I recently went on an amazing five day trip to the beautiful city of Copenhagen. I had a great time in one of the most relaxed, safe and interesting cities I’ve been to in Europe. Copenhagen is often coined the cool kid on the block when it comes to all things scandi, and my experience of the city certainly didn’t contradict this label. The residents are stylish and beautiful and the atmosphere is wonderfully laid back in a way that only increases the city’s attractiveness. As always, I scouted out far too many places that I wanted to eat during our trip, and set off with high hopes but no intention of visiting them all. Much to my disappointment one of the missed venues was Ida Davidson’s restaurant, serving traditional smorrebrod (open sandwiches) inspired by celebrities and set out on a meter long menu. My instinct says that this place is perhaps better preserved as an urban myth rather than actually experienced!
Flottenhimer
We came across this place after a long day of exploring the city, the cosy interior seemed inviting to our tired feet and the menu boasts a good selection of vegetarian options. We were seated straight away and served handmade lemonade and Tuborg, danish brewed beer.
I ordered the spinach and feta quesadilla and after a slight mix up with a chicken version, it tasted delicious. The sides were also surprisingly good, I particularly enjoyed the crunchy salad, as usually these elements aren’t given much thought. Overall, really good gastro-pub style food in a cosy yet elegant setting.
This being our first meal out in Copenhagen, we hadn’t quite figured out the paying/tip situation that can make for awkward dining out. The receipts generally seem to include a sort of ambiguous ‘tax’ that is around 20%. We quickly discovered that money isn’t exactly counted and what appears to be random amounts of change is returned to you after paying the bill. So I would recommend not to worry too much about tips and VAT and just put in what appears to be the right money and hope for the best! All in the name of trial and error. Of course for the more stingy or simply in case of bad service, you can omit the tax charge, as we discovered at our next restaurant.
Cock’s and Cows
Our next place on the menu (ha ha) was Cock’s and Cows. The website for this restaurant looks really inviting, so I made this place a must-eat from the moment we touched down. When we arrived there was a queue of customers waiting to be seated, a slight put off. However we were taken down to the bar for a drink, Tuborg of course, and seated within 20 minutes. The restaurant was busy, almost to an uneasy vibe, but the food that followed was well worth it.
I went for the Tree Hugger burger, made from courgette, in a sesame bun. We shared a selection of curly and salted fries on the side also, when they finally arrived (service was very busy) they were absolutely delicious. Hands down one of the best burgers I’ve had. The fries were also generously portioned and really tasty. Definitely one of my favourite meals the city had to offer. The bill took quite some time to come, service letting the place down slightly, but we ended up not having to pay the tax/service charge as the waiter gave us this back despite us paying, so there were no real problems with our experience.
Mother
]
Mother is situated in Copenhagen’s old meatpacking district, which looks a little uninspiring but it helps to imagine it as Copenhagen’s Shoreditch. The area is busy with restaurant goers and I would have loved to eat out there more, as there were several great looking places including Tommi’s Burger Joint (which I believe has a restaurant in London) and BioMio. We again had to wait for a table for about 20 minutes, but as always helped ourselves to some Tuborg during the wait.
The pizza that followed the wait was amazing. I have never had such good pizza, a beautiful sourdough base, rich tomato sauce and plenty of mozzarella cheese! Really delicious, I would recommend thoroughly. Perfect sizes, and wonderful when it’s a rainy evening and you’re tired from wandering around this amazing city. The staff were really friendly and efficient, can’t really fault this place, I can only say it would have been better in the sunshine!
Papiroen
Papiroen or paper island is set on an island accessible from bridges near the bottom end of Nyhavn. Although quite a long way out from the city center, this place is worth it in my opinion. A cross between a food hall, street market and vintage clothes shop, Papiroen is one of the most interesting foodie destinations in Copenhagen. Take time to explore the whole place, there’s a lot on offer! From surf and turf burgers to juice to cheesecake, fish and chips and Korean BBQ.
The fish and chips chosen by Anni looked really lovely, decorated with fresh vegetables and dill. I tried some of the chips and dill sauce, both were really delicious and not too badly priced either. I went for the Columbian vegetarian food stall, as did Tammy, for their mushroom veggie burger and tradition red bean stew with rice, fried plantains, guacamole, salsa and a fried egg. My meal was really tasty, I enjoyed all elements and was especially surprised by the crispness of plantains. However I would have enjoyed slightly more salsa on the side!
I would recommend this place, however I would have loved to come multiple times during the trip to try more of the food, so maybe if you do visit, perhaps a trip at the start and one at the end is the best way to experience papiroen!
Eating in
My main tip for eating in would be to visit Irma! Supermarket prices in the city are quite high, so expect some considerable variation between each shop. Our favourite during our stay was Irma, it had the biggest range of ingredients and a wonderful selection of bread (definitely a must try) and I would have loved to buy more ingredients there to cook with over a longer period of time. The best way, we discovered, to save money on lunches was to buy some of Irma’s delicious bread and have with cheese (there is a large selection), crisps (lays of course!) and whatever else takes your fancy. These components last a few days and make for perfect picnic lunches. This is a really great way to make Copenhagen more affordable!
I had an amazing time in this city, I will be returning one day, but it’s farewell for now to Copenhagen!
Louella's Kitchen 
Leave a comment