(Copenhagen, Denmark)

Food is very expensive in Denmark. In addition to the 25% value added tax that is included in every price in the country, a charge for service is theoretically also included in the cost of restaurant meals. This allows restaurant servers to earn a better guaranteed wage. However, for those of us with weak foreign currency, it makes eating out quite pricey.

The first and most obvious tip is to eat a sizable breakfast, which is often included in the cost of your hotel. You should not feel the need to have a large sit-down lunch. The second tip is especially relevant to Copenhagen: eat street food.

Street food does not have to consist of hot dogs of questionable provenance. Right now, for at least another year, there is a great experiment unfolding on Papirøen (“Paper Island”), in one of the former industrial areas newly accessible from downtown by the Inderhavnsbroen pedestrian and bicycle bridge.  It’s called simply “Copenhagen Street Food” and consists of about 40 food stalls selling the kinds of things you would find in food trucks all over the world.  The emphasis is on local and sustainable food sources; many of the stalls in the cavernous warehouse are organic.

How good is it?  I went there 5 times over the course of 4 days!  Getting to the place was a little scary the first time, as it involved walking down an unmarked industrial alley that felt unsafe in the November darkness.  But there were many others making the same trip and I was soon rewarded for my daring.  I felt like a real “insider” when I returned the next four times…it was like attending a special club that most people don’t know about.  The seating is at communal picnic tables but somehow that makes it more fun. 

I bought my Hokkaido pumpkin soup from this stall

The first time, I had jap’chae – sweet potato noodles from the Korean food stall.  I then had a platter of vegetarian food from Colombia.  Due to fighting off a cold, my next two visits were for soup:  a Thai coconut shrimp soup and a spicy “Hokkaido Pumpkin” soup from Japan.  Of these, I would have to say that the Colombian food was the most visually appealing.

I saved the best for last.  As I have mentioned many times on this blog, I am really not a red meat eater and often choose vegetarian options.  But I do have a weakness for goulash and savoury beef bourguignon…and this made me try the *Hunter’s Pot’ at a stall apparently called “Toast”.

The Hunter’s Pot (see picture at the top of this post) consists of tender red deer meat in a ragout with mushrooms, root vegetables and both port and red wine.  It was generously garnished with sour red berries (red currants, perhaps?) and was even better than beef bourguignon.  The fruit flavours were intense and tart.  With some toast and a pumpkin seed/red cabbage salad on the side, it was an extremely satisfying meal.

I had never eaten red deer before…and even considered changing my travel plans to allow myself one more meal at the street food market. I wanted to eat the Hunter’s Pot stew again!  If you’re intrigued, but not sure about the red deer part, they were offering free samples when I was there.

Hopefully, this idea gains traction in some other places too.   If you’re not near the street food market, bakeries are usually a good budget choice too:  most have focaccia or something similar if you’re in danger of overdosing on the delicious Danish pastries.  Coming up soon:  more castles!