Can Danish people please feed me everyday? I mean look at this:
It’s not even a DSLR shot, I took it on my iPhone and I haven't even bothered with post-production.
New Nordic cuisine might just be my favourite thing to eat right now. And not because it’s trendy or was last year and I’ve just caught on. Because it’s brilliant.
It tends to sound and look deceptively simple. When you taste it, you might be fooled, because the flavours work so well together that it is as though you have always eaten them that way. But don’t be deceived - there is an incredible amount of care, attention and precision behind the combinations, the cooking and the presentation.
The dishes at Radio were no exception. This was some of the best food I have put in my gob in Copenhagen (and I have put plenty in there over the last year) and with significantly larger portions and lower prices than your average New Nordic restaurant (even better).
It’s not in a particularly memorable location, but the venue is lovely in a typically Danish way: minimalist but warm with lots of natural light, wood and metal fittings. Also typically Danish are the waiting staff: beautiful, kind and helpful, if a little inefficient.
I was pondering over an extensive selection of Rieslings and had finally settled on one when my sister said that she’d have the Sancerre Rose. “I’ll have what she’s having”. It was the perfect choice for a bright and hot summer’s day and went very well with all the savoury dishes (and my newly acquired ‘tan’). It was crisp and fresh when cold, but developed as it reached room temperature into a full-bodied wine with notes of summer berries and honey.
At lunchtime they offer the five-course dinner menu or you can just choose the dishes you want for 100kr each (about £10). This is crazy cheap for this calibre of cooking and the generous portion sizes mean 4 dishes to share was more than enough (although I have to admit that I probably ate a basket of bread to myself - would you be able to resist crusty sourdough with caramelised onion butter?).
Radio have taken the menu writing trend of listing ingredients to the next level by not even listing them on the same line:
SCALLOPS
POTATOES
SMOKED CHEESE
…but I’ll forgive them on account of how delectable it was. Little rounds of boiled potatoes on a bed of creamy, smoked cheese sauce and topped with perfectly cooked scallops sprinkled with potato crisps. Yes, like actual crisps. It sounds weird, but they provided a great contrast with the soft and supple scallops and tender boiled potatoes.
Writing this I realise how very unappetising it sounds – and that’s what I thought when I read the menu – but it was truly delicious. This is one of the things I love about New Nordic food; I am often nonplussed or even a little sceptical about how the dish sounds and then more than impressed by how it comes together on the plate.
MACKEREL
CABBAGE
DILL was, likewise, more interesting than it sounds. The mackerel had been lightly seared but was mostly raw. It was exceptionally fresh and tender. The cabbage brought another element of freshness and crunch, while the crispy rye breads added both texture and grounded the dish with a nutty, earthy flavour. The sauce was light and delicate, with a hint of garlic and citrus, and brought all the elements of the dish together without overpowering.
CHICKEN
BROCCOLI
RAMSON was the dish I was least looking forward to but turned out to be my favourite. I rarely order chicken because I think it will be boring, but I inevitably enjoy it when I am persuaded in that direction. In this case tender thigh pieces came swimming in a sauce that both looked and tasted umami rich and creamy, in contrast with the al dente broccoli which balanced the intensity of the dish.
The ransoms (wild garlic) came two ways – oil and flowers. The flowers are deceptively pretty – don’t be fooled! They have a pungent, piquant garlic flavour and will leave you wishing you had some breath freshner or mints for after.
I don’t have a lot of love for desserts, but when I do fall for one it is usually cause it is verging on savoury.
RHUBARB
YOGHURT
CHOCOLATE was my perfect pudd. Tart and sweet pickled rhubarb – crunchy rather than boiled to a pulp; fresh and tangy iced yoghurt – light but creamy; and thin chocolate biscuits which tasted a bit like Oreos – bitter sweet. It covered all my bases and then some. Home run.
Four dishes and four glasses of wine later we were feeling more than satiated and a little tipsy. It was the perfect lunch on a perfect summer's day. I went gaga over Radio.