Jump to content

Copenhagen, Denmark


DanielK

Recommended Posts

I obviously have a lot of reading up to do, but I will be there for a weekend in mid-June following a work trip to Helsinki. What's one can't miss fine dining destination? Unfortunately, Noma just served its last meal at the old location and will be relocating later this year, so that's out. We will try to do one blow out dinner, and the others will be more reasonable.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What sources are you using to select restaurants?

I'm going for almost a week in July.  So far I've looked at the Michelin guide and picked out Kiin Kiin and Era Ora.  I need to find meself some Danish food - tasting menu preferred.

Oh, all these Michelin starred restaurants offer very expensive wine pairing.  I assume one can order wine by the glass? or maybe beer by the bottle?

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 3/31/2017 at 1:51 PM, Ericandblueboy said:

What sources are you using to select restaurants?

I'm going for almost a week in July.  So far I've looked at the Michelin guide and picked out Kiin Kiin and Era Ora.  I need to find meself some Danish food - tasting menu preferred.

Oh, all these Michelin starred restaurants offer very expensive wine pairing.  I assume one can order wine by the glass? or maybe beer by the bottle?

I want to reiterate my strong recommendation of Radio.  Really, really good food in a warm and friendly environment, and significantly cheaper than most of the other set menus in town.

Also, I want to put in a vote for a juice pairing at one of your meals.  I got the juice pairing at Noma, and by the end of the meal, everyone else at the communal table wished they had done the same thing.  Just interesting, unique, and delicious concoctions.  (I also got the juice pairing at Geranium, which was similarly delicious, so this isn't just a Noma-specific recommendation.)  And yeah, at the places I dined, you could definitely order wine by the glass if you were uninterested in the pairing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We just got back from a week in Copenhagen.  Not a gourmet trip since we were with the two kids (11 and 13).  Still,we had a nice date night meal out one night and other good meals.  We stayed at townhouse in Vesterbro, around the corner from Pony.  

The best meal we had was at BOB (BioMio Organic Bistro). This restaurant was in the Meat Packing District and had a special where if the table orders the same thing, the meal is around $300 DK per person.  The wife and I enjoyed the Norwegian Lobster (small up charge), the Danish beef, and a cheesecake in jar that tasted like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  The beef was excellent and as was the lobster, except for the cheese "crisp" was slightly burnt on mine.  This was not family style meal, each of us received individual courses, just the same.  The restaurant also great deal called Prison Food, which for 25 DK per person you got all the water (fizzy or still) and bread you wanted.  

On Monday night, the Danish National Aquarium is open til nine at night.  The cafeteria serves good food, supposedly by some Noma alums.  I had a decent fish and chips with vinegar powder and Danish remoulade, ie, sweetish tartar sauce (I would have preferred regular tartar sauce).  The wife enjoyed a the fish cakes, but I found them a little rubbery to my taste.  Another good evening meal we had was at Meyer's Deli.  The son and I had  giant hamburgers and the wife had  a minestrone that looked like a bowl of Pho and the daughter had a kid's lasagna.  We ate sandwiches at Joe & the Juice, a ubiquitous coffee, juice, sandwich shop after touring Rosenborg Slot and the Round Tower church.  It was perfectly acceptable, and the young guys serving us were really nice.  Lagkagehuset bakeries are everywhere, but really quite good, especially for the "snails."  We had smorrebrod at a stall on Paper Island.  it was great but the place was a zoo, think Reading Market in Philly.  A calmer food court was West Market, a few blocks from our house.

Other bits and observations:

Copenhagen is expensive, but the high end seems less so than the lower and middle end places.

Groceries ranked:  Fotex > Irma > Netto

The Copenhagen Card is a great way to tour the city, even things as far as Helsingor (Hamlet's Castle) are included.

Buses are more convenient than the Metro.

Ignacio

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And I just got back from 3 days there with a 7 year old so eating was on the fly. We stayed at the Axel Guldmesan hotel in Vesteboro - loved it.

