COPENHAGEN DINING

By the time the ESCRS meets in Copenhagen in September, Noma, in partnership with chef Kristian Baumann, will have opened a new, more casual restaurant simply called 108 (that’s its address on Strandgade).
 “In preparation, we’ve started collaborations with various farmers, and salted, pickled, and preserved all the delicious berries, plants, and flowers that nature has to offer,” Baumann said. Reserve at: www.108.dk, or take your chances for a seat at a ‘walk in’ table. 
Noma holds two Michelin stars and still tops the must-try list of many gourmets. Each month this 40-seat restaurant receives some 20,000 reservation requests. Go online three months in advance to try your luck at booking: noma.dk. Choosing the option of a ‘shared table’ improves your chances. Noma will serve its last meal in the present location at 93 Standgade on New Year’s Eve 2016, after which it will reopen on its own vegetable farm in the Christiana area. 

INSPIRED BY NATURE
This year, restaurant Geranium was awarded its third Michelin star, the first of only two Scandinavian restaurants to achieve this distinction (the other is in Sweden). Rasmus Kofoed, the multi-award-winning chef, presents a set meal of 20 tiny courses ‘inspired by nature’. The restaurant is on the eighth floor of a building at the edge of a park, and the views are also inspired. Bookings are open three months in advance at: geranium.dk

ON THE WATERFRONT
On Copenhagen’s waterfront, The Standard, once a customs building, houses three restaurants: Studio and Almanak on the ground floor, and Verandah, a pan-Indian restaurant, upstairs. Only four months after opening in 2013, Studio was awarded a Michelin star, the first among many distinctions. 
Chef Torsten Vildgaard, who worked at Noma’s test kitchen for eight years, has introduced Japanese and French elements to his Nordic-based creations. Open: Tuesday and Wednesday, 19.00-24.00; Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 12.00-15.00 and 19.00-24.00. Closed on Sunday and Monday. 
Retour-Steak is the place for a simple steak perfectly presented. Lobster is also on the menu. It’s best to book at this popular dinner-only restaurant at Trommeasalen 5, about a 15-minute drive from the Bella Center. Website: www.retoursteak.dk

3 TO NOTE

Copenhagen’s famous hot dog stands – 'pølsevogne', literally meaning ‘sausage wagon’ – first appeared on the street in the early 1900s. A cross between a cart and a mobile kitchen, you’ll find them on busy corners in squares, in parks. Try the classic ristet hot dog med det hele - that’s a grilled sausage in a hot dog bun, topped with ketchup, mustard, sweet pickled sauce, fresh and roasted onions, and pickled cucumbers. The bright red hot dogs are called 'rødpølser'. Once they were dipped in red dye to make them look fresh, now the red dye is just tradition. These come with a small bun and a dab of mustard on a paper plate. For the full effect, order a chocolate milk drink, a ‘cocio’, to go with your hot dog.

Torvehallerne is a food market that seems to have caught Copenhagen’s imagination. Since opening in 2011, it has become one of the city’s top spots for shopping, snacking, meeting friends, people watching or even just sitting in the sun enjoying a picnic at an outdoor table. Over 60 stands are set out in a pair of glass-walled buildings - inside you’ll find flowers,chocolates, exotic spices, sushi, pastries, coffee and much else including several takeaway restaurants. One side of Torvehallerne fronts on to Israels Plads, where a huge pink stone from the Holy Land stands. It is a gift from 'friends of Denmark in Israel’, and bears the inscription 'Night fell and morning came’. It is located on Frederiksborggade 21. Open: 10.00-20.00 daily.

In the mood for Smørrebrød? Well there’s an app for that! ‘Smorresbrod in Copenhagen’ will guide you to the nearest table when the mood for one of Denmark's famous super sandwiches overcomes you. It lists 12 smørrebrød restaurants in the city, including Schønnemann’s, which is said to be where chef René Redzepi of Noma fame likes to lunch. Or combine a look at colourful Nyhavn with a meal at Cap Horn. An historic restaurant with 19th century decor, it is touristic but welcoming. The Smørrebrød app also offers a dictionary of terms and a section on ‘cold table’ etiquette. The app is free from iTunes.