[Review] Relae, Copenhagen

Sometimes you come across a district that is achingly cool, in a genuine way and not in a "trying too hard" way. This was the feeling we encountered as we got out of our taxi on the quiet street of Jaegersborggade in the Copenhagen district of Nørrebro. 

Relæe comes from two Noma alumni, Christian Puglisi and Kim Rossen. To be honest, having Noma alumni in your kitchen is pretty much de rigeur for any self-respecting Copenhagen restaurant. At the time of writing, the restaurant is ranked No 53 in the World's Best 50 Restaurants. Located on a corner, the interior is deceptively simple with an open kitchen, white walls and plain wooden tables. But as always, the devil is in the details and we find that our cutlery, napkin and menu are located in clever drawers concealed within the table. This is self-service, Scandi-Michelin style.

What makes Relæ even more unique, in a country of unique cooking, is that practically all of the ingredients are organic, while all the wines are natural. The topic of natural wines is causing some strong debate in the wine world right now, so the offering of an all-natural wine menu is a strong statement.

The menu at Relæ

Table drawer with cutlery, menu and napery

The menu offers a 4 course omnivore or herbivore tasting menu for 440 DKK each, rising to 725 DKK for a 7 course tasting menu. All options include filtered water, sourdough bread and olive oil. We choose the 7 course option, but paired with the tasting wines from the 4 course menu (395 DKK). 

The courses started to arrive: fried salsify with a mushroom juice for dipping, an intense aromatic broth with bright green drops of pine oil, dense and chewy sourdough with a vibrant olive oil. So far, so good. This was followed by a stellar combination of bergamot ice, lumpfish roe over which was poured a green ransom broth. 

Salsify with mushroom broth

Broth with pine oil

Sourdough bread with olive oil

Bergamot ice, lumpfish roe and ramson broth

Next up was a simple plate of shredded sunchoke, mushroom and walnut. This looked somewhat like a hedgehog on the plate, but in the mouth, I found flavours emerging and blending together in a way I could not have predicted.  Baked, pureed potato was served with brown butter and citrus, yet another combination that surprised and amazed me. 

Sunchoke, mushroom and walnut

Baked pureed potato with brown butter and citrus

All was going very well so far, but then we were served two dishes which drastically changed my perception of Relæ. First up was a dish of celeriac with local havgus cheese and coffee. My first impression was of whiteness, and this didn't really improve upon tasting. Eating the bland ribbons of celeriac was simply tedious. However, the dish of slow-cooked Sødam chicken which followed has taken the crown of worst dish I've ever tasted. After just one forkful, I found myself pushing the plate away. For me, there is nothing attractive about boiled chicken, especially when it has been deliberately cooked in such a way as to retain the textures of raw chicken. The colour is wrong, the texture is wrong and when combined with insipid parsnip, it was all just too much of the wrong stuff. 

Celeriac with havgus cheese and coffee

Sødam chicken with parsnip and sesame

Goats cheese and wine

Our waiter warned us that our first dessert of frozen yogurt contained a hidden surprise. Underneath the grated egg yolk, we found an incredible salted egg yolk. In contrast to the nadir of the slow-cooked chicken dish, this was the zenith of desserts. This was followed by another excellent little stone bowl of almonds and marscapone, enhanced by black olive bits. 

Frozen yogurt dessert with salted egg yolk

Almond, marscapone and olives

In my mind, Relæ has the distinction of serving one of the singularly most unpalatable dishes I've ever tasted. But the meal also showcased simple ingredients with a laser-like intensity. The memory of the lumpfish roe and potato dishes will linger with me for a long while, not to mention the egg yolk dessert. 

It was also quite fun to enjoy a natural wine tasting alongside our meal. I must admit that I didn't particularly take to most of the wines served. There were some good glasses that I would happily drink again, but unfortunately, I didn't get to write down their  details. For the most part though, I'll stick with wines produced through modern techniques. I think I'm just not quite ready for the musty, even manure-like aromas of natural wines just yet. 

Sometimes you need to be reminded that Michelin dining is not always about enjoyable fine food. Sometimes it should make you think, it should make you react (good or bad), it should educate you and it should make you form an opinion.  Relæ gave me a good shaking, challenging me with regard to what I liked. It is creative, it is modern and it is well worth a visit. 