 I did plan two meals - dinner at Mother (https://mother.dk/) with delicious pizzas and a lovely panna cotta for dessert.  The pizzas were a lot like Pupatella.

And had lunch at Nørrebro Bryghus and enjoyed a saison beer brewed on the premises.  Servers were amazingly nice to my son and even discounted his meal.  I had a salmon thing that was delicious.

One other meal of note was in Elsinore - lunch at the cafe associated with Kronborg Castle.  Only 3 items on the menu. Son had meatballs which were quite good.  I had the traditional Danish herring with capers.  Lovely.

Hit the Lagkagehuset bakery in the airport for a danish (yes, really) and a loaf of the traditional Danish bread, which I'm having for breakfast every day.  Wonder if I can buy it here . . . . might call the embassy to see.

Loved the city as a whole and walked everywhere.  It was a great trip.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 4/19/2017 at 3:52 PM, beachgirl54 said:

And I just got back from 3 days there with a 7 year old so eating was on the fly. We stayed at the Axel Guldmesan hotel in Vesteboro - loved it.

 I did plan two meals - dinner at Mother (https://mother.dk/) with delicious pizzas and a lovely panna cotta for dessert.  The pizzas were a lot like Pupatella.

And had lunch at Nørrebro Bryghus and enjoyed a saison beer brewed on the premises.  Servers were amazingly nice to my son and even discounted his meal.  I had a salmon thing that was delicious.

One other meal of note was in Elsinore - lunch at the cafe associated with Kronborg Castle.  Only 3 items on the menu. Son had meatballs which were quite good.  I had the traditional Danish herring with capers.  Lovely.

Hit the Lagkagehuset bakery in the airport for a danish (yes, really) and a loaf of the traditional Danish bread, which I'm having for breakfast every day.  Wonder if I can buy it here . . . . might call the embassy to see.

Loved the city as a whole and walked everywhere.  It was a great trip.

UPDATE on the bread - I emailed the embassy and they said "If you are close to an IKEA, I would suggest buying it there and bake it yourself. It is really good and you can add more seeds J Giant and specialty markets also usually carry pre-packaged bread – of course not as good as what you can get in Denmark.".

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I dressed casual and don't recall feeling out of place at all (though casual not in the American sense...ie, not tennis shoes and under armour shirts).

I seem to remember restaurant prices including service.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Copenhagen is really expensive.  Everything you buy includes a whopping 25% VAT, including meals.  And the fancy restaurants have the gall to ask you to tip more, even though service is included by law.  By fancy restaurants, I mean Geist, Era Ora, Kiin Kiin and 108 (the last 3 are Michelin 1 star joints).  Radio was the only restaurant that didn't have a tip line on the credit card receipt.  

I stayed at a hotel called The Square, right next to City Hall, and a block away from the main train station and Tivoli Gardens.  When I arrived it was 9 a.m.  To get a room immediately, I had to upgrade for 100 kr a night ($15), but that also gave me access to their lounge, which gave me free beer and cava!  I have to say that's not a bad deal.  Also, I was able to upgrade on SAS from premium economy to business class (one way) for $400 at the gate.  That's money well spent.

So I did a free walking tour on day 1.  Free tours are not really free, you're expected to tip, at about what you would pay for a normal tour.  In the U.S., that means you save the amount you would tip the guide.  In Denmark, you save nothing, since you don't tip generally.  After thinking, I figured out why these free tours exists - to cheat the government.  The guides are required to take a group photo at the end, and then pay the organizer on a per head basis.  You can find out more at http://blog.ricksteves.com/blog/the-ethics-of-aeoefreeae-tours/  What sucks is that these free tours attract a large crowd of nimrods.

I also got a Copenhagen card....the more days you get the cheaper it is on a per day basis, so I got a 5 day pass and I'm too lazy to figure out if it was worth it.

I took both the Canal Tours and Netto Boats (both included in the Copenhagen card).  The Canal Tours boats have better speakers (which let me understand what the guide is saying). 

