Café Bang & Jensen in Copenhagen

Ok, I just have to introduce you to one more of my favourite cafés in Copenhagen: Café Bang & Jensen, which is situated in an old pharmacy in the nice end of Istedgade on Vesterbro. If you look closely at the picture below you can just make out the beautiful old Art Nouveau frieze/mural on the back wall.

This place is very special to me.

When I first moved to Copenhagen many years ago I shared a flat on a Vesterbrogade with a good friend. We were both single, so all weekends were spent partying, and on lazy late Saturdays and Sundays mornings we would drag our hung-over bodies down to Bang & Jensen to recuperate over brunch. You order brunch by filling out a slip, indicating how you want your egg, if you want plain or chocolate croissants etc.

And a few years later Sam and I went here on our first date. We had been to the cinema to watch The Sixth Sense and ended up having quite a few pints here, as you do when you’re a bit nervous on a first date.

So this is a place I’ll always return to and I often arrange to meet up with my friends here when I’m in Denmark. And I quite like the haphazard decor with red café tables in the front room and a sofa and armchair lounge in the back. In the summer you can sit outside.

The menu is just as unassuming with cheap and easy-to-prepare café fare (they don’t have a proper kitchen) such as baba ghanoush (see pics), chili con carne, burritos and sandwiches.

In the evening Bang & Jensen turns into a proper bar and is open until 2 in the morning.

Café Bang og Jensen
Istedgade 130
1650 København V
Website
Map

Café Dyrehaven – Copenhagen

Another café I keep returning to when in Copenhagen is Café Dyrehaven, nestled on a quiet corner on outer Vesterbro.

This used to be an old værtshus/pub, but luckily the make-over has left behind some of the old features and it now oozes “hipster retro” with all its dark wood, bright orange lamps and antlers on the walls. Not to forget the trendy yet friendly staff behind the bar.

So retro and old pub-like is it that I know someone who went to explore this place when it first opened. After having spent half and hour or so  in a dingy smoke-filled old pub 50 metres from this one they finally realised they were in the wrong place.

And the food is great. They mainly do classic Danish food with a contemporary twist. For lunch you can get everything from salads to the famous smørrebrød/open sandwiches like the one shown below.

In the evening there’s always a handful of warm dishes to choose between. When I was there in December I had medisterpølse/Danish pork sausage with potatoes and red cabbage and it was really, really good. Prices are very reasonable.

Dyrehaven
Sdr. Boulevard 72
1720 København V
Website
Map

Kalaset – Mormor brunch in Copenhagen

A quick post about one of my favourite cafés in the centre of Copenhagen (a part from my beloved shawarma place of course, but that hardly counts as a café).

Kalaset lies on the corner of Vendersgade and Nansensgade. The interior is cosy and very laid-back with red walls and loads of old mis-matching furniture. It just has this friendly and relaxed vibe to it, which makes you want to use the café as your extended living-room.

Maybe it’s because it’s owned by Swedes, because the service is very friendly too. Not something you see often in Copenhagen.

And then there’s the food. Kalaset makes a helluva brunch. So good is it that it has been awarded the title “Copenhagen’s Best Brunch” by Danish newspaper Politiken.

The brunch comes in different versions: there’s the Mormor (grandmother) with bacon, eggs, sausages, potatoes, smoothie etc. (pictured) and if you don’t eat meat you should go for the vegetarian Tante (aunt).

Prices are very reasonable, considering you’re in one of the world’s most expensive cities: around 90 kroner (£10) for a brunch. You can also get traditional café food such as sandwiches, salads, burgers etc.

In the summer you can sit outside.

Kalaset, Vendersgade 16, 1363 Copenhagen K. Map.

Favourite café – Vicki’s

Photo: Mette Bassett

Berlin og København er kendt for dem, London knap så meget. Måske er det de tusindevis af hyggelige pubber og restauranter i alle prisklasser, der gør det, men det kan være svært at finde en afslappet, hjemlig café med masser af salater og lette retter på menuen. Heldigvis ligger der en 5 minutter fra, hvor vi bor.

Vicki’s er måske ikke stedet, man slår sig ned i flere timer med sin laptop, i hvert fald ikke i weekenden, hvor der er travlt. Men man kigger gerne forbi igen og igen for at gå ombord i en af deres mange lækre retter, der oftest er gavmildt proppet med godter fra den store salatmontre indenfor. Min absolutte favorit er “fishcake with a selection of salads”, hvor “fishcaken” er tun rørt op med cremefraiche og krydderurter, som derefter ovnbages.

De ultralækre salater serveres også med kyllingebryst eller en hamburger. Er det dagen derpå, så forsvinder tømmermænd med et trylleslag efter en club sandwich med kylling, bacon og avocado eller en grum omgang “english breakfast”. Priser omkring 9-10 pund.

Året igennem er der udeservering og Vicky’s holder også aften-åbent. Her må man endda tage sin egen vin med (mod et mindre beløb).

Vicky’s, 28 Clifton Road, Maida Vale, London W9 1ST

English: Maybe it’s because of the huge amount of cosy pubs and cheap restaurants, but it can be really hard to locate a relaxed and homely café in London that focuses on salad-based dishes.

Vicki's chicken burger w. fat parmesan chips. Photo: Mette Bassett

Luckily we have one 5 minutes from where we live. Vicki’s is a tiny “eaterie” with a selection of some of the yummiest salads I’ve ever had. It is located on a small shopping street in Maida Vale, just next to the horrible chain “Cafe Rouge”.

You can get their selection of salads with: the legendary fishcakes which are my absolute favorite (oven-baked tuna mixed w. creme fraiche, herbs etc) or served with chicken breast or with a hamburger if you’re in that mood. Prices around 9-10 pounds.

If you’re hungover there’s no  better cure than their ol’ mean english breakfast or a club sandwich with bacon and lots of avocado. Vicki’s has more tables outside than inside and has recently opened for the evening as well. They don’t serve alcohol but you can bring your own, making an evening meal really affordable.

Vicky’s, 28 Clifton Road, Maida Vale, London W9 1ST

Fishcakes w. salads. Photo: Mette Bassett