Winter in Copenhagen, Denmark is a Christmas dream: hearty stews, warm spiced wine, crackling roasts, and festive Christmas Markets cover the city. Danish food is at its best during Jul, aka Danish Christmas. From sweet pickled herring to apple pancake puffs, traditional Danish dishes in Copenhagen are unique – and absolutely delicious!
There are tons of amazing things to do in Copenhagen in the winter – here’s 12 of our favorites – but this post is all about just one thing: food! Well OK, and drinks.
We visited Copenhagen in early December and were treated to some of the most delicious Christmas holiday food we’ve ever had. Whenever we got too cold as we explored the city on foot, we popped into one of the zillion specialty coffee shops or picked up a mug of hot mulled wine at a Christmas Market to warm us up.
We discovered that we absolutely LOVE traditional Danish Christmas foods, like Christmas spice pickled herring and Flæskesteg. Read on to find out the best food to eat in Copenhagen in the winter!
Psst: We have a couple more posts about visiting Copenhagen in the winter! If you’re planning a trip, you’ll definitely want to take a look at these.
- 12 Charming Things to Do in Copenhagen in Winter
- Copenhagen Castles Guide: Self-Guided Day Trip from Copenhagen
- The Perfect 7-Day Norway Itinerary for an Epic Winter Trip
- 15 Things To Do in Aarhus, Denmark – The “City of Smiles”
We’ve also helpfully compiled the information in our 3 Copenhagen posts into a handy dandy PDF that you can take with you on your trip! Sign up below to download the FREE Copenhagen Winter Guide.
6 Traditional Danish Christmas Foods
Danish Christmas (or Jul) is typically celebrated on Christmas Eve with a big traditional feast, chock full of delicious Danish holiday dishes. Luckily, you can find most of the traditional Christmas foods served throughout the winter in Copenhagen, to get a taste of classic Danish food. Don’t miss these yummy Danish holiday dishes while you visit Copenhagen!
Flæskesteg: Imagine if pork was the consistency of butter, with all the best parts of crispy bacon. Yup, it’s melt in your mouth salty goodness. Mmmm!Flæskesteg is delicious Danishpork roast with crackling skin, and is served on Christmas Eve as part of the traditional Danish Christmas dinner. We found flæskesteg all over Copenhagen in the winter (including served nightly in our hostel) but our favorite was at Gorm’s.
- Gorm’s| Address: Magstræde 16, 1204 København K, Denmark
Rødkål or Krystkål: Red Cabbage, usually served alongside pork roast, boiled potatoes, and gravy as part of the traditional Danish Christmas Eve dinner.
Æbleskiver: Pancake Puffs! These adorable little balls are exactly what they sound like: round, fluffy balls of pancake deliciousness. Our favorites were dusted with sugar and served with fresh jam at Tivoli Gardens.
Smørrebrød: A Danish classic, Smørrebrød is an open faced sandwich on hearty Danish rye bread topped with lard or butter and varying perfectly paired toppings. It’s like, the original fancy toast. The best place to get it is at Aamann’s, which has a few locations, including one in the airport. If you make it all the way to the airport and somehow haven’t tried Smørrebrød, please do yourself a favor and try it before you leave Copenhagen!
- Aamanns Deli & Take Away| Address: Øster Farimagsgade 10
Our favorite Christmas spin on this classic was a holiday Smørrebrød topped with Christmas spice pickled herring! The holiday pickled herring tasted like Christmas itself. Try it at Københavner Cafeen.
- Københavner Cafeen | Address: Badstuestræde 10, 1209 København K, Denmark
Gløgg: If you’ve ever been to a European Christmas Market, you’ve probably seen (and smelled!) mulled wine. While most countries serve Glühwein, the Danish version is called Gløgg and it is quite different: it is sweeter, made with both red wine, brandy and sherry, and it’s mulled with cloves and cinnamon. Each steaming mug of Gløgg is served with slivered almonds and raisins!
Roast Duck: Duck isn’t one of the “classic” Danish Christmas foods, but apparently it’s a recent foodie trend in Copenhagen. We found it shredded in delicious sandwiches in the Copenhagen food markets.
The Best Food Markets in Copenhagen
To our surprise (and delight), the food markets in Copenhagen were amazing, full of foodie finds that made us super happy (because we’re boujie foodie hipsters, let’s not sugar-coat it. Cuz we’d probably eat that too, if it was $15 and served in an avocado).