I visited 2 markets, Torvehallerne and Copenhagen Street Food.  I think Copenhagen Street Food is a gimmicky shit show (crappy unauthentic food).  Torvehallerne is legit. I had a wonderful Bolivian empanada (better than anything I've had in the U.S.), a delicious duck confit sandwich, and a CHEAP seafood platter.  There's a seafood market (actually, there are 2, across from each other) with some really pristine looking seafood (see pic), so I asked if they can throw together a seafood platter for me.  They had something much bigger, but I was able to get a personal sized platter for only $15 (100 kr.).  It had crab claws, langoustines, crayfish, and shrimp (see pic).  There's a seafood shop selling prepared seafood salads - not good (see pic).  

So for the fancy meals, the best was Kiin Kiin.  It's best described as northern Thai done Komi style.  Very playful food with familiar flavors (If you've been to Little Serow and BGIII, you'll know and love these flavors).  For example, one dish came with cotton candy but once the other components are poured over it, the sauce was superbly balanced (see pics).  I also liked Era Ora (but not their super expensive wine list or 3 hr long meal).  I thought the food was good at Radio, Geist and 108 (well executed, but nothing overly exciting).  I don't think any restaurant had a dress code, but people dressed up more at Kiin Kiin and Era Ora (I had a jacket and khakis).  

As for the sights, they do Hamlet Live inside Kronborg castle.  It's part of admission, and if you have 3 hrs to spare, you can watch the entire play unfold throughout the castle.  

I brought my bike.  Copenhagen is very biker friendly but one should know the rules.  The most important rule is, when taking a left turn, you should cross one street and then wait for the light to cross another street, like a pedestrian would.  I saw many Americans ride on the road as if they're driving and then turning like a car would.  You could get a ticket in Copenhagen for jaywalking and riding like a jackass.

I went to Tivoli Gardens on several nights.  Didn't ride any rides, just walked around and drank.  I tried 3 falafels (two inside Tivoli Gardens and one at Copenhagen Street Food) and they all sucked. 

 

IMG_0677.JPG

IMG_0704.JPG

IMG_0705.JPG

IMG_0758.JPG

IMG_0760.JPG

IMG_0761.JPG

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

19 hours ago, Ericandblueboy said:

Copenhagen is really expensive.  Everything you buy includes a whopping 25% VAT, including meals.  And the fancy restaurants have the gall to ask you to tip more, even though service is included by law.  By fancy restaurants, I mean Geist, Era Ora, Kiin Kiin and 108 (the last 3 are Michelin 1 star joints).  Radio was the only restaurant that didn't have a tip line on the credit card receipt.

all these things are so relative, given expectations and experience.  in general i think of copenhagen's higher end dining scene as being reasonably priced for how good it is (especially compared with other european cities); noma could jack up their price significantly (although hopefully they won't when they reopen) and still be booked solid and cheaper than a lot of french restaurants.  (to be clear: i'm not saying copenhagen isn't expensive, just that its best places are relatively reasonably priced compared to peer restaurants in other countries.)  but era ora was one of the most disappointing meals of our trip last summer, and very expensive for what it is (perfectly fine but not notable italian food).  geist's best quality is that it's serviceable and open on sundays, when most nicer places are closed.  we couldn't fit kiin kiin in on our last trip, due to time constraints and traveling with a picky vegetarian (who quite liked era ora), but sounds like we would have enjoyed it more than geist or era ora.  

19 hours ago, Ericandblueboy said:

Torvehallerne is legit.

indeed.  hija de sanchez serves excellent tacos and the best paletas (popsicles) i've ever had.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just got back from a 5 day food and wine binge in Copenhagen . Pics are on Instagram including specifics on wine. 

Higher End:

Noma: This was our 6th Noma meal (1 in the old space, 3 pop-ups, 1 Justin Timberlake party) but the first in their new space. The new space is stunning. The all vegetable meal was exquisite, and may well have been our favorite of all of our past meals. We didn't miss the meat or seafood.  I'm aware that having been so many times we get a little extra attention, but the choreography of their meals is something to behold. Wine pairing was catered to our tastes and included our favorite white Tschida. 

