Over the past 40 years, with 1.4 billion food balls sold a year, the meatball has cemented itself as an IKEA classic, the round shape as synonymous with the IKEA design culture as the flat-packed furniture.
This year marks 40 years since IKEA’s meatball was released, introducing a taste of Swedish food culture around the world. The meatball quickly became, and remains today, IKEA’s signature dish worldwide. Throughout the decades, the traditional Swedish meatball evolved into different iterations, from the chicken ball to the plant ball. To celebrate the meatball’s 40-year milestone, IKEA will introduce its latest food ball: the falafel.
“We sell flatpack furniture and round shaped food!” laughs Daniel Yngvesson, Global Food Designer at IKEA. “Following the many different meatball variations introduced over the years, once we started testing recipes, we felt the falafel would be the perfect addition to the menu. The falafel has become a staple in Swedish food culture over the years, and the aromatic and nutty flavour is a beloved favorite all over the world. It’s also an exciting new flavour profile for IKEA.”
A brief history of IKEA Food
IKEA first ventured into food in 1960, opening its first in-store restaurant in Älmhult, Sweden. Founder Ingvar Kamprad understood that well-fed customers were happier shoppers. In 1985, Ingvar invited Swedish chef Severin Sjöstedt to come onboard and develop a meatball recipe that would be sold globally. After 10 months of dedicated testing, the final recipe was achieved – the recipe still used today with only minor tweaks made throughout its 40 years.
“Ingvar had a knack for knowing what would resonate with the IKEA customers and introducing a classic Swedish meatball was his big idea,” remembers Severin. “I came from high-end restaurants before IKEA, and the idea of finding one recipe that would appeal to the many and stand the test of time was an exciting challenge. We must have tested one hundred recipes before we declared this one the winner. It’s still the recipe I use when making meatballs at home for my grandchildren.”
By the 1990s, IKEA restaurants were expanding globally, offering affordable Swedish classics adapted to local tastes. In 2006, the Swedish Food Market introduced take-home frozen meatballs, sauces, and other Scandinavian favorites, allowing people to create a Swedish meal in their own home.
In 2015, IKEA launched its first alternative to the red meat meatball in the form of the chicken ball, and later that same year, the vegetable ball. Over the years, IKEA tested and served different recipes, including moose and salmon, innovating on the round food concept.
The plant-based “HUVUDROLL” food ball, designed to replicate the original flavour of the original meatball, launched in 2020.
Center Stage: A New Way to Serve Meatballs
To commemorate the tasty icon, IKEA and Swedish designer Gustaf Westman launched a porcelain plate that offers a new way of serving the meatball. As part of the playful perspective that characterises the new IKEA collaboration with Stockholm designer Gustaf Westman, the new serving plate was developed to make preparing and enjoying meatballs more fun and eye catching. The plate is tailored to fit the perfectly sized meatball, allowing 11 meatballs to be arranged in a neat row. Gustaf, known for tableware that showcases food in unusual and often humorous ways, pays homage to the Swedish meatball by making it a focal point on any dinner table.
Round Food Keeps Rolling: The Falafel
The falafel will be the newest addition to IKEA’s round-food offering. The ball, crispy on the outside with a tender inside of chickpeas, zucchini, onions, and spices, will first be introduced at IKEA restaurants, plated with couscous, aioli, and a slice of lemon.
The new offer will support IKEA’s continued efforts to feature more plant-based options on the menu, in the hopes of inspiring people to choose more dishes and products centred around plant-rich food. Using chickpeas as the star ingredient ensures that the dish is affordable and can be enjoyed by many more people, an approach that reflects IKEA’s belief that eating should be inclusive, rather than restrictive.
The falafel will have a staggered rollout throughout the next six months in different markets.
Serving over 710 million guests annually in 473 restaurants in 63 markets, IKEA is one of largest restaurant operators in the world.
About IKEA
IKEA offers well-designed, functional and affordable, high-quality home furnishing, produced with care for people and the environment. There are several companies with different owners working under the IKEA Brand, all sharing the same vision: to create a better everyday life for many people. IKEA was founded in Sweden in 1943.
