Bror

Bubbles to start off with - here a Blonde 2011 made from chardonnay and viognier by Andre Calek in Ardèche.

Snack #1 - Fried ox testicles. Great idea, but the execution needs a bit of work. We felt that the testicles were probably too water-y for the breading to stick properly. The tesicles in themselves by the way, did not taste like much, but the breading was very well-seasoned.

Snack #2 - Squid, söl, and white wine. B was not a huge fan, but I loved this snack. Ultra tender squid in a rich white wine broth, the consistency was almost like a pasta of sorts.

First dish was pike perch with cucumber, spruce, and nasturtium. At the table we were also served a broth made from grilled cucumber and spruce to pour over. Very delicate dish, maybe even a bit too understated in its final expression. In the glass, a Rhône number - more specifically a 2008 Saint Péray by Japanese winemaker Hirotake Ooka.

As a little intermezzo we shared a tartare - a very memorable one at that. The meat being very coursely chopped, but still tender, and incredibly flavorful. The dish also featured rhubarb, which was an excellent addition to the meat, leaving us with an impression of a very simple but pure dish.

Catfish with two sorts of seaweed and pickled onion. Accompanied by a glass of Mâcon-Prety by Alexandre Jouveaux this was one of the evening's highlights.

Onglet with charred leek and shredded cauliflower...

...with a scrumptious green sauce to accompany.

The details of the dessert have unfortunately slipped my mind, though I do remember it as being very pleasing. The main stars of the plate were white chocolate parfait, rhubarb and a lovely, sweet crunch to end it off.

Bror
Skt. Pederstræde 24
1453 Copenhagen K

Notes:
There are few places that are open in Copenhagen on Sundays, but Bror is welcome addition to the little club of restaurants that are. For B's birthday, which incidentally fell on a Sunday in April, we set out to try Bror. As you enter the restaurant you immediately sense the welcoming, buzzing atmosphere featuring dark wood, dim lighting, and a clientele that appeared to represent most corners of the world. The service is friendly and knowing but also quite unstructured and not very speedy - not that we did mind very much as we had great natural wine in our glasses and plenty to talk about. As to the food, I had initially feared that the courses would be too Noma-inspired, but fortunately I was wrong, though you can certainly see where the two head chefs have plenty of their inspiration from. I was instead pleasantly surprised to experience that the dishes at Bror leave you not only with an impression of something that certainly is a take on Nordic cuisine but also something with little pretention and where the main objective is to serve food that is well-tasting rather than just interesting - impressively Bror manages to do both. A four-course menu will set you back 350dkk, which I consider quite a bargain at this level. Highly recommended!