Amass: Very fun meal - really enjoyed their roast chicken 3 ways that included a chicken salad made of offal. Slow cooked tongue was also delicious. We ended up going back the next afternoon for their 5th birthday party where they were serving hot fried chicken on croissants. 

Restaurant Barr: Least favorite meal in CPH. We had basically their entire menu. Their mains are much better than the starters - schnitzel and roast chicken are excellent as was the smoked mackerel. 

108: A visually stunning tasting menu. Very vegetable forward, fresh local ingredients. Excellent natural wine list. Second favorite meal after Noma. Stylistically very similar. 

Palaegade: Famous smorrebrod. Definitely get the shrimp.

Relae: This was our second trip to Relae. Their summer menu is not as enjoyable as the one we had in winter. Note their Prevost champagne is very well priced.

Casual:

Gasoline Grill: They make a seriously excellent burger and fries. We preferred the cheese burger over the butter burger.

DOP - Den Okologiske polsemand: Best hot dogs we have ever had. The whole wheat buns add real heft. Snappy casings and interesting toppings. 

The Corner at 108 - We ended up having breakfast there with Rene Redzepi who had also stopped in for an espresso on his way to the office. Pastries are excellent as is the Tim Wendelboe coffee. My favorite meal item was the coddled egg with caviar. We also went back to buy wine to sit and sip while dangling our feet in the river. They have an excellent selection of high end natural wines.

Hija de Sanchez - People go nuts over these $8 tacos. But we felt that it was good but not excellent in comparison to the quality of tacos we can get in the US. The cocktails on tap are so fun.

10 Ved Stranden - Our favorite wine bar anywhere on planet earth. We made it a daily stop. They have an excellent natural wine selection and serve really delicious food as well. Lovely setting with outdoor seating. 

Alice, CPH - Excellent ice cream. Homemade cones. Try the raspberry and pistachio. 

Coffee Collective - Famous CPH coffee. Their coffee softserve affogato is the thing of dreams. They also make kombucha now, which is very refreshing on a hot day.

Den Vendrette - another well known natural wine bar. We weren't super impressed. 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On a flight back from Copenhagen right now - business trip with little free time.  We ate dinner at Restaurant Palægade which was excellent. We sat outside on a lovely evening and the server was funny and engaging and provided excellent service.  My dining companion ordered a quail dish that was just slightly too salty - and we reported it to the waiter.  We were not at all critical - "the quail was delicious but just a tad too much salt was used" and they totally unnecessarily took it off the bill.  Wonderful people, great meal.

  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 7/9/2017 at 6:08 PM, Ericandblueboy said:

I went to Tivoli Gardens on several nights.  Didn't ride any rides, just walked around and drank. 

Tivoli Gardens, btw, opened in 1843: It's the second-oldest operating amusement park in the world (Dyrehavsbakken is the oldest - it opened in 1583).

They are the most-popular and second-most-popular tourist attractions in Denmark, respectively.

1583!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

my wife and I were in copenhagen for a few days as part of a broader northern european vacation.  we've been before and love it, but this time our driving purpose was dinner at noma.  who am I to add to the vast amounts of attention given to that restaurant?  I'll just say that we had a very enjoyable time, the food was always beautiful, usually interesting, sometimes challenging, and, above all, delicious (even the mold courses).  while I'm never going to visit during the game season or the seafood season, I don't feel that going during vegetable season is any less worthwhile--we spoke to a couple who've been four times, during all seasons, and they said vegetable season is their favorite.

while in town, we also had dinner at baest which was really good.  get a reservation if you can--it seemed not too amenable to walkups, even on a tuesday night.  

we had wonderful breakfasts and lunches at the torvehallerne food hall.

once I figure out in which thread to post for helsinki and tallinn, I'll pass along some info from those cities. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...