We just returned from Copenhagen where we faced the dilemma of “so much to see/ eat, so little time.” Because basically we were there for one very special meal, we had not made any other restaurant reservations yet, being my first time in Denmark and Neil’s first time there in a very long time, we were keen to try as many of the local specialties as possible, even given our short visit (the things we do for the blog, right?).
A little Googling uncovered my idea of a dream tour in a city I don’t know – Copenhagen Food Tours. A 2 or 4 hour walking tour covering a lot of ground in the city with pit stops for food along the way? Sign me up! When I looked a little more in-depth at the rough outline of the itinerary, I saw that during the tour we’d be checking out a lot of my “must try” eats and drinks – it felt like an easy way to cross things off that list, all while learning about Copenhagen, its history and food culture from a local.
Beginning and ending at the Torvehallerne Markets, the tour lasts approximately 4 hours and covers roughly 4km. You get to sit down at two of the stops for a little longer as well so it’s a really pleasant way to cover a lot of ground you might not have covered on your own (well, unless you’ve walked close to 9km the previous day like, ahem, some people… Note to visitors of Copenhagen, take really comfortable walking shoes. The cobblestones are not the easiest to walk on…). The tastings definitely include food enough for a full meal so don’t eat a lot of breakfast before you go and don’t make lunch plans!
If you take one of these tours at the beginning of your trip, it’s a great way to learn about some typical Danish fare and some places you might want to return to later in your trip with the confidence of knowing where to go and what to order so you can take full advantage of all Copenhagen has to offer. If, like us, you literally have one full day to explore the city, it’s a great way to fit as much in as you possibly can (literally and figuratively!). Our guide, Maria, a Copenhagen local with impeccable English (thanks to an upbringing by English teacher parents) is clearly passionate and knowledgeable about food and culture and was entertaining and friendly.
We spent a little bit of time at both the beginning and end of the tour wandering around Torvehallerne – just enough to make you want to return on your own and explore!
Stops along the way included Arla Unika – with an outstanding range of dairy products based on the Nordic nature and terroir…
Spis Bornholmsk, where we tasted specialties from the island of Bornholm…
Summerbird, where we tried the classic flødeboller…
Flødeboller are a sort of chocolate coated marshmallow treat that must be tasted to be truly appreciated…
Of course the market halls have the more regular market offerings too…
Something I’d been very keen to try on this trip was the classic smørrebrød – Danish open-faced sandwiches – which we got to do at Aamann’s Deli and TakeAway…
We had a “sample platter” from the menu – if this is a sample, you’d want to go in very, very hungry for a full meal!
And what better way of digesting all that smørrebrød than with some great Danish beer…
We checked out Nørrebro Bryghus – a Danish microbrewery in the Nørrebro neighborhood, open since 2003 and founded by ex-Carlsberg brewmaster Anders Kissmeyer.
Along the way, we got to see a lot of the city (it’s very walkable as long as you have shoes and feet that can handle the cobblestones!), including the Botanical Gardens (there’s a tasting there too!)…
And you don’t want to leave Denmark without tasting their classic street food, do you? Copenhagen Food Tours has you covered!
Enter DØP The Organic Hot Dog Stand! Yes – organic hot-dogs (made of organic pork or beef) served on whole grain, sourdough buns. Everything they serve is organic (including the soft drinks!). Though we didn’t try it, they do offer a sausage served with mashed root vegetables!
This was a perfect hot dog – about 1/2 the size of the ones we get in Toronto with obviously quality ingredients.
And to follow that? What could be better than Sømods Bolcher – suppliers of hard candies to the Royal Danish Court…
Still producing hard candies in the traditional manner, they sell over 70 different kinds of candies. Check out their fascinating history here.
We ended the tour wishing we had much more time to go back and explore some of the places in a little more depth, but happy in the knowledge that we’d covered a LOT of ground even despite our limited time in the city.
Check out Copenhagen Food Tours 2 Hour Tours and Copenhagen Food Tours 4 Hour Tours.
Great blog post, and timely! My wife and I will be in Copenhagen for two days in June, so this food tour sounds like a great thing to do.
Thank you so much.
You’re welcome and for a short stay it’s a great way to see (and eat!) a lot without having to plan it yourself!
What a beautiful post chronicling your trip.
We have a small Danish town here in California called Solvang, near Santa Barbara.
Most of the shop-keepers are of Danish decent and offer Danish goods as well as food.
The bakeries are my weakness. Good thing we don’t live nearby!
Looks like you had a super time! Many years ago Wayne and I went to Denmark so we could go to Legoland, and I’d go back in a heartbeat. I so enjoyed all your pics on Instagram while you were there.
Thanks Martha 🙂 Sadly we did not get to Legoland 🙁
Great food tour!
Very nice post, Mardi! Both informative and graphically appealing. I am a big fan of Northern European cuisines myself. Next time you’re in Copenhagen, you need to go to KOKKERIET. Amazing and not at all overpriced fine dining experience in a very pleasant country-cottage style setting.
Flødeboller are to die for!
Thanks for reading Jamie – appreciate you stopping by!
Mardi, thanks so much for sharing some of your adventure! Great photos, and your descriptions make me want to go! Lovely!
Oh wow. Great pics, lovely post.
It would be interesting to see the slow collapse of the chocolate spire.
Haha! Yes it would. And thanks!
LOVED this glimpse of Copenhagen. I, too, have always wanted to try a real smorgasbord, and I had no idea hot dogs were the city’s signature food. My husband would be smitten. We must plan a trip. I can’t wait to read more about your visit!
You totally need to get there Ann – you would LOVE it!
Food tours are a great way to see a city and this looks like a really good one. What a stupendous hot dog!
And this included so much walking that it felt nearly virtuous 😉
Mardi, thank you for the most wonderful tour to somewhere I will probably never get to ! it was amazing to read.
You are welcome Cindy, we tried to do as much as we could in the short time we had.
What a wonderful, whirlwind tour, Mardi. Copenhagen is on my wish list. Love that hot dogs are half the size but top ingredients, love the royal candies and intrigued by these chocolate marshmallows. Oh, and the savoury too. But of course 😉
Everything was really tasty Jill. And yes, you’d love the marshmallow-y things!
Great pictures! I love everything I’ve seen from Copenhagen, and hopefully, I’ll make it there some day!
This looks amazing, Mardi! I might be in Copenhagen at some point this summer and if I am, I can almost guarantee I’ll be heading on one of these food tours. Thanks for the great recommendation, going to bookmark this for later!
You definitely need to do this tour!
We just returned from Copenhagen yesterday, and we did the Food Tour on Wednesday with Maria. We were lucky since we had a small group of only four people.
The tour was everything you described, and as an extra special treat we stopped at one of the oldest bakeries in Copenhagen called Sankt Peders Bageri. Since it was Wednesday, they make something called “onsdagssnegle” = Wednesday snails/cinnamon roll. Each Wednesday they sell 4,000 of these delicious rolls!
Thanks again for the tip on this fantastic food tour, Mardi.
That’s fantastic Peter – so glad to hear you enjoyed!
Beautiful and interesting photos! Thank you for sharing!
Loved your post blogpost. I’m visiting Copenhagen next month and the food tour has climbed up in my list of things to do. 🙂
Enjoy! It was a wonderful tour!