Almanak
Saturday, November 8, 2014 at 11:16PM When I heard the Danes were famous for open sandwiches I was nonplussed. Open or not, how exciting can a sandwich really be? Very, it turns out. Just take a look at these bad boys:
My sister, Charlie, definitely chose the right venue for me to try my first smorrebrod. Almanak is part of Claus Meyer’s growing empire. Among many other ventures, Meyer is co-owner of Noma, number one restaurant in the world. Like every restaurant in Copenhagen, it seems, Almanak is big on foraged local and seasonal produce: “we strive to set a new standard for how we can use the local nature and changing seasons as a structural principle for our work in the kitchen.”
Apparently it takes four years to learn how to be a smorrebrod jungfru, which literally means "open sandwich virgin". This makes no sense at all to me since I would have thought that after four years one would be very experienced indeed. A veritable smorrebrod Casanova. Although apparently smorrebrod jungfru’s are mostly women and we all know there are no nice words for women who know what they’re doing in the sack. Smorrebrod slut anybody? Thought not.
Well, whoever made these sandwiches, man or woman, they can butter my muffin any day. Yeah, this jungfru got skills.
I went with ‘the quick lunch’, which is actually less efficient than a normal lunch since it includes coffee and sweets at the end, which my sister had to rush me through because we were meeting her friends at 2.15pm. I chose this option because the two smorrebrod are selected by the chef and it includes a glass of wine, whichever you like off the list, which I thought was very generous.
Madame or Monsieur Jungfru picked well. The soft boiled egg, Romo shrimps and chicken skin smorrebrod was my favourite overall. The creamy mayonnaise, salty shrimp and soft, unctuous egg yolks were delightful in their richness and the cucumber and nasturtium leaves brought a touch of freshness. The only disappointment was the chicken skin, which only added looks and crunch, but not much flavour.
The jungfru’s second choice was roast beef with horseradish, vinegar powder and pickled greens, my second favourite (those four years weren’t wasted). The beef was rare and tender, contrasting nicely with the crispy, sweet shallots. Vinegar powder sounded bizarre but added a little zest.
As we were sharing, Charlie chose two smorrebrod that covered other bases: fried fish and smoked ones. The fried herring, pear and crown dill, onions and rendered pork fat sounded interesting. I think the chef was going for a balance of sweet, sour and salty flavours. The fish was all these things at once, the apples were both sweet and sour, the mustard sweet and the pork fat salty, but overall sweetness won and it was a bit overpowering for my liking.
The smoked mackerel with smoked cheese, cucumber, radish and egg yolk was great on textures – crunchy radish and cucumber, soft cheese and fish, slippery egg yolk. All it lacked was a splash of lemon.
Charlie and I both had a glass of Alsace Riesling: citrusy on the nose, stone fruits on the palate and not too sweet. Great with the seafood smorrebrod.
It is a pity we had to rush dessert. It’s a great location and venue. I could easily have whiled away the whole afternoon there. But I can’t lament the fact too much. I am, after all, flying back to Copenhagen tomorrow morning. It’s due to be a sunny day. I don’t think Charlie’s arm will take much twisting...
Almanak: The Standard, Havnegade 44, 1058 Copenhagen K, Denmark; +45 72 14 88 08; contact@thestandardcph.dk
Mon-Fri 8am-12am; Sat 11:30am-1am; Sun 11:30am-10:30pm
Smorrebrod DKK 75-115; 'The quick lunch' DKK 155; 'The quick lunch' with wine, coffee and sweets DKK 295
Reader Comments (6)
ha! 'a' glass of riesling?! I think you're being a little generous there...
A veritable smorrebrod Casanova...yes indeed!
Love this post - it perfectly captures just how delicious the smorrebrod were, both with the wonderful photos and your descriptions!
Second time was even better...whens round three?!
Hey Cha, I thought we were being good that day, but I am sure you are right. It was probably several ;) Glad you like the post. January? xx
Hi VIx,
Yesterday I got to try the smorrebrod at Almanak. You have not exaggerated. Like you I used to think that an open sandwich was just like any old sandwich with only one piece of bread! This was a fantastic taste fest. I had herring with apple and horseradish sauce with a sprinkling of dill. Charlie had 2 , one belly pork and one beef- and i got to taste hers too. As it was a rare sunny day in Copenhagen we asked to sit outside. Even though they don't usually serve outside in the Winter, they let us , and couldn't have been more attentive. We had a glass each of Alsace reisling and also of "GLOGG" - a very aromatic mulled wine with raisins and almonds - oh yes and we were also persuaded to have a shot of schnapps each. So the bill ended being something like 80 quid- quite a lot for a sandwich lunch, but I wouldn't have missed it for the world!
Hi Ma, so glad you enjoyed it and that you had a similar experience. It really is wonderful. It sounds expensive when you say "for a sandwich lunch" but I think it is so much more than that. And the venue is so very beautiful :)
I am pretty sure I have now tried every 'sandwich' on the menu...except the vegetarian one :S
And I would definitely go again...
Hey Cha, and now you have tried the vegetarian one too! :)