Copenhagen Food
Eating out in Copenhagen is always a pleasure and the Danes tend to take their food very seriously. They often spend a long time over meals and the standard of food is usually extremely high.
Copenhagen plays host to around 2,000 restaurants, cafes and bars, as well as a number of smaller snack bars that are dotted on street corners. Eateries in the Danish capital cater for all tastes, ethnicities and pockets and as well as many cheaper places to eat there are also several Michelin-starred restaurants.
Popular areas to eat out in Copenhagen include the shopping district of Stroget and the Latin Quarter, the area around Nyhavn and the amusement park Tivoli. However, visitors are warned that they will pay for the privilege of dining in the park and prices are always higher. Many of the restaurants in Copenhagen can also be located around Radhuspladsen, the Town Hall, which is near the station.
In addition to the usual a la carte menu or spisekort, most restaurants offer a special dish of the day, dagens ret, or a daily menu, daglig kort, which is usually the cheapest option.
In general, the Danes prefer not to eat too late in the evening so it is advisable to be at a restaurant before 10pm. Diners are also encouraged to book ahead as some restaurants in the centre of town tend to get booked up fairly quickly. The service charge is typically included on the bill so tipping is not 'the done thing'.
Although there is a wide and varied collection of restaurants and snack bars in Copenhagen, nothing epitomises Danish food more than Smorrebrod, commonly known as open sandwiches. These are extremely cheap but two or three of them can make a filling meal that will cost less than £5. Smorrebrod range from very basic fare to elaborately sculptured masterpieces.
Copenhagen is famous for its tasty snacks and the city is full of hot dog stands, chicken and fish grills and bakeries. Hot dog stands around the Radhuspladsen offer polser, which are steamed or grilled hot dogs, with shredded onions and chips. Bageris or konditeris can be found on practically every street in Copenhagen. They offer fresh bread, rolls and of course, Danish pastries.
Cafe culture is extremely popular in Denmark and especially in Copenhagen, where, if the weather is good enough, visitors and locals line the cafe-filled streets and watch the world go by. One of the most popular spots in the city for this is Christianshavn Badudlejnin cafe, which is an informal open-air cafe located right on the Christianshavn canal.
Viktualiehandler are small food shops that can be found throughout Copenhagen and sell a vast array of interesting Danish specialities including smoked fish. Ask for Bornholmer, which is a boneless sardine from the Danish island of Bornholm. Other cheap delicacies include smoked cheese, rogost, cottage cheese, hytte ret, and yoghurt, which the Danes drink straight out of the pot.
Like many places in Europe, beer is the chosen tipple and Carlsberg is usually cheap as it is brewed in Denmark, although in some of the more traditional pubs, a variety of beers can be purchased at good rates. Other popular drinks include eggnog and sweet-flavoured liqueurs such as cherry.
Copenhagen is a friendly and cosy city which invited guests to eat and drink. Over the past few years the city has reinvented itself and has undergone a metamorphosis, especially in terms of the food and drink options that are on offer. With so many cafes, pubs and restaurants offering a range of tasty Danish treats, visitors are sure to find more than one place to their liking.
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Eating & Drinking
