Getting a reservation at Restaurant Schønnemann has always felt almost impossible when we are in Copenhagen.
It is one of those places that seems to be fully booked whenever you finally decide you want to go. Now, after visiting for lunch for the first time, we understand why.
Schønnemann is located half a flight down on Hauser Plads, with the name painted proudly on the outside wall: Anno 1877.
Already from the entrance, it feels like stepping into one of those classic Copenhagen lunch restaurants where time has not stood still, but has been carefully protected.
Inside, it is more spacious than Sankt Annæ and Told & Snaps, but with the same kind of old Copenhagen atmosphere. White tablecloths, dark wood, green walls, old lamps and that warm, traditional feeling that makes you want to settle in properly.
They greet you with a smile and somehow manage to treat every guest as if they were regulars.
That is hospitality in a nutshell.
Another surprise was the menu. We expected classics, of course, but not such an extensive selection.
There is a lot to choose from, and for a moment we struggled, in the best possible way.
I chose an open shrimp sandwich. Freshly peeled Greenland shrimps, mayonnaise, dill and lemon, served on white bread. Simple, generous and exactly the kind of dish where quality matters.
Then came the roast beef with remoulade, grated horseradish, cucumber salad and crispy onions. Two dishes I have eaten at other places many times before, which also makes them a good test.
Schønnemann passed that test easily.
This is a super solid place for open sandwiches. Nothing forced, nothing trying too hard.
Just classic Danish smørrebrød done with confidence, tradition and very good ingredients.
We had read that Lonely Planet once ranked smørrebrød in Copenhagen as one of the world’s great food experiences, with Schønnemann often mentioned as a place to understand why.
Lists like that can often feel a bit exaggerated. But for once, sitting there with a plate of roast beef, a glass on the table and the room slowly filling around us, we could understand it.
We could easily have stayed the whole afternoon.
One more dish. Probably one more snaps from their impressive selection, poured Danish style, right up to the rim.
Schønnemann is now a new favourite in “Byn”. Copenhagen has many good open sandwich restaurants, and we have already visited quite a few of them over the years.
Still, Schønnemann is going to be hard not to book the next time we are in Copenhagen.
Yes.
Happily. If we can get a table.