From groceries to global foods, the Copenhagen food markets have it all. Here are our recommendations for what to eat in Copenhagen food markets!
Torvehallarne Market
Torvehallarne is one of the best food markets we’ve ever been to! Filled with gourmet stalls selling both prepared meals and grocery staples at budget-friendly prices, this is the one stop shop for some of the best food in Copenhagen.
Our favorite food stalls in Torvehallarne Market
- Coffee Collective: A fantastic third wave coffee shop inside the market. Website
- Laura’s Bakery: The cinnamon bun with cream cheese icing is heaven. Website
- Ma Poule: Home of the best sandwich in Copenhagen: the famous duck confit sandwich! Made with arugula and spicy mustard. Delicious! Also, a great selection of charcuterie and cheese. Details
- Gorm’s: The best pizza in the city! We tried a Danish Christmas pizza, and it was heavenly. Website
- Grød: A porridge stall, with a wide selection of unique topped porridge. Morning porridges are sweet, but evening porridges veer into savory territory, such as one topped with kale, parmesan, apples, and walnuts -yum! View the menu here.
- Hallernes Smørrebrød: All Smørrebrød, all the time. Hallernes has a huge selection of delicious looking Smørrebrød, from smoked eel to liver pate to classic herring. At least, we think that’s what they were – we couldn’t find an English menu! We ordered Roast Beef (which in Danish is apparently also called Roast Beef! So helpful) and it was heavenly. Website
Paper Island Street Food Market
Where do you go in Copenhagen when you’re hungry but not quite sure what you want to eat? Paper Island Street Food Market, of course! A huge warehouse filled with colorful ethnic food trucks from around the world (Colombian! Turkish! Moroccan! Korean!) decked out in an anti-establishment, ultra-cool vibe, the crowded street food market features some of the best food in Copenhagen all under one roof.
Bonus: If you’re trying to stick to a raw/gluten free/high protein/paleo diet, this is the food market for you (but good luck, seriously. Kudos. We gave our paleo diet the boot the second we decided to go to France.)
Our favorite food stalls in Paper Island Street Food Market
- Creme Brulee Donut: OK, I couldn’t find the name of the stall. But just look for a sign that says “Creme Brulee Donut.” You’d think it’s just a donut filled with creme brulee cream, but no: the donut itself is actually rolled in sugar and torched right in front of your eyes, making it a crispy, sugary little piece of heaven!
- The Spoon Company: Stick-to-your-ribs Danish stews and soups, made with hearty ingredients. We tried the Venison stew with fresh currants, and it was absolutely perfect on a chilly day.
- Copper & Wheat: Try the duck and arugula sandwich on brioche with crispy duck-fat fries.
- Handmade: Described as “open-faced sandwiches similar to Smørrebrød” on the Paper Island website… but to us non-Danish travelers, it appeared to be identical to Smørrebrød. Try it and let us know if you can tell the difference.
- Stormly: Wash down your meal with a Danish micro-brew beer or rum.
Copenhagen Christmas Markets
I know, this isn’t technically a food market. But it might as well be! Christmas Markets are an excellent place to sample holiday treats and winter food, and the Copenhagen Christmas Markets are no different. These are our favorite holiday treats to eat in Copenhagen Christmas Markets!
Our Favorite Holiday Food in Copenhagen Christmas Markets
- Gløgg: You’ll find hot, steaming mulled Danish wine with raisins and almonds in many of the Christmas Market stalls in Copenhagen, and they’re all quite good! For an even stronger cup of Gløgg, you can add rum.
- Æbleskiver: Pick up some pancake puffs dusted with sugar and served with fresh jam at the Tivoli Gardens Christmas Market.
- Fudge: Stalls with piles of brightly colored fudge can be found all over the Copenhagen Christmas Markets! Our favorite flavor was Strawberry Cheesecake at the Nyhavn Christmas Market.
- Cured Meats: You’ll see several cured meat vendors selling delicious salami, sausage, and every kind of salted and smoked meat you can imagine. There’s usually a nearby cheese stall too…
The Best Specialty Coffee Shops in Copenhagen
Look, we’re unashamedly coffee snobs. We chase single-origin specialty coffee around the globe searching for the best cappuccino and pour-overs. For us, coffee is a comforting, warm holiday drink (or any time of the year drink, but who’s counting?). Although we didn’t get a chance to visit all of the highly-regarded specialty coffee shops in Copenhagen, these are our favorite third wave coffee shops in Copenhagen.
