During my trip to Copenhagen recently, I splurged on a luxurious lunch dining at Geranium, a three Michelin star restaurant run by a chef who has won gold, silver and bronze at the Bocuse D’or, essentially an international culinary Olympics. It was a lunch that lasted 4 hours, basically filled me up so dinner was no longer necessary, and included 18 small dishes. I’ll also say upfront that this was a meal that has me tightening up my food dining budget for the rest of the year – the Autumn Universe Tasting menu, which is prix fixe, is 2,500 DKK – about $382. And that is before any beverage pairings (wine pairing options range from 1,400-4,200 DKK), though I opted for the juice pairing at 750 DKK. Is it worth it? It is if you have the right mindframe.
In the back glass case behind the fireplace you can see the Bocuse D’or, trophies of with gold, silver, and bronze.
My experience dining at Geranium was not my first experience in the Michelin star restaurant world – and in of course a controversial arbitrary filter the Michelin stars are only awarded in four cities in the US. The limitation means that you can definitely find food that is just as delicious without the Michelin star in both high and low places, including I think here in Portland.
That said, there is a certain difference between difference that I do notice at the few Michelin starred restaurants I have experienced– and its beyond deliciousness. What IMHO are the differentiating factors are consistency in all the dishes are executed at a high level, the elegant and meticulously designed service, and finally overall dining experience being composed of more then just the food that goes in your mouth. So to make the Geranium or any of this level of restaurant feel worth it, you have to be aware and appreciate those additional characteristics.
It’s a little weird to find Geranium given it’s location at the Telia Parken Stadium. The atmosphere of Geranium is clean and minimalist in white and grey tones, but also comfortable. I appreciated that my dining seat was basically a mini-couch, complete with a couple pillows. Floor to ceiling windows let us look out into the bright autumn foliage and sunshine of the Fælledparken Garden outside. It was perfection in setting the stage and underscoring throughout the meal when the theme is Autumn. The same menu is served at lunch and dinner and I prefer enjoying it in the full light of day then.
My table also was right next to the area of the kitchen where they did the plating (the cooking of the dishes happens in additional kitchen areas beyond, which you get to see later before dessert as part of the restaurant tour). There is one more table you can barely see behind mine where the occupant can watch all the plating happen, but I liked the option to also watch the other diners in the room or turn to see the kitchen easily. I was literally the first guest for lunch to show up (which is why my photos initially show an empty dining room), so often I was among the first to get a dish and I could also watch the fun of the reactions of other diners to those dishes.
