Dinner in Copenhagen this Sunday
November 15, 2017 12:37 AM   Subscribe

I'm looking for restaurant recommendations in Copenhagen that will be likely to have a table available this Sunday evening. My parents, my partner and I are spending a long weekend in Copenhagen for my mother's 60th birthday. I was charged with booking a restaurant for a birthday dinner on Sunday - but time has slipped away from me and now I'm panicking! All cuisines considered though my mother is not a fan of Chinese food. Hard price limit is £100 per head (I guess roughly 700-750DKK) which rules out a lot of places in Copenhagen.

I had planned to book a table at Kjobenhavn but it seems to have shut down as of November the first. A lot of other places are shut on Sunday nights and so I'm seeking ideas. We've not been to Copenhagen before so I have no first hand experience. I know I should have sorted this out several weeks ago; work and life have got on top of me and I've neglected all of my organisational responsibilities.

I'd like to be able to book a table online; or be confident that a table will likely be available on the day. Modern danish would be the ideal cuisine but will consider anything that comes recommended. It's my mother's 60th birthday, so I'm looking for a nice setting - ideally not communal tables/loud music etc. Absolutely cannot afford more than £100 (? 700DKK) per head - my parents probably could but my partner and I will be priced out at that point. We will probably have two courses though would also consider short tasting menus, and roughly half a bottle of wine per head.

Please help me! Bonus points for other recommendations for things to do/cheap eats during a long weekend in Copenhagen.
posted by bored_now_flay to Travel & Transportation around Copenhagen, Denmark (15 answers total) 6 users marked this as a favorite
 
I don't know what you've done in Copenhagen before not, but I would recommend you go to Tivoli Gardens and walk around and you can even have dinner in there. It's the second-oldest amusement park in the world and it's just kind of charming. I'm pretty sure it's open on Sundays and... I just checked their website and it'll be decorated for Christmas starting Saturday, if that interests you. You do have to pay an entrance fee to get into Tivoli, and then you can pay for individual rides and games or a day pass, or just walk around and go to a restaurant. I don't think the restaurants are "cheap" because they get tourists, of course, but it's certainly not fine-dining prices or anything. I went to Copenhagen with family for a few days and we literally went to Tivoli three times, if that tells you anything, ha.

I feel like I am pointing out really obvious things, but the other thing you can do is walk around Nyhavn and take a boat ride. Walking around is free, boats got money, obviously. It's a big tourist spot, but worth it for at least the selfie you will take. There's also restaurants and bars there with traditional Danish cuisine, which we all thought was gross, but worth a try, ha.

In terms of a nice restaurant in the city for your mom's birthday, I can't help because I can't think of a good meal I had there, to be honest, except pizza I got at Tivoli, so just chiming in on your "other things to do" question.
posted by AppleTurnover at 12:59 AM on November 15, 2017


Best answer: a couple of places for a sunday dinner:

* a great view and a really good steakhouse: http://mashsteak.dk/restauranter-en-gb/show/mash-penthouse
* smaller modern family-style italian place: https://cofoco.dk/en/restaurants/scarpetta-rantzausgade/
* south american fusion in copenhagen: http://llamarestaurant.dk/

other cheap eats would be the food halls that have opened up for walking and grazing for each booth:

* papirøen: http://copenhagenstreetfood.dk/en/
*torvehallerne: http://www.visitcopenhagen.com/copenhagen/gastronomy/torvehallerne
* tivoli food hall (newest and don't have to buy an entry ticket): https://www.tivoligardens.com/en/mad+og+drikke/tivoli+food+hall
* westmarket in Vesterbro: http://www.visitcopenhagen.com/copenhagen/westmarket-gdk1088196
posted by alchemist at 1:14 AM on November 15, 2017


I loved Baest (http://baest.dk/en/) when last there, which is right next door to BRUS which has a lovely selection of beers, but also wines and great food at the restaurant towards the back.
posted by ozgirlabroad at 2:36 AM on November 15, 2017


Two suggestions, both delicious and relatively affordable.

More casual: Fiskebar - fresh seafood in a lively space.

More formal (but still reasonable): Cofoco - the tasting menu is a bargain in my opinion. (We were able to get a table here only a few hours in advance.)
posted by tmharris65 at 2:40 AM on November 15, 2017 [2 favorites]


I asked a friend for recommendations on where to send my parents when they visited Copenhagen, and she suggested Väkst. I don't know if my parents actually went, but based on the website I'd like to go myself.
posted by hannala at 4:25 AM on November 15, 2017


I had a decent meal at La Rocca last year; pretty sure it fell under your price limit, food was good and the restaurant was pleasant. For full disclosure, I believe it's associated with the nearby Kong Arthur hotel, but it didn't feel like a hotel restaurant (separate street entrance etc.). According to booktable they have tables for four on Sunday night.
posted by terretu at 5:30 AM on November 15, 2017


