YOLO Journal & DELSEY PARIS: Guide to Copenhagen, Denmark

DELSEY PARIS has partnered with the premium travel magazine YOLO JOURNAL to bring you monthly travel inspirations to the most beautiful places in the world. Yolanda Edwards, founder of Yolo Journal, will share with you her favorite places and secret addresses.

Copenhagen is always a great idea–no matter the season. Yes, even in the winter–and maybe especially in the winter, when it’s so moody and romantic, and everything seems to be candlelit. This is my list from a recent trip, where we spent all of our time indoors, and it didn’t matter how dark, wet, or cold it was outside!

TO DO

Louisiana is amazing, but it’s a whole day, or at least a half-day trip! I also love Glyptoteket, which is right in town and has a dreamy atrium and cafe. My favorite cultural spot in town is Copenhagen Contemporary, and the best gift shop is at the Danish Architecture Center—also worth a visit. Sofiebadet is a classic grand old baths/hammam place. Some favorite galleries are Andersen’s Contemporary, Nicolai Wallner, and V1 Gallery. On the museum front, don’t miss the Thorvaldsens Museum and Ordrupgaard.

FOOD + DRINK

Restaurant Møntergade: Beautiful and delicious trad Danish lunch of smørrebrød, open-faced ryebread sandwiches, along with
snaps (Danish schnapps).

Barr: Sister restaurant to Noma, amazing schnitzel and beer list, gorgeous location on Holmen—a classic and the place where the Noma staff eats on their own time.

Jatak: The super-hot new kid on the block, really creative and refined modern Cantonese, kitchen has an incredible pedigree, and the Hong Kong egg custard for dessert is supposedly to die for. Needs advance booking.

Propaganda: The other hot new kid on the block: no-frills interior, combination bustling eatery and bottle shop filled with tons of young, gorgeous, partying Danes. Interesting and edgy (for Denmark) modern Korean food. Owner Riccardo Marcon also has the restaurant Barabba, which is a really incredible Italian spot downtown and definitely worth
checking out.

Silberbaurs Bistro: Feels old-school and authentic, even if it’s new-ish (in a way you guys would like).

Esmee: A glamorous bar and lovely courtyard, it’s on the fancier side, with lavish seafood platters, gougeres, and a great cocktail list inspired by the Belle Epoque.

Casamadre: co-owned by the women's designer for Samsøe Samsøe. Sweetest couple. A mamma mia kind of place, maybe a bit of
an insider gem thus far.

Lille Bakery for breakfast or a lovely lunch

La Banchina for coffee or dinner and a sauna (they do these supposedly great special prix-fixe weekend dinners too).

POPL Burger (Noma sibling—the veggie burger is the one to beat!!)

Hart for some of the best baked goods ever

Morgenstedet:
A homespun little vegetarian restaurant in Christiania that is sweet and simple and hippie in the best way.

Torvehallerne is kind of like the Ferry Building in SF—unavoidable but touristy and sort of meh! Maybe the Mikkellers Bottle Shop would be worth a stop.

Atelier September for a light lunch if you're downtown, lovely little cakes and usually a cool pop-up in the space behind the cafe.

Apotek 57 is absolutely the best place in town for this kind of cafe vibe—Chiara's food is fantastic; it's just so memorable and made with so much love and care.

Apollo Bar is a favorite place to meet up with friends.

SHOPPING

The Apartment is the beautiful gallery/store of Tina Seidenfaden Busck—her eye is just brilliant. By appointment only.

Studio Oliver Gustav: We were so disappointed that our two days in town didn’t coincide with their opening hours. I got about
3 texts from different friends saying I’d better not miss this place.

Klassik has an incredible selection of Danish modern furniture that will make you want to get a new apartment just so you can fill it with finds from here.

Gronlund & Lefort is an antiques shop that specializes in vintage Royal Copenhagen.

Fil de Fer: It might seem a little strange that we bought a huge, thick, heavy and ancient French cutting board in a primarily French antiques shop in Copenhagen, but we did. They have a great edit, and the prices are good as well.

Jannie Petersen Antik is a great little
bric-a-brac antiques shop in the center.

Georg Jensen may be all over the world, but the flagship here definitely had a selection we don’t see everywhere! Our favorites are the water bottles, flasks and the small wall clocks.

Goods: A very cool men’s shop that has classics like Paraboot and Barbour, but also smaller brands you’ve probably never heard of.

Holly Golightly is the most beautiful
multi-brand store.

TO STAY

Villa Copenhagen: We stayed here and were very happy—it’s in the former Post & Telegraph building so it’s quite big, but we felt like we never saw (or heard) anyone except for in the lobby and in the breakfast room. High ceilings, no hotel art on the

walls, super comfortable bed, nice light in the room—and although we didn’t use it, an outdoor pool and sauna. Matt met someone for drinks and said the cocktails were excellent. And while it doesn’t have the traditional staffing you’d find (and pay for) at a luxury property—no bellman at the front, no concierge—the staff were all really clever, kind, and helpful.

 

Hotel Sanders: We came here for breakfast one morning to check it out, and I would definitely want to stay here on a future visit. It’s super cozy and chic—candlelit, a fire going, and great decor. The bar is supposed to be stellar as well.

 

71 Nyhavn Hotel was also highly recommended.

Yolanda Edwards is the founder of Yolo Journal, a weekly newsletter and seasonal print magazine devoted to the love of travel. Yolo gathers insider addresses and favorite destinations from its trust network of travelers in creative fields and shares them with a growing community of discerning global explorers.