What a whirlwind 72 hours. Writing this on a Thursday return flight from Paris to New York City, after spending the past 2 days in Copenhagen. A quick trip but just in time to wander the city streets, marvel at the high-end shopping and taste some of the local meals. All while the world’s best restaurant was named- Noma, a 5th for this Copenhagen establishment. I don’t mention it here randomly, but let’s start with the featured restaurant and meal- salmon steak at Restaurant Phonix of the city center.
Pictured above you have last night’s dinner with the view. People watching is even more fun when you have such a colorful background. Pictured below is the peripheral of the outdoor space, to set the scene for the ambiance. To some this may scream “tourist trap” but that is not of concern to me as the menu did have local fare and for a shockingly warm and sunny Danish day, I was happy to be outside and taking it all in.
As far as the meal- salmon steak with lobster sauce, served with a side salad and roasted potatoes. Hearty enough as is, but I happen to love the potato prep of Europe and went ahead and ordered it in another form- chips aka fries. Very American of me, but I’ve always loved the thick cut freshness, compared to shoestring, and sauces for dipping that come with European fries. If you know, you know.
The seafood industry is massive in Denmark. In fact, I was there for a work event related to the maritime space. Consisting of some of the world’s largest port cities, Danish maritime traditions run deep. So, it is no surprise. The first night my team and I went out to a local pub and the recommended menu item was the steak. With only one other dinner, I knew I wanted seafood and the recommended item at Phonix just so happened to be the salmon.
Pictured above you can see the filet in all its covered in lobster sauce glory and sprinkled with small prawns. The salmon itself was quite good, not the best as I like salmon steak to be very flaky and moist and this was a bit more prepared than that, but still a flavor to it, jus not the flavor I would prefer. The prawns, aka small shrimps, were a delight! Prawns somehow have a different meaning in different places and here they are the pictured tiny version. I loved them. Slathered in a mild lobster sauce that was packed with flavor, they added texture and paired so well with the salmon. While the lobster sauce was welcome over the prawns, it was a bit too much for the salmon. Something that only needs a bit of freshly squeezed lemon, adding an overly portioned layer of lobster took away from being able to taste the wonderful salmon flavors. If a suggestion box, I would write in placing the lobster sauce in a ramekin on the side. As a suggestion to anyone visiting the restaurant, I would recommend perhaps going with one of the other traditional dishes, like an open faced sandwich, and saving the seafood for a restaurant dedicated to it. The potatoes were boiled and seasoned with black pepper, providing another excellent vessel for the sauce. Altogether a very filling meal and end way to end this trip to Copenhagen.
Oh and obviously, I recommend getting the fries.
Back to Noma. I could only wish to be so lucky to dine at this impossible to get a reservation restaurant, but I got lucky enough with something very close. At the previously mentioned event, a former chef of the restaurant who shall not be named agreed to cater our event. A meal making icon, catering OUR start up event? That to me is very lucky. Pictured below are 2 of the 5 open-faced sandwiches prepared for enjoyment. Unlike the potential-tourist-trap-restaurant, these were exquisite. The flavors, the presentation, the sensory overload of every bite. The fish, pork, and chicken were delectable- perfectly prepared and portioned. Accompanying each protein was just the right amount of vegetable and sauce to ensure every bite had a bit of everything. Nothing was slathered across the bread, being too much, or skimped on, leaving more to be desired. The traditional bread which all were served on was thin, yet full of flavor, and far superior to any grocery-bought of course but also the thick breads that make up 70% of a sandwich normally.
Clearly, I was very impressed. The offering was just the sandwiches so the next step for me is to somehow get that elusive reservation and make it to the full Noma menu myself.
Leaving you with some of the colorful streets of Copenhagen.
