Steph C.
Yelp
My husband Matt B. and I had dinner at Geist a few weeks back, on the first of three nights spent in Copenhagen. We were able to make a reservation only a few hours in advance, for 6:00 on a Sunday evening. We were jet lagged and wanted to go somewhere nice but relatively low key, and Geist fit the bill. It was a trendy, high-end place with counter seating around an open kitchen. Craft cocktails and a la carte small plate dining--very familiar for two travelers coming from Los Angeles.
We were among the first diners, as 6:00 in Copenhagen during summer months might as well be three in the afternoon. We enjoyed all the natural light coming in through the tall windows. The place filled up as our dinner progressed, with what seemed like a fairly international crowd. Two pairs of tourists recognized each other from another restaurant.
We settled in with a round of cocktails and ordered a hearty dinner, based on the recommendations of our server, a friendly, helpful man who attended to our needs from across the counter (he spoke marvelous English, but so does everyone in Copenhagen, it seems). It was all quite pleasant and relaxing, and I really enjoyed the drinks. We started with the Green Aqua Vitae and the Lemon in Lemon in Lemon. I believe the first was an aquavit cocktail with dill and lovage, the second a gin drink with a hint of thyme. Both were wonderfully refreshing. For our second round, we had the Scottish Malt Flower with scotch, yuzu, and hibiscus, and the Vinous Sage with bourbon and walnut. These were also great, on the cool, light side for whiskey drinks.
I was less sold on the food, which was inconsistent and just less outright delicious than I'd hoped. Dinner kicked off with some lovely complimentary rolls with excellent butter, then a small appetizer of thinly sliced avocado with lightly salted caviar. Maybe I'm used to better avocados in California, but this was a disappointment, bland and boring, even with a mound of caviar on top.
We had two fish dishes, and these were pretty good, if not especially memorable. The West Coast turbot was meaty, and it came with fennel ravioli and a gruyere sauce. The halibut was the better fish, mild and delicate and well seasoned with black pepper, served over a bed of nasturtium and other nice sautéed greens.
We rounded out the savory portion of our meal with the scallops and chicken wings with lobster sauce and the black kale with suckling pig and wild garlic. The scallops and chicken wings were tasty enough, the scallops perched on the wings, the combination somewhat interesting. The kale and suckling pig dish was a bust, though, a heap of dry, flavorless kale over a heap of dry, flavorless pig, chopped into little nubby pieces.
Dinner ended well, though, with some stellar desserts. The strawberries with milk and honey made a gorgeous plate, with sweetened strawberries layered with milk and honey in various forms. The raspberry sorbet with raspberries was probably my favorite dish of the night, a simple dessert of juicy raspberries topped with a tart, lush sorbet. Finally, there was the complimentary cotton candy, a fun, sweet send-off.
I wasn't completely smitten with Geist, but it was a cool restaurant with some innovative cooking and great atmosphere, service, and drinks. I don't know that I'd recommend it if you're traveling from far away, but it might be worth checking out if you're already in Copenhagen. The food wasn't bad, just kind of hit and miss, especially for the price point, with nothing that really blew me away.