For Americans, the fourth Thursday in November always brings forward distinctive, comforting aromas reminiscent of strong family traditions.
To walk into a kitchen on Thanksgiving morning is to be greeted by the savory smell of pumpkin pie, zesty cranberry sauce, stuffing and seemingly endless maple-spiced desserts with brown butter glazes.
But for those who are long distances away from being able to braise their own turkey this year, here are a few suggestions for what to do.
Thanksgiving at the Hard Rock Cafe
Nov 24, 18:00-24:00; Radhuspladsen 45-57, Cph K; 250kr, reservations advised, call 3312 4333
The Hard Rock Cafe will spend 24 November honoring Thanksgiving classics. The meal will start with pumpkin soup as an appetiser. It will then move on to the main: roast turkey with stuffing, cheddar mash, roasted sweet potatoes, gravy, green beans and cranberry sauce.
And finally, it will end with sweet and sticky pecan pie. For 250 kroner, your plate can be filled with a family-style traditional Thanksgiving dinner that just may satisfy your cravings and relinquish any homesickness.
Thanksgiving with Chubby
Nov 24, 18:00-00:00; Hotel Richmond, Vester Farimagsgade 33, Cph V; 695kr; chubbys.dk
Fans of slow-cooked meat should look no further this Thanksgiving, as the caterer Chubby Boys Barbecue is laying on a feast at Hotel Richmond just around the corner from the City Lakes.
Inspired by the slow, low barbecue methods of the Native Americans, the whole world has fallen in love with the result: moist, tender meat that melts on the tongue, and world menu is packed with delights.
Enjoy stuffed roasted turkey, deboned turkey thighs and breast stuffed with apricots, celery and walnuts, honey-baked ham, roasted glazed ham with cloves, candied yams, butter baked with brown sugar, roast potatoes, chunky thyme roast potatoes, red cabbage with blackcurrant, greens, honey-glazed baby carrots, Brussel sprouts with almonds and sage, buttered green beans in bacon wrap, cornbread muffins, buttermilk cornbread muffins, gravy, cranberry sauce, spiced pumpkin pecan pie and other desserts.
Beverages include a surprise pre-dinner drink, Christmas beer, house wine and hot drinks. And then Chubby is laying on the same spread again as a julefrokost on December 8.
AmCham’s Family Thanksgiving Dinner
Nov 20, 15:30-20:00; Marriott Copenhagen, Kalvebod Brygge 5, Cph V; 475kr, under-16s: 275kr, under-6s: 125kr; amcham.dk
The Vesterhavet Ballroom at the Copenhagen Marriott will once again provide the backdrop for AmCham’s 15th Annual Family Thanksgiving Dinner on Sunday November 20.
In previous years, between 300 and 400 of its guests and members have enjoyed an authentic dinner complete with American wines, musical entertainment, supervised activities and video games for the kids, and the ultimate raffle – and this year will be no different, with American-Danish country singer Tamra Rosanes once again performing.
Dinner this year includes roast turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes and gravy, sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie. Learn more about membership options at the AmCham website.
American Club’s Thanksgiving Lunch
Nov 24, 14:00; Grilleriet Dampfærgevej 10, Cph Ø; members 510kr, guests 560kr, register by Nov 18; americanclub.dk
The American Club in Copenhagen is once again hosting a Thanksgiving lunch, this time in co-operation with the Rebild National Park Society in Østerbro.
The menu includes a welcome drink, grilled turkey breast, drumsticks and stuffing, mashed sweet potatoes and grilled potatoes, traditional sauce, Brussels sprouts with lemon and almonds, pecan pie with sour cream, and hot and cold beverages. Learn more about membership options at the American Club in Copenhagen website.
Thanksgiving turkeys
Lillevangsvej 6, Søsum, Veksø; 2063 6733, persgriseri@gmail.com; pers-griseri.dk
This butcher is located about 20km northwest Copenhagen, slightly beyond Ballerup, but we’re reliably informed that Per’s Griseri is the best place to source free-range, organic turkeys should you be making one this Thanksgiving.
However, tracking Per down is no easy feat. If he’s home, he’s open, but as his website says, when you travel there you “tag chancen”. It might be easier to find his van at Farumvej 12 in Ganløse (near Lyngby) from 09:00-13:00 on November 5 (order by 12:00 on Nov 4 to be sure he’s got what you want!).
Simon Longhurst, the British owner of fishmongers Fisk & Færdigt (HC Ørsteds Vej 37B, Frederiksberg, info@simon-fisk.dk) who many of our readers might know as ‘The Codfather’, had no hesitation in recommending Griseri, but warned that customers will need to attend one of his one-day markets to snap one up. An 8 kilo turkey will set you back 1,024 kroner.
Home deliveries
Nemlig.com
Sourcing special ingredients for a Thanksiving meal can be hard, and in the old days, no table was complete without a backstreet forage in the likes of Vesterbro or Hellerup in your quest for all the trimmings. Fortunately these days, you don’t even need to leave the couch.
Just visit Nemlig.com and peruse its 7,300-plus items. Every year in November they expand their range to accomodate Thanksgiving, and they also include a wide range of vegan, gluten-free, organic and locally-produced products, as well as having collaborations with many of the best specialty shops in Denmark.
TGI Fridays
Højbro Plads 5-7, Cph K; open daily 11:00-24:00; children’s menu: 59kr (main and soda), milkshakes 59kr, smoothies 49kr; tgifridays.dk
From November 21 onwards, take advantage of the TGI Fridays Christmas menu, which offers a welcome drink, soft drink refills, an appetiser, a main, a dessert and hot beverage all for 400 kroner. And on Black Friday (Nov 25), the kitchen will be open until 23:00 for the late-night shoppers on Strøget.
Kiwi Wild Pies
Toftegårds Allé 43, Valby; open Mon-Sat 11:00-19:00; all pies: 49kr, drinks 15-25kr; wildkiwipies.com
Celebrate Thanksgiving with one of Kiwi Wild Pies’ special fruit numbers – all for just 29 kroner! Options include Mor’s classic spiced apple, Apple and forest berry pie, and Apple and rhubarb pie, while the Spiced apple and crumble is a recent addition to a mouthwatering team.
