S1:E9+10 | Copenhagen

Art and Food

By Nathan Tsai

October 9^th, 2017

Re-introduction

This is a continuation of my journal of my trip through Scandinavia. Even though my trip concluded earlier this year, a combination of circumstances led to a growing backlog of photos waiting for me to finish processing. I was originally going to just upload photos in a gallery like my Atlanta shots, but after processing just a few days of photographs, I realized that if I couldn't talk about the food and the things I saw, then it would be a disservice to my future self.

Additionally, I've lost about a day of photographs of my time driving through Sweden (it would have been S1:E8). It's no great loss as—according to my records—I spent more than 10 hours on the road. My friend's ancestors had descended from two villages in southern Sweden (Mörlunda and Kristala) and we spent the day driving through lovely forests, rolling hills, and wending our way through small towns.

So without further ado, we pick off more or less where we left off.

Back in Copenhagen after much driving in Sweden. All serious tasks completed. With time to explore and relax.

S1:E9 | a day of nothing

Between the long day of driving yesterday, the early morning flights my friends had to catch, and having to move hotels, I spent the majority of the day catching up on emails, processing photos, and napping.

I did however make it out to a wonderful Italian restaurant for dinner.

Famo Metro

Øster Søgade 114, 2100 København Ø, Denmark

The food was great. Rustic, country, traditional Italian food.

No fancy ingredients, no pretentiousness in how the plate was presented, and the whole staff was constantly in motion, communicating in bursts of Italian, and waving their hands.

Just like it should be.

A few things stood out to me during the dinner.

The first antipasti (top row, left) was a blend of squid, pork, and octopus with a savory and slightly tangy sauce. It's a dish I've never seen before, and I don't remember the name at all. The pork was cooked like the veal in a vitello tonnato and the seafood was thinly sliced and lightly grilled over an open flame. It was a dish that seemed to be just a bunch of tasty bits and bobs thrown together and tossed with lemon and salt. Even though it didn't present well (and maybe doesn't sound so appetizing) it tasted like comfort food to me.

The pasta dish (middle row, right) was fresh macaroni tossed with a duck ragù. Again, nothing fancy, just al-dente pasta and a thin sauce with plenty of duck. The sauce was a little sweet, the pasta was slightly chewy, and the duck was perfectly salted. I could have eaten a whole pot of the stuff.

The secondi piatti (bottom row, left) was about as "plain Jane" you can get with a roast chicken. Mashed potatoes on the bottom, spinach in the middle, chicken on top. Gravy to cover the whole thing. Lordy. The chicken was exquisite. The meat was so tender it was already falling apart on my plate.

S1:E10 | Louisiana

Those that know me can testify to the fact that I love modern art museums.

On my previous trip through Denmark, I was unable to make the hour-long journey out of Copenhagen to the town of Humlebæk. The Louisiana MOMA is nestled within this cozy town and it takes an hour by train coupled with another twenty minutes of walking to make it to the front door.

It was worth it.

Wang shu | 王澍

The founder of the Amateur Architecture Studio and winner of the Pritzker Architecture Prize, Wang Shu is one of China's most acclaimed modern architects. Together with his wife, Lu Wenyu (陆文宇), they experiment with materials, ideas, and designs to create architecture that fits in with the humanity and the environment of any given area.

On display at Louisiana was a collection of wooden building models and a sampling of their experiments with materials.

The materials used in the construction of the buildings that Amateur Architecture Studio designs are unique. They're an amalgamation of local resources used in creative new ways.

For example, instead of finishing a concrete building with a flat, hard look, they took some woven bamboo (normally used for roofing) and used it as the mold for the concrete. This simple adjustment (normally, molds are just sheets of plywood), adds texture and movement to the building. See the pictures (bottom row, center) for reference.

The rest of the museum

There were lots of other interesting pieces throughout the rest of the museum. Notably, they were hosting an Andy Warhol exhibit which was great; while I understand the appeal of pop-art, I am not a huge fan of the style because it's been overused.

Lunch was a wonderful affair. The staircase leading up to the cafeteria was beautiful and the lunch was fairly-priced (for a museum) and the food was great. The farro and carrot salad (top left) was chewy and fresh. The fish (bottom left) was perfectly cooked per Scandinavian standards. The rest of the meal was not too bad either. Certainly something I'd be happy to always eat.

The Grounds

While the weather was a bit blustery and cold, the grounds outside were lovely to stroll around.

Heading back

On the way back to Copenhagen, I warmed up by a small cafe near the train station and picked up an espresso and a chocolate pastry. It set me back less than $3 USD and the espresso alone tasted better than any coffee I could have gotten in the US.

Torvehallerne

Frederiksborggade 21, 1360 København K, Denmark

Oh man, oh man. Looking back on my entire trip through Denmark, the Torvehallerne was probably my favorite thing ever. From the moment I stumbled upon it, I went back every single day until I had to leave for my next port of call.

Essentially, there were two long, rectangular, glass buildings which housed twenty or thirty mini-storefronts. There was a farmer's market which operated seven days a week that set up shop in the plaza between the two buildings. The diversity of the cuisine and food one could buy was immense. Some contrasts that stand out from memory were:

Fine Californian wines and oragnic juice cold-pressed on the spot
Jamón from Spain and prosciutto from Italy
Deep-fried sausages and vegan heath cafes
French, Danish, German, and even Japanese bakeries
Olives so fresh they were being offered by the basket and micro-brewed beer which was filled straight from the cask

It was a panoply of flavors, cultures, and people. Locals were dashing straight through to grab a bite or just slowly walking through, stopping to sample some freshly made paella or nipping on some custard tarts that were just pulled out of the oven. I saw people enjoying a fine tumbler of whiskey while pointing at the cut of beef the butcher should carve for their dinner. It was a lively, colorful marketplace that had so much of everything.

I ended up spending an hour or two just eating, watching, and smiling.

The lodgings

What I do for work lets me stay at some fun places when I travel. This particular hotel—the AC Hotel in Copenhagen—intrigued me the last time I was in Denmark. Architecturally, the building certainly stands out. From a distance, it looks like a giant pair of trousers.

Regardless, I still think it's a beautifully designed building and the views, the layout, and the massing of the whole thing is great.

Dinner

I originally had plans to go out for dinner, but after spending time at the food hall, I realized I wasn't going to have much room left in my stomach for a full dinner. I planned ahead and picked up some cured meats (I love jamón and bresaola) and a tin of olives. I stayed in, organized my equipment, and settled in for a nice rest.