Copenhagen, Denmark

Small enough to see in one day, big enough to keep you busy discovering for years. Copenhagen is a sophisticated city known for good design, world class food, and an enviously happy population. Bikes reign supreme in this eco-minded country, making it easy to go anywhere, efficiently and cheaply. Copenhagen has been on the radar of every Chef for the last several years. The Nordic food revolution has influenced the world with its penchant for show casing the wild flavors of fermentation, clean and bright high acid flavors, and foraging for seasonal ingredients. What you find in this complex food mecca is curated restaurants, the world’s greatest beef tartare, abundant biodynamic wine shops, smorrebrod topped with herring, dark seeded bread with salted butter, tiny hand peeled shrimps, and lingonberry jam. Bonus, in the middle of the city is a quaint amusement park, Tivoli, home to Europe’s oldest wooden roller coaster and home to restaurant Groften, where the rye schnapps is a life changer. Beware, this city will leave you dreaming of giving it all up and moving to Scandinavia indefinitely.

Where to Eat: 

Torvehallerne- Food Hall

Jet-lagged and hungry, a good first stop is Torvehallerne. Offering food stalls, specialty groceries, coffee, and wine shops this Nordic food mecca focuses on offering quality ingredients and a casual gathering point in the center of the city. 

Reffen- Street Food hall

Offering 41 food and drink stalls, this popular gathering place is perfect for grazing and enjoying a casual array of tasty bites while enjoying the energy of Copenhagen. On a summer day, this place is buzzing with communal tables. Great place to relax, eat, and plan your next adventure.

Amass

Reflecting the Nordic standards that have come to define the top restaurants of the region, Chef Matt Orlando (a Noma alumni), showcases the seasonal ingredients of the region with food that is technical and elegant, but it never feels fussy. Lacking Michelin stars (but certainly deserving them), Amass is in an unassuming location that features a sleek interior and a small garden that supplies their kitchen with edible greens. If you have one meal to splurge on, put Amass on the top of your list.

Manfred’s

Vegetable lovers, rejoice! Copenhagen offers many opportunities for travelers to get their well rounded eating on. Manfred’s is casual, fun, offers locally sourced produce, natural wine, and the world’s greatest beef tartare (ground to order beef topped with rye breadcrumbs, egg cream, watercress, and olive oil). Small plates to be shared in a convivial setting, this is a great spot for everyone.

Relae

Manfred’s big brother, Relae, is located just across the street in this Norrebro neighborhood. Chef Christian Pulgesi’s restaurant empire started with this small, modern restaurant that helped define the Copenhagen food scene. Technique driven, avantgarde, and sustainable, you can choose between a 4 course or 7 course tasting menu. 

Restaurant Groften (Tivoli)

Groften is how I image the food of Copenhagen long before the Nordic food revolution began. This large restaurant located in Tivoli can be easy to overlook (especially if you have been douped by American standard amusement park fare). But, as it goes in Copenhagen, the food is outstanding. Traditional hand peeled shrimps on buttered bread, caviar, buttered potatoes with a side of lingonberry jam. And the schnaps list boasts infused flavors of rye or horseradish. I recommend ordering both!

Mother- Pizza

Yes, it’s great pizza. But you come to Mother for the joy of eating in Kodbyen. What used to be the industrial meat packing district in Vesterbro, is an area now teaming with restaurants and bars frequented by locals and travelers alike. This place is slammed! Put your name on the list and hang out. Mother offers seats indoors and out so it’s a great spot to grab a casual meal on a summer night when the sun doesn’t set until 10:30. It’s a place where its easy to feel like a local. 

DOP- Hot Dogs

Food in Copenhagen is not cheap, but lucky for us, delicious inexpensive options are available. Copenhagen is ingredient obsessed, which I happily delight in seeing translated into organic hot dogs! DOP stands can be spotted throughout the city. I like the veggi-dog with pickles, mustard, and fried onions.

Granola

Need Breakfast? A late lunch? Snacks with a glass of wine after walking all afternoon? Granola is the travelers dream spot. A small, bistro style restaurant with large windows that open to the street this is a perfect spot to sit and observe the Nordic life. 

Aamann’s Deli

Smorrebrod is a small Scandinavian open face sandwich that is a beloved cultural ritual. At Aamann’s you are treated to a Chef’s approach. Served on house made rye bread variations include smoked mackerel with spring onions, asparagus with lovage and cottage cheese, or braised pork with rhubarb and cardamom. These smorrebrod are just two or three bites, so get as many as your heart desires.

Where I want to go if I can ever get a reservation: 

Noma

Where I want to eat because I sadly missed it the first time around:

Baest

One thing you must do:

Rent a bike for a day and ride around the city

One more thing you must do:

Ride Rutsjebanen, one of the oldest wooden roller coasters in the world located at Tivoli.