Best answer: I highly recommend Höst!
We had a fantastic meal there on relatively short notice about a year and a half ago (I think your chances are better if you aim for an earlier dinner). They're open 7 days/week, have a lovely (quiet!) atmosphere, and the food is fantastic. We really enjoyed the prix fixe option, which comes with a lot of extras between courses; there are 3 options, 2 of which will fit well within your budget.
posted by staraling at 5:57 AM on November 15, 2017 [1 favorite]


Best answer: I think Cap Horn would be a great place for your birthday dinner. It's easy to find, in a romantic setting, but unlike most other places in Nyhavn it's also a favorite among locals, many of them artists from the nearby cultural institutions. Prices are fair, and the food is locavore and organic. It's not very trendy and not part of a chain, but it's extremely authentic in a good way. The acoustics are nice and seating is not too close.

I agree with alchemist's suggestions for the rest of the weekend.

My favorite unknown museum is Davids Samling (David's collection) in Kronprinsessegade. It's the actual townhouse of a rich collector, so you get to see a bit of life in early 20th century Copenhagen as well as the amazing collections. Its close to Rosenborg, a tiny castle which houses the royal jewels and stuff like that.

Have brunch at Café Europa. The brunch is nice, but it is also the place to go for the "real" Copenhageners, so you will be among locally famous/well-known people of all ages and professions. Or at Café Wilder, the same, but a little more rough on the edges.

Maybe take a walk through Torvehallerne, mentioned above, and then across the lakes out to multicultural Nørrebro. Go down Blaagaardsgade to Blaagaards Plads, a little square with sculptures of working people. In one of the side streets there you can find Vinhanen, a wine bar, and on your route you'll pass many other little shops and cafés.
posted by mumimor at 6:46 AM on November 15, 2017


If you don't have a good meal in Copenhagen, you're definitely doing it wrong.

It's home to Noma, which was ranked in the top 5 restaurants in the world since 2009, making the #1 spot four times. It has 15 other michelin starred restaurants as well. And it's where I've had some of the best meals of my life. I think Noma is in the process of moving, and getting a reservation there is very tough anyways so here's some other recommendations:

Amass is amazing, and I'm told it's where the chefs from Noma go to eat.

Manfreds is also delicious and a little more affordable than Amass.

Kødbyens Fiskebar if you're into amazing seafood and ok with sitting outside in a parking lot in the fish market. Different kind of setting that usual, but the food is awesome.

Oh, and make sure to have a pølse, or copenhagen street dog from a vendor while you're there. I personally enjoy when they stuff it into a baguette, but just make sure you get the bright red dog and it'll be good no matter what.

I think you've got plenty to work with from all the replies above, enjoy your trip!
posted by Grither at 8:37 AM on November 15, 2017 [1 favorite]


I've had some of my favorite meals at the cafe at the Louisiana Museum. It's a buffet, not exactly intimate, and a 45 minute train ride. But the setting is terrific (nice collection for a small museum, view of Sweden across the water), crowd is lively (lot of families, seemed to be mostly locals), and the food delicious (sort of rustic modern Scandinavian, I guess). It would be a memorable half-day trip. Worth getting to before dark to wander around the grounds.
posted by lowest east side at 9:16 AM on November 15, 2017


I came to recommend Cofoco, but tmharris did it above.

It's *exactly what you want*, and given that £100=~833DKK, your budget is actually a bit larger than you thought it was (in krone terms).

If you and your party order the 375 DKK, six-course tasting menu (which is pretty amazing) and two 600 DKK bottles of wine, you'll end up at 2700DKK, or £324.

You could even go for the wine pairings (375 DKK/pp) instead of the bottles, and still end up at 3000DKK, or £360.
posted by yellowcandy at 4:13 PM on November 15, 2017


Best answer: I second Host. The most amazing food, ambience, attitude and really reasonable for the gastronomic delight. I go to Copenhagen a lot, and in a city of awesome food, it is the best place I've experienced. I ate there in late autumn and their food was a truly artistic expression of the season.
posted by honey-barbara at 8:19 PM on November 15, 2017


Last summer our family stopped at Sticks and Sushi http://www.sushi.dk/restauranter/vesterbro.htmlit was a 10-minute walk from the train station, the vibe was good and the sushi was great. They don't serve any unagi anywhere in Denmark because weirdly they are endangered there? But they have them in Sweden and Norway so no idea why this is done.
posted by MidStream at 6:13 AM on November 16, 2017


Response by poster: Thanks all. I've booked a table at Host on Sunday evening - just what I was looking for.

Some brilliant other recommendations here both for food and activities, thanks.
posted by bored_now_flay at 10:24 PM on November 17, 2017 [1 favorite]


Oh, awesome. Now that you have, my next tip would be: have only a tiny bite of the bread course, no matter how hungry when you get there. And, be hungry, do not eat beforehand for many hours.
posted by honey-barbara at 7:38 AM on November 18, 2017


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