Geranium Restaurant was announced as the World’s Best Restaurant by The World’s 50 Best Restaurants Awards last July. The Nordic restaurant headed by Chef Rasmus Kofoed envisions an ultrafine dining experience that awakens the senses. The restaurant earned the accolade after being voted by food lovers and then reviewed by a panel of industry experts. The panel includes chefs, restaurateurs, food writers, connoisseurs and well-travelled gourmet food lovers.
The View
The restaurant sits on the 8th floor of Telia Perkin, Denmark’s national football stadium overlooking the vibrant Fælledparken garden in Copenhagen. The diners behold the panoramic view of the gardens through the wall-to-floor glass windows that encircle the restaurant. And simultaneously experience the carefully curated seasonal Nordic flavours; a multisensory affair.
“The location emphasises Geranium’s vision of gastronomic clarity and diversity. We explore the area of tension between the urbane and the natural,” they say.
The Ambience
The dining area has an airy vibe with its off-white walls, light wooden textures lot of light flooding in from the windows. The custom-made oak and nubuck leather chairs, and marble top tables exude the Nordic essence. And then, local artist Rikke Darling added a final touch to the design with botanical paintings – wild nature, plants and insects on the walls.
Menu: The Universe
Geranium offers a tasting menu that reflects the chef’s creativity, instead of an à la carte menu. You will be presented with a series of around 22 tasting-style dishes classified into appetizers, savoury servings, and sweets. The menu changes occasionally, reflects the season, and is created using locally sourced ingredients. For instance, they source their greens from Kiselgården, one of the oldest biodynamic farms in Denmark
Some of the chef’s favourite memories, like the visit to the Palace of Versailles, memorable childhood pictures and even walking in nature or along the ocean have inspired his dishes.
The Experience
The artful creations are plated to perfection to create magic in our palate. The chef uses edible flowers and leaves for garnish, an element of the chef’s aesthetics.
Some of the popular “like-worthy” dishes would be Abstract of king crab with pickled kohlrabi, söl and caviar garnished with flowers. And then, there is green asparagus, seasonal plants and aged cheese with wild garlic leaves. The dish Courgette “Roi Soleil” from the previous Summer Menu was created using lemon verbena, green sprouts and goat cheese.
A Pescetarian Menu
In 2022, Geranium revamped its menu and restaurant. They stated that they would no longer serve meat in their dishes. However, there will be seafood to satiate your savoury cravings.
Chef Rasmus Kofoed posted on Instagram, “The menu is a reflection of me, of who I am and how I am evolving as a chef and as a human being. 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.”
The menu features Nordic seafood sourced from local, organic, and biodynamic farms in Copenhagen.
A dining experience with all 22 tasting dishes will take around 3 hours. And the guests can also choose wines, cocktails or mocktails to complement the dishes for a “magical moment that feels like a dream”.
