past. Go inside. Order a piece of history. Maybe some love too.

Photos provided by Föreningen Gamla Östersund

Wedemark's pastry shop was founded in 1924 by Artur and Ninni Wedemark and has been located on Prästgatan in Östersund ever since. During the 1960s, both the sandwich cake and the Jamaica cake are said to have been launched here. The pastry shop has retained its original interior and is a well-known meeting place in the city. Today, the business is run in the same premises with its own bakery and cold counter, and offers classic pastries, lunch dishes and homemade Italian ice cream in the summer.