Restaurant Relae, Jægersborggade 41, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
Tel: + 45 3696 6609
URL: www.restaurant-relae.dk

[Review] Restaurant Geist, Copenhagen

A few weeks ago, we boarded a Ryanair flight and headed to Copenhagen for the weekend. Last year was exceptionally gruelling from a work perspective and part of my tactics for improved mental health this year involve having lots of planned activities. Therefore, when Ryanair announced their new route from Dublin to Copenhagen, I booked a weekend lickety split. We first visited Copenhagen over 8 years ago as relatively poor people. This time around, we were bringing fatter wallets and bigger appetites.

Now, when food lovers think of Copenhagen, they immediately think Noma. But one of the benefits of having the World's No 1 restaurant in town is that it has nurtured an ecosystem of high-quality restaurants, all working together for the gastronomic benefit of Copenhagen and Nordic cuisine. We booked two meals, Friday night at Restaurant Geist and Saturday lunch at Relae. Everything else, we would take as it comes.

Restaurant Geist comes from chef Bo Bech and is a fun, sleek venue with a large open kitchen and bar-stool seating along the kitchen and windows. We took a seat facing onto the Kongens Nytorv square and ordered cocktails to get started. At 100 DKK per cocktail, or just over €13, they were somewhat expensive (like everything else in Copenhagen) but I really enjoyed my mezcal orange martini with its petrol-like sheen while his Danish sour (nay rum, lime and cherry) was equally well constructed.

Tartare of Norway lobster with yuzu and hibiscus

The menu at Geist comes printed on a small folded card. There is no traditional menu layout but the dishes get progressively meatier and richer as you read down. Our server told us that the portions likewise get larger, while prices ranged from 65 DKK to 195 DKK, or approximately €9 to €26. We started with a tartare of Norway lobster with yuzu and hibiscus (130DKK) and a dish of raw beef and lumpfish roe with piment d'espelette (135 DKK). In a bizarre presentation, the lobster flesh had been flattened out and spread across the plate, served with a blob of the sharp yet sweet sauce. My raw beef was likewise spread out on a plate, with slight saltiness coming from the lumpfish roe and heat from the Basque chili. While everything was incredibly fresh and sweet, I found myself longing for the silky binding of a raw egg to pull it all together.

Raw beef and lumpfish roe with piment d'espelette

Our "main" courses followed from the kitchen, in the order we had requested. Turbot with fennel ravioli on Gruyere featured a magnificent two pieces of this royal fish with spectacular and richly intense ravioli fanned on top (195 DKK). This stunning dish was served along with a plate of black kale and wild garlic arranged around a fried egg (85 DKK). Kale may be having a hipster fashion moment right now, but there's no doubt that it's an exceptional vegetable when cooked with care. In my opinion it's a meaty vegetable, and worked well as a contrast to the light turbot. Finally, a bowl of crispy artichokes flakes concealed soft chunks of suckling pig, flavoured with black truffle (185 DKK). Artichokes are amongst my favourite vegetables and I loved the contrast of the crunchy flakes against the juicy, fatty pork.

Turbot with fennel ravioli on Gruyere

Black kale with fried egg and wild garlic

Crispy artichokes with suckling pig and black truffle

The dessert section of the Geist menu proved a challenge when selecting our final plates. Their "Air in Air in Air Tiramisu" is mentioned time and time again on blogs and reviews. However, we went with our hearts. For himself, a plate of blue Stilton and carmelised chocolate (95 DKK) came as a pile of textures with an incredible blend of salt and sweet. I simply wouldn't know how to start recreating this one at home, but I really do want to try. My dessert of salted wasabi toffee cream was another favourite with Geist diners (85 DKK). It took the form of a wasabi-flavoured meringue piece atop a swirl of delicious toffee sauce. Sorry for the lack of a picture, it just didn't come out well due to the low-lighting of the restaurant.

Blue Stilton and carmelised chocolate

Dinner was accompanied by a stunning Gruner Veltliner Strassertal from Martin & Anna Arndorfer (440 DKK).

Ultimately, I had fun at Geist even though I did find it somewhat inconsistent. Despite the high quality of the ingredients in our first two dishes, they didn't really shine. But the main courses and desserts were of a very different standard, with bold flavours and eccentric presentations. The restaurant was buzzing on the Friday night we visited, with queues of people waiting to get in as we left. If this is what modern, fun Nordic cuisine looks and tastes like, then sign me up for more.

Restaurant Geist, Kongens Nytorv 8, DK-1050 Copenhagen, Denmark
Tel: +45 3313 3713
URL: restaurantgeist.dk