I recently went on (my first!) solo international trip to Copenhagen and Stockholm. for many months I gathered recommendations from travel blogs, social media, and friends – so I am sharing that with you all, now!
my standard caveats: no, I am not a travel blogger. I did internet digging to the best of my abilities, but I’m sure there’s spots on here that the Danes and Swedes think are overrated and touristy and to that I say, I am sorry for what I am — a tourist!!
of course, on a 7 day trip there were only so many meals I could eat, so I had to be selective. I prioritized the following: 1) good bakeries 2) location 3) vibe, and 4) local cuisine. I figured since I could eat Asian food and Mexican food in the States, might as well prioritize Nordic specialties when i’m there.
I’ve included below what I did, and additional recs by city and meal category. each site is linked to my Instagram post or a Google link. if you want my (admittedly, massive) Google Maps list, you can find that here. you can save this for offline use during your visit!
copenhagen
here are some external guides that helped amass recommendations: the noma restaurant guide, Eaters Copenhagen guide, Washington Post bakery guide, and the NYT 36 hours guide.
breakfast
my number one motivation for this trip was to eat at bakeries. pastries are truly top-notch in both cities , that I basically planned my day’s activities around which bakery I went to that morning.
many of these stay open through the late afternoon and don’t sell out as quickly as I thought they would, so perhaps these can be lunch options for you too.
where I went:
hart bageri: for Americans, the bakery that was made famous by The Bear! there’s many locations of Hart across the city. the cuter ones are by the water but you can get the famous cardamom bun anywhere. lives up to the hype!
apotek57: my first cinnamon bun of the trip! so tasty and soft and buttery. I also had this savory waffle with an egg and herb creme fraiche which was really lovely. its on the same block as the very trendy Atelier September, and honestly a good backup!
lille bakery: saw so many TikToks of this place, they had to put up a sign that basically said, please don’t come here just for footage, come here to eat! lol. I loved the menu they wrote up on this window too. upon recommendation I tried the mushroom roll and cinnamon bun and they were really fantastic! highly recommend if you plan to hang out by the water later.
andersen & maillard: so when I ordered the breakfast plate here, I thought I was getting a bun instead of a sourdough slice, and at first was disappointed, but then I was so pleasantly surprised by some of the best sourdough i’ve had in my life, and the best butter, and some fantastic jam and cheese. this spot felt way more local than the others, and it was incredible.
hans coffee: I only had (fresh!) grapefruit juice here and some coffee, but both were great. hans has multiple locations and breakfast offerings too.
more ideas: Juno the Bakery (this was my 5th choice!!) Darcy’s Kaffe, Bageriet Benji, Mad & Kaffe, Sinne gas Bageri, Albatross & Venner, Rug Bakery, Det Vide Hus, La Cabra, Lille Fugl, Lille Petra, Atelier September, BUKA Bakery, Ard Bakery, Grød (trendy porridge place), Alice Ice Cream & Coffee
lunch, snacks, casual eats
where I went:
døp hot dog: this little green hot dog stand had multiple locations, but I made a point to stop at the cart in city center, where I got a chicken hot dog with alll of the toppings. they have vegetarian dogs and other restriction-friendly options too!
barr: now, I went to barr for lunch menu, but this fine dining restaurant run by a former Noma chef, is definitely a dinner-caliber spot. regardless, I really enjoyed lunch since I was gunning to try their upscale smørrebrød, and it was my favorite meal I had in Copenhagen. make a reservation in advance!
dallas coffee: had a fantastic strawberry matcha here, and a decent egg sandwich. cute vibes, but a tad overpriced – you may be better off with their coffee and yogurt+granola bowls compared to what I ordered.
more ideas: BeitSalma, Cafe Gavlen, Hija de Sanchez, TovehallerneKBH (food hall, could work for dinner too!), Aamanns Deli, Kafeteria, studio x kitchen, Bottega Barlie, Gasoline Grill, Funky Eatery & Deli, Dzidra, Steff Houlberg Hot Dogs, Apollo Bar, Paulette, Popl Burger
dinners
where I went:
iluka: did a great tasting menu that was very seafood focused for my first night. the cold dishes were super impressive, and the quality of everything was great for sure.
aamanns genbo: I tried to go to Aamanns takeaway for lunch the day I landed but didn’t make it in time, so I came to a different location for their dinner service. I really enjoyed it – tried snaps for the first time and had smørrebrød again!
palazzo diner: this place was very cute, I wanted something that was close-ish to my hostel for my last night, and I was enticed by the green pasta! their service was a little off/understaffed but other than that, the vibes were cute and I enjoyed my meal here.
bistro central: this place had a good ambiance for a drink with friends on a Friday night. I had dinner with a friend here – the food was decent, but nothing super impressive, so I would pass this over for a more interesting option below.
