A visit to Denmark must include trying the country’s famous, impossible-to-pronounce open-faced sandwich, smørrebrød (I’m fairly certain that only native Danish speakers can pronounce it properly -"SMUHR-bruth”). Smørrebrød translates to “buttered bread,” and a traditional smørrebrød lunch usually includes three or four small sandwiches ranging from potatoes and radish to egg salad. The once working-class lunch gets a chefy makeover at Aamanns where the smørrebrød is served on homemade rye bread. The restaurant design is charming, with big stencils of radishes and cows on the walls. Order the smørrebrød trio for lunch, and ask to have it paired with a biodynamic wine.
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Authentic, affordable smørrebrød in Copenhagen
Smørrebrød are a daily staple of the Danish diet, which centers on hearty food with fresh ingredients. They’re open-faced sandwiches, with only one slice of bread each, and they burst with flavor. They’re also one of the prettier things I’ve ever consumed. Aamanns is a great place to try your first ones: it’s unpretentious and casual, but one of the best places to eat in Copenhagen. Let me explain their goodness, which almost always comes on dense Nordic rye bread: the left is Nordic salmon (lox), whipped cream cheese (not your average bagel smear), sliced onion, pickled tomatoes, and dill; the right is goat cheese, pickled red onion, radish, and a bushel of tender herbs. Oh, and to make you feel better about “jipping” you of the other slice of bread to your sandwich, Aamanns places a crispy chip of thin, salty bread right across the top, which I assure you is just as satisfying as the other.
Aamanns
Aamanns has taken the traditional Danish open-faced sandwich and given it a modern twist. Not only are the sandwiches delicious—think terrine of confit pork with mustard, thyme, milk curd, plums, bacon, and celery—but each one looks like a work of art.
