Restaurant 108 opened in 2016 and is probably most famous (yet) for being owned by Noma.
When they first opened, they had a pop-up restaurant at Noma (as the Noma crew was in Australia) but since this summer, Restaurant 108 has its own location, which is Strandgade 108. We run past Restaurant 108 on our Christiania Tour and Architecture tour. We always recommend this restaurant to our running tour guests as one of the new restaurants in Copenhagen that are well-worth a try. Runners are suckers for good food and wine, aren’t we?
I went there with a couple of friends and as we did not have a booking, we went there early to get a seat at the shared table. It worked well but that was the first time I was queuing outside a restaurant here in Copenhagen. Luckily, this is not required anymore as Restaurant 108 is open from 8 am for coffee and pastries and in the afternoon, you are able to buy wine as well.
Many of our running guests have tried to get a table at Noma, but without luck, so it is great that we now have an alternative and the possibility to recommend a Noma owned restaurant, that follows many of the same ideologies.
Restaurant 108 – The food
Restaurant 108 serves Nordic food and focuses on the terroir of the region. They work closely with the local farmers and like many of the other Nordic restaurants, here in Copenhagen, there is a lot of fermentation, pickling etc. of the ingredients. That said, they are not religious about everything being Nordic, so do not be surprised if you find non-Nordic ingredients in a dish (hence the “…and beyond” in the title).
If you follow these guys on social media, you can see how they are firstly foraging the local area to find ingredients and thereafter apply their many techniques to give them different tastes, textures and of course make them last during the winter season.
The menu is a selection of small dishes and I would recommend that you have around 3-4 per person. The menu naturally changes with the season, but if the dish with Romaine Salad is on the menu, it comes with my warmest and most mouth-watering recommendation.
In addition to meat and fish dishes there are also a few vegetarian dishes and even as a solid protein lover, I must say that their veggie dishes are out of this world. So even as a meat lover, I would strongly recommend trying at least one of their vegetarian dishes.
In my opinion, the best thing about a menu with a list of small dishes is that if you – like me – are not a dessert person but very much a ”starter” person, then you can go wild in the savory world, without worrying about eating or enjoying dessert. I guess it works the other way around as well. If you are a dessert person, then you can go crazy on the desserts. This is of course with a bit of begging and requesting also possible in other restaurants but at Restaurant 108 it is just a bit easier and really with the selection of dishes – you are in heaven regardless of whether you have a salt or sugar preference.
Though 180 works closely with Noma, they have their own test kitchen and create dishes that are entirely their own. There is an incredible amount of innovation, creativity and aesthetics and no doubt you will be both wauwed and surprised.
Dishes start from around DKK 100 and the most expensive dish is at the time of writing 180 DKK. It is also possible to order favourite dishes such as lamb shoulder or monkfish tail as a larger sharing dish for the table that is between 600-900 kroners.
Restaurant 108 – The wine
Restaurant 108 is just down my alley with regards to the wine selection. They have some amazing Natural wine and a solid” by the glass” menu. Rock on Restaurant 108! You will find wines from France but also Austria, Spain and Italy. All wines from small vineyards with a respect for the terroir and the natural process.
If natural wine is new to you, then check out my blog about natural wine and the best Natural Wine bars here.
To give an indication of prices per glass, then a glass of bubbles to start off your evening is between DKK 75-110 and glasses of wine start at around DKK 80. For Copenhagen and for the type of wine, this is a very reasonable price.
As mentioned earlier in this blog post, then Restaurant 108 is open all day and from noon, you can sip wine while looking at the canal, the houseboats and the bike and pedestrian traffic of Copenhagen. And I guess what I am trying to say with this paragraph is that even if you are not going to eat at Restaurant 108 then it is still worth a visit, simply to drink wine (or beer, or coffee etc.) and spoil yourself to an afternoon tipsiness!
Restaurant 108 – The head chef
The head chef of Restaurant 108 is Kristian Baumann and he has a past from Noma, Relæ and 1. th and his vision is to create a restaurant that is accessible, relaxed and welcoming. The restaurant is located at Christianshavn between Inderhavnsbroen and Transgravbroen and it is a nice vibrant place that in the summer is full of life and atmosphere.
To get an impression of their food my best advice is to visit the 108 website or Facebook page as they have some pretty amazing pictures on both communication channels, and you can see the aesthetics and preciseness that their dishes are.
I almost forgot to write that the atmosphere in Restaurant 108 is very cosy and relaxing and the staff is of course very nice and knowledgeable. But that almost goes without saying!
So in short: Visit Restaurant 108 – it comes with my warmest recommendations and you will with guarantee be spoilt both in terms of food and wine.
That is it for now and if you are in Copenhagen I hope you have a great time eating and drinking here and in case you would like to run and get even more local insights, then we are here to serve.
Happy eating and happy running,
Lena
Photo credits by the official facebook page of 108.
