Herman

After a snowy arrival and a plane flight where I finally had time to read the NOMA cookbook. I met Judy and Brian at Herman for one of the best and longest Lunches of my life so far. I hadn't even been able to check into my hotel yet so I was wearing the same clothes I had traveled the past day and a half in.

We started with some snacks:

Sea Buckthorn Crisps with hay

Deviled Quails Eggs

Oysters on a half shell with pine Granite

Bacon and Cheese batter balls (Aebleskiver)

Green Apple Foam with Nettle Powder

Cream Cheese and Butter

I went with a beer pairing with lunch quite a few came from this brewery and as with all the beer I had in Denmark was remarkably flavorful. They all seemed to taste like the things that were in them(birch, Nettles, Coriander, etc...)

Our first real course served in two servings was a barely cooked Langostine with Chamomile and lemon thyme eaten with the hands. Presented on the side was a lemon thyme scented warm towel.

The Second part of this course was a Shellfish bisque with Chamomile, Fjord Scallops, Chickweed(I think) and sea beans. Liquid Nitrogen was poured into a cavity in the bowl with Chamomile inside

This was another outstanding beer very malty but still light and crisp.

Course two was I want to say skate but the exact fish is escaping me with charred leek, onions(pickled and slow cooked) Pickled Garlic Buds, Watercress stems and a warm mayonnaise.

To accompany the Foie Courses was a lovely stout by the same brewery as earlier.

Frozen Foie Gras and Frozen Cherries

Seared Foie Gras with Red Endive and Cherry

The next course was one of the best we had the entire trip. It was another two courser and contained multiple elements including:

Venison Rillettes shaped to look like truffles

A Venison Broth with Black truffle Oil

Rye Bread Crisps with Butter and Truffle

And finally roasted Venison (leg?) with black truffle and some sort of crispy grain or bread sauce around the outside

After debating whether or not to get the cheese course we finally decided to get a nice selection of cheeses 12 in all and after asking a few questions we got to taste the other two that weren't on the plate. A couple of these cheeses are extremely hard to find outside of a restaurant setting and most all of them are impossible to find outside Scandinavia. They were all danish cheeses with names I couldn't in my wildest dreams pronounce nor remember. We were particularly fond of the washed rind soft cheeses but they were all pretty good. With one exception being the mass in the middle of the plate which is we were told a traditional thing to do with cheese leftovers to mold them all together(not Great). The blues were incredible pungent as well.

Served with our dessert courses was this sparkling brew somewhere between cider and liquid christmastime made by none other then our waiter. It was really unique tasting very much like potpourri

Both Desserts were based around pears and milk both delicious.

This one I can't recall other then it had a strong acidic quality perhaps lime from the green powder.

Vanilla Caviar with Chocolate this was quite tasty but could have done with a bit more Vanilla flavor for me.

All and All this was a great meal in great company while watching folks enjoy Tivoili Garden in the snow. It was at lunch that I realized the sun never came out this time of year in Denmark. By the time I walked back to my hotel it was dark out. I had just enough time for a shower and a change of clothes then a brisk walk to AOC for dinner number one of the evening.