Geranium: The Best Restaurant in Copenhagen
It’s not the first time a Copenhagen restaurant has taken the most coveted gong at The World’s 50 Best Restaurants Awards – but this time, it’s Rasmus Kofoed’s Geranium that took the crown from Rene Redzepi’s Noma.
Geranium took home the number one award on the 2022 list, announced at a starry ceremony in London that was attended by many of the restaurant teams nominated as well as lots of previous winners for the first time since before the pandemic.
The Unique Setting of Geranium
Kofoed’s restaurant sits in the rather curious setting of Copenhagen’s Parken, the football stadium that’s home to the Danish national football team. It’s more picturesque than it sounds – set on the eighth floor, the dining room is all light woods and creamy walls, flooded with light from the huge windows. Those windows extend out over the parkland below, across to the copper rooftops of the city’s skyline.
Innovative Seasonal Menu
In 2022, Kofoed and the team decided to revamp the restaurant and the menu they served here. The chefs no longer use meat in their dishes, although seafood is still a star player. “The menu is a reflection of me, of who I am and how I am evolving as a chef and as a human being,” Kofoed stated on Instagram at the time. “I haven’t been eating meat for the last five years at home, so to no longer use meat on the new menu was a logical decision and a natural progression for Geranium.”
A Culinary Experience Like No Other
Meals are made up of 22 tasting-style dishes and change with the seasons, showcasing items such as artfully contorted salted herring with algae and dill stems or preposterously pretty winter greens with flowering Brussels sprout and leeks. The 2022 menu costs 4,200DKK (about £365), with options for a range of wine pairings or non-alcoholic drinks pairings.
A History of Excellence
Geranium’s first entry on the World’s 50 Best list came in 2013, the same year it was awarded two Michelin stars. The team earned a third Michelin star in 2016, making it the first Danish restaurant to achieve the maximum number of stars.
Notable Competitors and Recognition
Copenhagen neighbor Noma, the winner of the previous year’s list, was moved to the ‘Best of the Best’ section – a subset of restaurants who have previously placed first and therefore become ineligible to win again. Other restaurants on the ‘Best of the Best’ list include Osteria Francescana, led by Massimo Bottura, who was interviewing his industry friends during the London awards.
Geranium’s Continental Ranking
Central in Lima, Peru, placed just behind Geranium at number two, making it the continental winner of Best Restaurant in South America, while Disfrutar in Barcelona rounded out the top three.
Chef Rasmus Kofoed’s Favorites
As for where Rasmus Kofoed likes to eat when he’s not at the pass at Geranium – he tipped Koan in Copenhagen as the best meal he’d had recently when chatting to Condé Nast Traveller on the red carpet. “It was Korean inspired,” he said. “It was full of new flavours I hadn’t discovered before.”
