STUDIO

From the moment you enter the magnificent dining room to the sound of early 80’s The Clash till the moment you’re played back out by the late, great David Bowie, it is a deeply moving experience. You realize that, at Restaurant Studio, in Bowie’s own immortal words: “We could be heroes, if just for one day.”

Dinner at Studio is not so much a meal. It is a personal and culinary journey that transcends the realm of food. The natural progression of rock ‘n’ roll music that follows you during the meal is a personal and meaningful soundscape from Alan’s life. The cookbooks scattered across every table are from his personal collection of works from chefs he’s worked with or truly admires. The note you find at your seat personally bids you “Welcome, friend,” on a journey. 

The journey that is Studio

A journey through the life of Chef Bates, told through music, mentors, subtle references and culinary works of art. Works of art spanning in style from modernized English classics over New Nordic influences, through molecular gastronomy touches to classic French precision and serious flirt with Asian aromas and flavors. And you will need to fasten your seatbelt as it is one hell of a journey which leaves you rocking in your seat from the very beginning to the very end. 

“We don’t fuck about with progression, it’s a full-on assault,” states restaurant manager Jesper in response to the first bite of the evening: Chef Alan’s extremely punchy take on a traditional Japanese chawanmushi (egg custard), laced with umami notes from a chanterelle broth and an ample dusting of aged Danish cheese. 

Almost, but not quite overpowering in intensity, it stands amongst the wildest first serving on any fine dining menu to date. A testament to the genius of the chef and proof that Studio dares break away from the fine dining norm. A meal from the hands of Chef Bates follows not your basic fine dining pattern of snacks and small bites followed by dishes of increasing intensity. Rather, it consists of a mix of smaller bites and regular dishes, all of them an incredible showcase of skill and an attempt to wow the diner with increasingly unpredictable flavors.

An adorable chaotic feel and complete disregard for classic progression

As Japanese gives way to an ever so classic and intense French puff pastry vol-au-vent with sweetbread and truffle, playful fusion in the shape of a foamy moules marinieres soup spiked with Asian flavors, and even what seems to be Foie Gras on toast only to be revealed as chicken liver mousse laced with butter and topped with blood orange gel and radicchio, the objective of the evening becomes clear. This is not your classic fine dining experience. It’s the complete antithesis thereof. 

There is an almost adorably chaotic feel and complete disregard for classic progression to the menu which jumps seamlessly from near-classic to increasingly unlikely but incredibly executed fusion bites. Even an off-menu salute from the chef in the form of caviar laced with his house-made fermented sriracha chili sauce somehow just works, and makes you question everything you thought you knew about flavor and pairings. 

It’s the sort of playful dinner theater that catches you completely off guard, surprises you constantly, and makes you wonder just how on earth this seemingly random barrage of strong flavors and unlikely pairings evolves into a natural flow of flavors that somehow make perfect sense as you’re deliberately kept guessing as to just what will happen next.

Take the main course of the evening as a perfect example of the subtle, playful genius of the chef. After an onslaught of increasingly complex and layered servings, it consists, basically, of two elements: well-aged beef and a Sauce Bordelaise with smoked bone marrow. To the untrained eye, the two-component dish is not much to look at after everything that’s gone down till now. On the palate, however, it represents pure, simple, intense, beefy essence in the most wonderful of ways. A simplistic-looking flavor bomb that seems almost playfully simple set against a menu where everything else appears upscale in presentation and over done in the best possible meaning of the word.

Beautifully chaotic yet incredibly well-considered

Studio is a mind-boggling and sometimes surprising dining experience that leaves you constantly perplexed by what just hit you - in more ways than one. The complex style of Restaurant Studio is in some way very Nordic in nature with a strong focus on making the most of local, seasonal ingredients. In others, though, it’s completely its own, not shy to mix in exotic flavors like fish sauce, ginger, paprika and chili or the odd imported luxury ingredient. Italian truffles and Amalfi lemons, for example. are used when in season, and any leftovers preserved for a future use when they may no longer be available. 

Unlike the dogmatic approach to cooking favored by some chefs, Alan’s is more of a considerate approach. In an effort to reduce carbon imprint and the toll on our planet, the fish and seafood used at Studio will change regularly to reflect what is more readily, locally and sustainably available. Vegetables, too, and even the freshly milled bread for Studio’s famous bread serving are sourced from local suppliers to represent the best possible mix of what’s fresh, local and sustainable.  It is not an entirely local meal, but not an entirely foreign one either. It is bringing the world to your plate in the most thoughtful and sustainable way possible in a style that seems at the same time beautifully chaotic yet incredibly well-considered.

To the immersive eater, the culinary journey at Studio and the thought put into it is a profoundly moving experience. It is an engaging view into the culinary soul of a young, prodigal Brit who despite his young age and eagerness to learn is already so engaged in his craft that it is hard not to feel his passion and will-power in every serving from start to finish. A mind and a universe so perplexing, fascinating and engaging that it quite frankly left this reviewing couple with tears of emotions in their eyes as it rang to an end with one last work of art. “Your basic rose and raspberry pie,” as the head chef called his beautifully sweet, creamy and floral finishing creation on a journey where nothing seemed really basic. 

So overwhelmingly engaging  is the journey that it isn’t really until days after consuming the final homemade petit fours of the evening to the dying tunes of the last rock anthems that you realize the full extent of the experience: That the ever-changing menu at Studio is, at this point in time, perhaps the best value for money fine dining experience in Copenhagen, and that the culinary journey as a whole seems well-deserving of recapturing the one Michelin star that once adorned the restaurant. 

Studio

Price range: Mid-range

Cuisine: Contemporary French

Where to go: Havnegade 44, 1058 Copenhagen

What to expect: A informal interior. An ever-changing and innovative menu. A buzzing open kitchen on one side and amazing sunset views across Copenhagen harbor and Christianshavn on the other.

What the vibe is like: Informal, low-key rock ‘n’ roll ambiance with a touch of class.

What to order: The set menu with wine pairings from the very capable hands of restaurant manager and sommelier Jesper Nielsen. If you feel like splurging, the cellar wine menu is well worth the extra bang for your buck.