Af minemadvaner 27. February 2009

My three friends and I went to dinner here about a week ago. One of this restaurant's strengths is its atmosphere: it's relaxed and bustling, and with a true "big city" feel. Loved the look of enjoying dinner at one of the bar stools up at the bar. The food was fine, nothing truly exceptional (my main course with noodles, avocado and shrimp was watery and bland), but for the most part, good-tasting and seem to be made with quality ingredients. I had higher expectations about the himmelsenge, I read about on their website. In reality, they seemed to be quite dark and not especially romantic - walking by them made me feel like I was walking through the sleeping car of a transcontinental train in Asia.

Nevertheless, Ricemarket does have a niche in the restaurant market, and I can imagine dining there again.

Af minemadvaner 21. December 2008

We were 6 people that dined here recently and we all were disappointed with the quality of the food. The menu is huge, and obviously all to large for them to handle. There was a long wait between courses and mysteriously, not a lot of noise coming from the kitchen (especially considering that we had ordered very many different dishes). My conclusion is that there are a few microwaves and deepfryers working overtime to reheat the frozen food, and in my book, too much of that makes for a bad experience. The food was poor and lacked distinguishing flavors. Like my mother in-law said, "All this food doesn't really taste of much." And if you considered starting off with a warm bowl of Chinese soup, think again. All three kinds we tried were made from water - tasteless!
Service was fine, but by no means makes up for the low level of skill in the kitchen. Find somewhere else to get good Chinese food.

Af minemadvaner 21. December 2008

Have you ever eaten at a restaurant that serves old-fashioned Danish food and wondered when the last time they deep cleaned (or even dusted!) in the restaurant? Unfortunately, I have, but this wasn't at all the case at Turesen. We had a very nice julefrokost there on the 19th, the service was friendly, and the food was very good. If I had to comment on anything, I'd say that the breaks between courses were sometimes a bit long. We all enjoyed our visit very much and would not hesitate to go to eat there again. I recommend it highly.

Af minemadvaner 1. September 2008

This was my second time at Bottega. The first time I tried the food was it just a pizza to go. The pizza tasted so good that I decided to come back and try sitting in the restaurant. My friend and I came late in the afternoon, and there was only one other table occupied while we were there. Despite the emptiness of the restaurant, the waiter didn't seem particularly efficient. In fact, he was as slow as a snail, and when we asked him for the menus or the check, he didn't even bother to answer us, turn around or make eye contact. It was as if he was in his own world. For some reason, he decided to wait to order our food in the kitchen, actually so long that he wasn't able to remember our order when it was time to do so, which meant that he came back to our table and took our order a second time. Very unprofessional.

There were more instances of his laziness, which I don't even want to bother mentioning. It's a shame that a place that makes pretty good food gets a bad reputation because of its all-too-casual atmosphere and all-too-slow waiter. But it is just down right aggravating to be a guest here - we felt totally neglected. Not exactly what one's looking for when one goes out to eat, huh?

Af minemadvaner 14. August 2008

Three friends and I had dinner at Little Venice last weekend. Our first impressions of the restaurant were very positive, as the restaurant is situated beautifully on the harbor. In all honesty, the views makes Little Venice a unique place, well worth taking a trip out of the downtown area for, though I would only suggest visiting the bar.
Upon arrival, we were informed that, because it was Copenhagen Fashion Week, there was no ala carte menu, but we could only choose from two 3-course fixed menus - aperitif included - for 489kr. (To be honest, I don't think any of us would have ordered 3 courses had we not been forced to.) Why wasn't this information on their website, which we had looked at the previous day, or why was this not mentioned to us when the telephone reservation was made? Poor communication on their behalf.

Without going into too many details, Little Venice's food does not impress. The food was overdecorated while lacking a care in preparation. And just as bad, the portions were small. I suppose we could have filled our stomachs had we eaten large amounts from the bread basket or had multiple helpings from the large bowl of boring boiled potatoes that came with our otherwise mini entrée. The dessert was also a disappointment: Panna cotta had too much geletin, causing it to lose its silky texture and thereby turn rubbery. The unripe stawberries dipped in chocolate didn't make the white-topped strawberries any more appetizing.

Aside from the views, Little Venice's has a few other assets. The staff seemed to be competent and friendly, and the wines we drank were also surprisingly good.

But despite their strengths, nothing compensates for the lack of skill in the kitchen. It is a shame because with the right kitchen staff, Little Venice could truly be a gem of a restaurant.

Af minemadvaner 10. August 2008

I've been to Madklubben a few times because I like the concept of not having to spend a fortune on good food. But to be honest, each time, the food (not to mention the noisy front dining room) have included one kind or another type of letdown. It's the finer details that are lacking there, things like properly cooked and seasoned vegetables, an extra ingredient that gives the dish its final touch, table service with charm. With their low prices, one can't expect much more than what they do provide, but it does make me ask myself if it's all worth coming back again for. And for me, the answer is clear: No. And I can say that now because Madklubbens little sister does a much better job at serving good food at reasonable prices.

I ate at Den Anden just a few days after it had opened, and the meal I had there was rather good. There were a few small glitches, like the vegetables that accompanied the fish entree - red onions and bell peppers cooked in so much vinegar that they were almost inedible - but all in all a solid meal that makes me certain that I will be going back to try Den Anden again.

Af minemadvaner 9. April 2008

Good story: a former bodega gets renovated to re-open as a cozy, yet refined neighborhood restaurant. The story made me go there, but I am sorry to say, Fischer does not deliver - particularly when it comes to the food.

First of all, calling this place a "pastaværtshus" is definitely stretching the truth. The night we were there, there were only TWO pasta dishes to choose from, one of which was sold out. But pasta was part of our mission, so we ordered the only one left. When it arrived, we were disappointed to discover that the pasta wasn't even handmade. Shouldn't one expect that at a "pastaværtshus" really? The pasta was simple and tasty, but it's hard to go wrong when it's just linguini tossed in cream, black pepper and parmesan cheese.

The main course was even more dissatifying. Tough roast meat, cut thickly with a chunky mushroom sauce slathered across the top, and our side order of baked fennel (fennikel) was boring and severely undercooked.

To focus on the good things, highlights of the meal included the wine list (with reasonable prices), the small warm bread rolls that started the meal, and the service (which I found friendly, yet uninterfering).