Kobenhavn, city chic

This is my second visit to Kobenhavn, the first occurred twelve months ago. It was a three day visit as part of a 'grand tour of Scandinavian capitals' that only got as far as Denmark and Sweden, due to a lack of money. But although short on time, it left a lingering impression of an opportunity missed, like watching a film and faling asleep for the last twenty minutes. It's an incredibly 'cool' place - there are hundreds of tall Aryan looking boys and girls strutting around with an almost innate sense of style and grace, the reputation for design is not a myth with the clean lines of mimimalism occasionnally giving way to eighteenth century granduer. The pace of life is sunny afternoon on a beach and so it should be, with Denmark consistenly being ranked as one of the happiest places to live on this little planet of ours.

I spent most of the last trip jaw-dropping with amazement that every person we ran into spoke English. And by 'speak' English I mean perfect fluency. This time I thought I'd be clever by trying to find someone who couldn't. Complete failure and major case of egg on face. My main tactic was to trawl the numerous Pølser Stands (popular with both Danes and tourists alike) and quiz the vagabonds running them. Not a hint of a difficulty and as a result, no need to reign in my near obsessive enthusiasm for the humble Pølser due to linguistic embarresment. For the uninitiated, the Pølser is a national variation on the common hot dog, but is so much more than those dodgy boiled Frankfurters we get in the UK. Pølser with bacon. Pølser with cheese. Pølser with pickled cucumber and little, teenee-weenee bits of onion. Pølser with mustard. Pølser with remoulade! Big ones, small ones. The list is endless. Yes they are mass-produced and yes, they're not organic or even local. But by God they're good and sometimes you have to hold your hands up and admit you're occasionally wrong. If you want, take a look at the website of the company that produces them - but it doesn't really do them justice. A slightly more refined lunchtime snack that the Danes enjoy is the more well-known Smørrebrød - an open sandwich with a rye bread base. You can enjoy these at any number of eateries throughout the city. They have a myriad of toppings including smoked salmon, roast beef, pickled herring, eel - the list is essentially endless. My personal favourite was 'Leverpostej' - warm liver pate serves with sauteed mushrooms.

Danish cuisine has a tradition akin to many northern European countries featuring products well suited to it's climate such as barley, potatoes, berries, mushrooms and locally produced dairy products. Although famously liberal in relation to social values, it seems the Danes are staunchly conservative in relation to their food. There appears a pleasing rejection of health fads. For example, a lack of refrigeration would have meant few fresh fruits and vegetables in main meals. Those things that could be preserved were either pickled or smoked, hence pickled cucumbers or fruits with fish dishes. Food is hearty in Denmark - such as the national dish 'Frikadeller' - a type of meatball with potatoes and brown sauce. Whatever that is. But of course there are now refrigeration processes in Denmark. Consequently, there has been a boom in 'top-end' restaurants in Kobenhavn that demand refinement and a light hand. Diners no longer want to be rolled out of the restaurant. Two of the most famous are Søren K which can be found in the 'Black Diamond' on the city's canals; and Noma whose head chef is Rene Redzepi, formerly of El Bulli. The picture above was taken at Pastis (no website). It can be found at Gothersgade 52. You can see a 'juledessert' that consisted of a rich fruit cake, rice pudding, clementine sorbet and vanilla syrup, garnished with hazelnuts and cherries.

It.

Was.

Deadly Good.

I can't reccommend Kobenhavn highly enough. When I'm there it feels like coming home. The Danes go all out to try and create 'hygge', what in Wales we would call 'cwtch' or in English we'd call cosy. But it's not something that just happens. It's an ideology, a lifestyle, a being.

And from what I've experienced of this great city, they succeed.