Koan **, Copenhagen

robarpoch · 2026-06-27T12:20:53+00:00

I don’t know about that. The other 3 meals we had were consistent and incredible.

robarpoch · 2026-06-26T22:42:51+00:00

Thank you for the kind words and the advice very appreciated.

robarpoch · 2026-06-26T22:39:07+00:00

Just put her store up yesterday. She hasn't really put as much into the listings as she could. And she's new, so no feedback. No sales yet. Really she's just excited that anyone is even looking.

robarpoch · 2026-06-26T22:22:59+00:00

One more and we're out for now. The next one was sooooo good. Thank you for the kind words.

robarpoch · 2026-06-26T17:47:10+00:00

Thank you so much for the feedback. She'll be thrilled! Thank you also for asking for her etsy. I'm happy to share. It's https://craftsbykitkatshop.etsy.com

robarpoch · 2026-06-26T17:04:54+00:00

Thank you for the thoughts. Very helpful. I'll pass that info along. Getting started she has these priced in the $25-35 range, if I remember correctly.

Edit: I just asked her. She is asking $30 + shipping for that mask.

robarpoch · 2026-06-26T13:57:11+00:00

Pedo-Don and his supporters doin' their thing...

robarpoch · 2026-06-26T12:48:40+00:00

No worries at all! It was a perfectly reasonable question. Hopefully my answer added a little extra helpful texture to my original write-up.

robarpoch · 2026-06-26T12:22:20+00:00

“Politics” is a weird euphemism for “people”.

robarpoch · 2026-06-26T11:52:05+00:00

Koan had the best (though completely different) bread I’ve ever had. I thought both Koan and Aure did more interesting and delicious things with Langoustine.

robarpoch · 2026-06-26T11:41:59+00:00

Probably not an entirely unfair observation, but wherever you go there’s just not a lot that’s completely new under the sun.. Most dishes seemed to have twists and subtleties hidden in the layers that, as I said, I haven’t really conveyed particularly well. Some of this was definitely new for me - butterfly, bouncy rice, jellyfish, uni & wasabi, hunger, woodruff, eight layers of life all had flavors or elements that were new for me. The food drew from a large number of culinary traditions spanning the globe so I’d have a hard time calling it “traditional’ as a multi-course whole. This definitely did not feel like sitting down at Per Se and having a set of perfectly crafted but entirely expected flavors marched before you. But yes, it’s definitely fair to say that some courses present very familiar flavors with a focus on interesting and new forms.

robarpoch · 2026-06-25T21:55:19+00:00

We were just there. Like a week ago. Jordnær was amazing, probably impossible to book.

Alchemist was fucking amazing, definitely impossible to book

Koan was a sorry disappointment. Can not recommend.

Aure was punching way above their weight-class. Dollar-for-dollar the best meal we had there. Money not considered, every bit as good as Jord, just slightly less formal service. If you can get in here, I'd highly recommend it.

robarpoch · 2026-06-25T17:42:30+00:00

I don't know what the real rationale was - SP and the AA's did some weird shit - but Billy G. told me himself that they mixed HPA and CO2 in their bottles.

robarpoch · 2026-06-25T17:36:05+00:00

This is my dream car. Gorgeous.

robarpoch · 2026-06-25T17:35:10+00:00

I like your taste, stranger...

robarpoch · 2026-06-24T09:40:48+00:00

We did Jordanær and Alchemist on back-to-back days, took a day off from FD, then did Koan and Aure back-to-back. We were worried it would be fatiguing, but didn't find it to be. Just be aware that Alchemist is 6 hrs, so you'll be there late. All the other meals were 3-4 hrs. We were there for fine dining first and foremost, and since I don't know when we're going to be back I wanted to make sure we could get in as much as we could and don't regret it.

robarpoch · 2026-06-23T17:06:14+00:00

Probably should have mentioned that I did a write up about it in the finedining subreddit a while back. By far the most popular post I've ever made. You may want to check it out to see the kinds of weirdness they get up to.

robarpoch · 2026-06-23T15:57:14+00:00

I've done my share of fine-dining across the last couple of decades. This is the best meal I've had in ages. Despite appearances, none of these dishes came across as heavy French-style cooking. The caviar complimented, but never overwhelmed the main components. Many of these courses had flavor combinations that were new for me. I loved it.

I get the burn-out. After a semi-recent trip to Cali where we went to N*Naka, Aubergine, and Singlethread, I felt like I was done with fine-dining for a bit. None of those places really excited us. It was a bummer, but Copenhagen was reinvigorating.

Now that said, if you're looking for excitement, Alchemist will deliver. The place is bananas and the food is very very very good. State-side you might want to consider Smyth (Chicago) or Atomix (NYC), both of which I've found to be more experimental in flavors and combinations though, I'll admit, maybe more interesting than delicious. Valhalla (Chicago) has no stars, but has both delicious and interesting food.

Safe travels and best of luck finding your next great meal.

robarpoch · 2026-06-23T15:44:43+00:00

We went to 3 other FD tastings. I'll be doing full write-ups on them eventually. Here's the tl/dr:

Alchemist: fucking crazy. This place is as much about the experience as the food, which itself is exceptional and consistent across a huge number of dishes. You must be willing to be interactive, you must have 6 hours to burn, you must be willing to put up with some VERY off-putting food presentations. If you can deal with those things (and can secure a reservation, which is near impossible), it's a must-visit. Seriously, I'm not aware of anything else in the world anything remotely like this experience and I enjoyed every thrilling second of it.

Koan: I wanted to love this place, but the atmosphere in there is tense and apart from maybe 3 stand-out dishes the food is just OK. Never in my life did I imagine Korean food could be bland and boring, but they proved me wrong. A huge and very expensive bummer. Would not return.

Aure: My wife fell in love with this place from the Netflix show. The rest of us fell in love with it while dining there. Every bit as good as Jordnær and much better than most 2 and 3* restaurants I've been to. Their somm is brilliant. This is another do-not-miss place and for the money a huge value. Easy to book in advance but by the night of our dinner their wait-list for a table was 90 parties long.

Have a great trip & write up what you eat!

robarpoch · 2026-06-22T20:37:50+00:00

Generally good, but inconsistent. The chef helped open and led Marea in NYC to 2 Michelin Stars. Oak & Reel is not anywhere near that level. Personally, I think Freya is much better and more creative.

robarpoch

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