Just opened a month ago, the Italian restaurant Garum is located smack in the city centre opposite Rådhuspladsen, the city hall square. You might wonder whether another Italian restaurant was really what Copenhagen needed, but when it comes to Garum, the answer is a clear “Si”!
Tuscany with a twist
Garum is worth visiting not only because of its distinct location, which allows you to feel city vibes over dinner, but because it offers a variety of traditional Italian dishes spiced up with a modern twist.
Garum is an open-spaced, bright restaurant, which is ideal for all kinds of occasions such as date nights, business dinners and family meals.
The rustic interior provides a truly Italian atmosphere complete with Tuscany plant pots, wooden shelves and the obligatory olive oil dispenser on the table.
It takes traditional Italian dishes and spices them up, serving interesting fusions of herbs, vegetables and flavours that are refreshingly experimental.
Diners can sneak a look at the creative chefs preparing the food in an open kitchen that has been designed to complement the décor and light design of the adjoining restaurant.
Art on a plate
You can opt for a three-course meal consisting of: a starter; a main dish that can be either (quite classically) pasta or pizza or fish or steak; and one of the ‘sweet things’ – namely the desserts. The dishes are accompanied by (at least) one glass of the carefully-selected and award-winning Italian wines on the menu.
The seven different starters guarantee a promising start to the evening, and there is surely something for everyone. We had the carpaccio and the scallops, which both surprised us with their distinct combination of flavours.
The traditional sliced tenderloin of the carpaccio was served with a truffle paste, parmesan flakes, rucola, olive oil and sea salt, and it was arranged very delicately.
The scallops, the perfect choice for any lover of seafood, were braised in butter and parsley, giving them a nice consistency, and served with black and red caviar on a lavishly decorated plate.
On the plate they looked like small flowers, and they tasted even better than they looked. A nice glass of white wine is recommended for the scallops and the crispy and fruity Soave Classico from the Veneto region is a good choice.
Pleasing to the eye
Our choices for the main courses were a grilled beef tenderloin cooked medium, which was served in a delicious truffle sauce with rosemary fries, and a summer risotto of asparagus, sweet peas and mint, all tossed in white wine, which again was pleasing to the eye thanks to a combination of white and pink colours that definitely earned its name.
The main courses were served with an organic red, the Nivuro Nero d’Avola from Sicily, the first wine ever produced by Feuda di Santa Tresa. Nivuro, a full-bodied wine, was the perfect companion for both main courses and therefore a good choice.
Crème of the crop
It is hard to choose among the desserts on the menu, but the ‘three kinds of crema napoletana’ is a safe bet. It is the Italian interpretation of the French crème brulée and uses Italian herbs as the main flavours.
You get a selection of three different crema, which are based on basil, rosemary and mint, and thus combine the already mentioned fusion of flavours, which seem to underline the whole dinner.
My personal favourite was the mint crema napoletana – a nice mix of sweet and herby.
A restaurant well named
A pleasant evening indulging in Italian delicacies, with either friends or family, is guaranteed at Garum – and all for a reasonable price. The interior is inviting and exudes Italian flair, although we’re not sure the choice of music (mainstream hits instead of traditional music) adds much to the experience.
Named after the first Roman sauce, Garum is a trailblazer in its own right. It harbours the kind of creativity that makes it the Italian that Copenhagen has been missing.
