Copenhagen Eats: Dinner at Amass
Copenhagen is very expensive for eating. Very, very expensive. A McDonald's meal can set you back US$10. So I decided to treat myself: I went to have the prix fixe dinner at Amass restaurant. At 575 DKK, or about US$85, I thought this was quite a good value in relation to Copenhagen prices.
I wanted to try out what's been called "New Nordic" cuisine, yet I didn't make any reservations ahead of time. I came across Amass in my search - it's headed by a former Chef de Cuisine of Noma, the New Nordic restaurant named Matt Orlando. It turns out Matt is from San Diego originally! Plus they hold back a few seats every evening for walk-ins which I love. So I figured if I would have a shot at a nice meal in Copenhagen, this would be it.
Amass is located away from the city center, accessible by water bus.
I was seated right away, as I arrived close to opening time.
One aspect about Amass that is very striking is that the chefs and cooks themselves present each course, explaining things as you go along! This was a delicious first course, "to get your hands dirty" as the cook who presented it told me. Vinegar crisp, with the tiniest cubes of potato in potato salad with marigold leaves
The pastry chef, Milton Abel, presented the bread. "I'll be bringing you fresh bread throughout your dinner." A potato flatbread with a kale and pepper topping. Very dense, but so delicious. Could have been a meal by itself. I read later that before Amass, Milton was pastry chef at French Laundry (and before that Noma).
This was a super delicious salad - with raw langoustines underneath the lettuce from the garden, "beach plants," and a super delicious crispy chicken skin dressing which the cook ladled from a small saucepan onto the salad as she was explaining the dish.
I did not like the following course very much - raw egg yolk in roasted corn broth with black pepper oil. It was very funky tasting.
I did not like this course either. Roasted beets, dried yellow plums, and almond oil, which made it all very unctuous. Somewhere in there is red seaweed.
A very interesting main course. Rare duck, said the cook, "wild, in this case Mallard. Because it's wild, please be careful in case there are bullet shards, but we slice the duck very thinly so there shouldn't be any." With green dots of sorrel and oyster sauce, and mustard greens.
Milton, the pastry chef, came back and presented the yeast ice cream, sliced apples, pastry crust, and whisky caramel sauce. "I like to have a little bit of everything in each bite. It's how I designed it." I asked about yeast ice cream. "It's not like ice cream flavored with the cubes of yeast you buy in the market. I put yeast in the milk and it develops the flavor. Think of it like wine or beer."
Mignardise: freshly baked carrot cake mini muffins, with creme fraiche and carrot reduction. All for me! The joys of dining solo.
I was seated at a high ledge looking outside, and behind me was the open kitchen. It was thrilling to hear the chef yell out orders and then to hear the others acknowledge him in a loud, crisp "Yes, Chef!" Just like Top Chef!
There were some hits and some misses as far as the food went, but overall this was one of the most memorable meals I've had with the unique flavors and the care with which every course was presented by the cooks themselves. Highly recommend.