- Risteriet Coffee: You know it’s the real deal when a third wave coffee shop classifies its roasts not by medium, dark, or light, but instead uses the technical terms: city, city plus, or full city. Serving up beans from Africa and South America in a variety of brewing methods – and some we’d never heard of before, like a “cry baby,” which is a cortado with some extra milk – Risteriet is a quiet, unassuming gem close to the tourist district and Tivoli. Website
- Copenhagen Coffee Lab: Quiet and subdued, you’d walk right by the Coffee Lab if you weren’t looking for it. Not much in the way of atmosphere or pastries, but the coffee and espresso is excellent. Website
- Democratic Coffee: Located in what we first believed to be a high-end bookstore but turned out to be the Copenhagen Library (color us impressed), Democratic Coffee is a comfortable place to sprawl out with a book or a magazine, an expertly made almond croissant, and a delicious cappuccino or pour-over.
- Kent Kaffe Laboratorium: Science meets coffee at the detail-obsessed Kent Kaffee Laboratorium, where you can order your single origin coffee in a flask set over a bunsen burner if you like. Website
- Coffee Collective: Worth another mention. Coffee Collection is a fantastic third wave coffee shop inside the Torvehallarne market. Website
Did I make you all warm and fuzzy inside? They call that hygge, you know. Which of these delicious Danish foods made your mouth water? Leave us a comment below!
Also, if your check-in and check-out times don’t sync up with your need to roam the streets and you need a place to store your bags check out LuggageHero, a service that helps you find a safe place to keep your luggage while you’re running around! Use the code PRACTICALW for 2 hours of free luggage storage on us.
Psst: We have a couple more posts about visiting Copenhagen in the winter! If you’re planning a trip, you’ll definitely want to take a look at these. There’s also a great guide to things to do in Copenhagen on Inspired by Maps.
- 12 Charming Things to Do in Copenhagen in Winter
- Copenhagen Castles Guide: Self-Guided Day Trip from Copenhagen
- The Perfect 7-Day Norway Itinerary for an Epic Winter Trip
- 35 Photos of Norway in the Winter to Inspire your Wanderlust
We’ve also helpfully compiled the information in our 3 Copenhagen posts into a handy dandy PDF that you can take with you on your trip! Sign up below to download the FREE Copenhagen Winter Guide.
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Erin says
This is one of the better articles I’ve read about food in Copenhagen. Thank you! I’ll be going during July and not the winter unfortunately…maybe another time hopefully. Do you think it will be easy or hard for our family to eat and travel there with a severe food allergy to dairy? I’d love any advice, I worry about being able to communicate that here in the states, let alone another country.
Practical Wanderlust says
Thanks Erin, I’m sure Copenhagen will be just as charming in July!
Unfortunately, I am not entirely sure about what foods contain dairy but everybody in Copenhagen speaks English so communicating your allergy shouldn’t be a problem
Alyssa says
In the Christmas markets, do they take credit cards or should you have “cash” with you?
Lia Garcia says
Hmmmm I want to say they took credit cards at the food stalls (which is where we spent the vast majority of our money) but to be safe, I think it’s best to carry cash! I think it depends on the seller – a small, independent stall may not be able to afford the credit card processing fees. So bring cash to be on the safe side!
Joan Torres says
The Venison stew looks just freaking amazing! I was in CPH a couple of years back, but I didn’t try any of this food you are showing. I found it pretty expensive to eat in good restaurants, so instead I was eating Chinese and sandwiches. I didn’t know that Danish cuisine was so ellaborated. I lived in Finland for a year and the cuisine there didn’t look asgood as in Denmark 😉 Cheers,
Lia says
CPH can be really expensive! You’ll notice the conspicous absence of a section in this article about what restaurants to visit in Copenhagen … that’s because we couldn’t afford any of them 😛 We only made it to a single restaurant our entire trip! Everything else was just food markets and Christmas markets.
Meg Cale says
Whoa what an in depth post. I love it. I never know what to try when I’ve got so many options. This will really help on my next trip to Copenhagen.
Lia says
Thanks Meg! I always look up what to eat before I go anywhere, with so many options (especially in another language) it can be so overwhelming!