more ideas – nice dinner: Baka d’Busk, Restaurant Polly, Yellow, Baest, Bar Pasta, Bar la Una, Delphine, Sanchez, Kødbyens Fiskebar, Selma, Restaurant Schønnemann (many recs for this, traditional Danish food), Restaurant Kronborg, Aamanns 1921, Restaurant Møntergade, Pluto, Fabro, Esmée
more ideas – fine dining: Jatak, Barabba, Restaurant Koan
more ideas – chill/casual/takeout: Corsa Pizza, Dal Forno, Slurp Ramen, TorvehallerneKBH (food hall), Reffen (food court)
bars & desserts
where I went:
østerberg ice cream: I asked for a local Danish ice cream flavor and tried the sea buckthorn which was so tasty! it was like tangy and creamy at the same time.
mikkeller beer: I knew this brewery for their sour and IPA beers, and their super-cute branding. the brewery has multiple brewpubs around the city, including Warpigs and Mikkeller & Friends.
bird: really cute sound bar vibes in here! I had a fantastic tokyo highball with vermouth and citrus. would recommend sitting inside, really chill neighborhood bar vibes.
ved stranden 10: a beautiful spot for some natural wine on the water! you can put your name in for a table and wait with your glass on the dock. if the weather is nice, definitely stay outside, but the inside is solid too.
more ideas: Pompette, Bar Vivant, Pio Vin & Bar, Det Ny Scala, Balderdash, Lille Blå Vinbar, Den Vandrette, Josephine
stockholm
bakeries
where I went:
cafe pascal: right after I dropped my bags I came straight here for a Swedish cardamom bun and a little cherry espresso tonic. the little white sugar granules on top were so beautiful! there’s two locations of this place I think, and I would definitely recommend.
lillebrors bageri: the most beautiful pastry I had this trip, and that’s saying something! I had this cardamom bun filled with a whipped cream that was sooo fluffy and creamy and delicious. i’m still dreaming about this honestly.
socker sucker: the selection here was so incredible, and thanks to the employee who explained them all to me I was so spoilt for choice! I ended up getting a savory crème fraiche pastry and a fig jam tart – the crust was so buttery and melted in my mouth. I would have come back here twice just to try all their sweet stuff.
stora bageriet: stopped here to get a pastry for my early flight the next morning, and they had such cute merch in here! I got another standard cinnamon bun which I very much enjoyed at the airport the next morning.
more ideas: Komet Cafe, Svedjan Bageri, Ett Bageri
lunch, snacks, casual eats
where I went:
literally any grocery store: pick and mix!! really took advantage of the Swedish grocery store having candy available by a pound, and yes the really good stuff. it was generally 100-110 SEK per kg and I bought like…a lot. tip: self-check out doesn’t always work with a foreign card, so be prepared to show your ID to purchase at some grocery stores.
mcdonald’s: obviously this isn’t a super interesting rec, but I do love trying a new country’s McD’s menu. I had these Chili Chese Tops, which were basically jalapeño poppers and a vegetarian McTasty.
rosendals tradgard: this was a beautiful garden on an island with huge grounds, and they feature some plant stores and a beautiful garden house restaurant. I had the carrot soup and toast, and then got some licorice ice cream which was sooo good.
more ideas: Indian Street Food & Co, Gast Cafe, Scandwich, SKÅLEN, Östermalms Food Hall, cafe at Grand Hôtel Stockholm, LYKKE NYTORGET, Omayma Nytorget, Café Pom & Flora, Restaurangen Blå porten
dinners
where I went:
riche: an upscale Swedish/French spot I went to after I was turned away from a different traditional Swedish spot (cough, Prinsen, cough). I ended up ordering more French here because of meat restrictions, but my food was great as was the people watching here (I saw the producer of What Makes you Beautiful!!!!)
restaurant pelikan: artsy meets old school vibes at Pelikan, cool neighborhood and huge space. reviews for the meatballs are very good, I had the potato dumplings and tried toast skagen, which is toast with a shrimp salad – and I loved both! would recommend a reservation or budgeting time to put your name in here.
deglabbet: needed an easy meal for my last night and this little spot was really solid! I had a funny little white pizza with vegan roe and I liked it!
more ideas – nicer: Punk Royale (wacky fine dining), Lille Ego (I couldn’t get a res here, was on my list!), Främmat, Tjoget, Agnes, LYKKE, Häktet, Röda Huset, GAZZA, Restaurant Liebling, Vingården (Gustaf Westman designed this), Symbios, Bar Agrikultur, ok ok Stockholm, Café Nizza (fermented cacio e pepe looked interesting), SOLEN, Bar Montan, Lao Lao City
bars & desserts
where I went:
krümel cookies & crumbs: these stout little cookies were so soft and yummy, I had the chocolate chip with sea salt.
bar afterglow: this bar was so cute, reminded me of Service Bar here in DC. they have a whole magazine-style booklet with each of the drinks, there’s a lot to choose from. I got the sense that Stockholm doesn’t have a huge cocktail scene, so this is a good spot if that’s your craving.
more ideas: Grus Grus, Zinkens Krog, Lucy’s Flower Shop
hope this is helpful to you all, and please let me know if you have questions!
aditi eats 
Great read Aditi. Beautiful pictures too.
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