Eating Frugally in Copenhagen
旧即是新：在丹麦吃传统美食

"It's become really hip to eat old-fashioned Danish food," Nina A.S. Geist told me as we shared a kartoffelmad - an open-faced potato sandwich loaded with crispy fried onions - at Dyrehaven, a local cafe in the fun Vesterbro neighborhood of Copenhagen. It was great to hear this from a Dane, because from abroad what appears most hip about Danish cuisine is Noma, the world's top-ranked restaurant for the second year running, according to Restaurant Magazine's much-blabbed-about list.

“吃传统的丹麦食品已变成一件很时髦的事，”尼娜·A.S. 盖斯特(Nina A.S. Geist)告诉我，当时我们正在分吃一份土豆三明治(kartoffelmad)——一种开放式的三明治，上面堆满松脆的炸洋葱——地点在一家叫“鹿苑”(Dyrehaven)的本地小餐馆，位于哥本哈根欢闹的韦斯特伯区(Vesterbro)。从一个丹麦人口中听到这句话，意义重大，因为在国外看来，最时髦的丹麦菜似乎是诺玛(Noma) ，在《餐厅》杂志那份常被人挂在嘴边的榜单里，这家才开了两年的餐厅是冠军。

Its chef, René Redzepi, has become a sort of king of "new Nordic" cuisine, which has spurred a worldwide trend toward foraging for ingredients, digging deeply into the past for recipes, then modernizing and adding a touch of whimsy (and a hefty surcharge).

诺玛的主厨芮尼·雷哲皮(Rene Redzepi)某种程度已经成为“新北欧”美食之王，在这种风格的激发下，全世界都在寻觅食材配方，在故纸堆里找菜谱，然后把它们现代化，加进一点奇思妙想（以及吓死人的价钱）。

Great trend. All for it, even when I can't afford it. But for foreigners who dream of a Noma reservation: how much can you appreciate new Nordic cuisine if you have no idea what old Nordic cuisine is about? That's why I decided to spend the first week of my Frugal Scandinavia summer tour in Copenhagen eating as much traditional Danish food as I could, for the cost of a single 20-course prix fixe meal at Noma, 1,500 Danish kroner (or $258 at 5.8 kroner to dollar), drinks not included.

很好的潮流。全力支持，尽管我吃不起。可是，对于梦想在诺玛订座的外国人而言：假如对古老的北欧菜是什么样一无所知，对新北欧菜肴又能欣赏多少呢？这正是为什么我这次夏日穷游斯堪的纳维亚，要把第一个礼拜全用在吃哥本哈根的传统丹麦食物上，诺玛一份20道菜的定价套餐，价格是1500丹麦克朗（以5.8克朗兑1美元的汇率，相当于258美元），不包含酒水。

The plan was a success in all ways but one: I missed a connection in Barcelona, Spain, and ended up with only four days, not five, in Copenhagen. So I revved up the schedule to four meals a day, managing to stuff myself (and treat a few friends, like Nina - the fiancée of a Danish friend I first met in Colombia -- to meals), and spending just under 1,500 kroner. All dishes but one (a very tasty lamb and spinach sandwich from Five Star Pizza Shawarma Grill) were wholeheartedly Danish, like the classic smorrebrod - open-face sandwiches on thin, dark, dense rye bread; fish balls called fiskeboller; tender pork belly; and finally, porridge.

从各方面来讲，这个计划大获成功，唯一的遗憾是：我在西班牙巴塞罗那转机时误了航班，结果只在哥本哈根停留了四天，而不是五天。因此，我把一天的用餐数提升为四次，想方设法把吃的塞进肚子里去（同时也请了几个朋友，比如尼娜——我在哥伦比亚初识的一位丹麦友人的未婚妻），花的钱总共还不到1500克朗。除了一次（五星披萨烤肉店美味可口的羊肉菠菜三明治）以外，其余全是地道的丹麦食物，像经典的黄油黑麦面包(smorrebrod)——以浓郁的黑麦面包薄片为底制成的开放式三明治；鱼丸(fiskeboller)；细嫩的五花肉；最后还有麦片粥。

My favorite place was probably Dyrehaven, which serves as bar, cafe, lunch spot and overall neighborhood hangout. The appeal of the kartoffelmad - potato on bread? - was lost on me until I tried it here (55 kroner), served with creamy homemade mayonnaise, radishes and chives, and topped with a pile of crispy fried onions. Nina and I also ordered a "beef sandwich" (72 kroner), which looked suspiciously like a hamburger, but was topped with Danish remoulade, onions and the very Danish agurkesalat - a sweet and sour cucumber salad.

我最爱的大概是鹿苑，它是酒吧、咖啡馆、午餐档，归根结底就是个街坊聚会的地方。对于土豆三明治（55克朗）——土豆放在面包上？——我一直不明白好在哪，知道吃了这里的，搭配柔滑细腻的自制蛋黄酱、小萝卜和细香葱，最上面覆以一堆酥脆的炸洋葱。尼娜和我还点了一份“牛肉三明治”（72克朗），它看起来疑似汉堡，可上面盖的是雷莫拉酱(remoulade)、洋葱和很丹麦的酸甜黄瓜沙拉(agurkesalat)。

The first place I tried smorrebrod was a classic (and touristy) stop called Schonnemann, an 1877 restaurant filled with dark wood and tradition that includes, according to a sign posted inside, "sand on the floor and herring on the table." Because I could have easily dropped 500 kroner on one meal, I enlisted a waiter to help me keep prices down. (There's generally no tipping in Danish restaurants, and thus no upselling.) I said I wanted to keep it as traditional as possible, and he instantly suggested two of the cheapest kinds of smorrebrod: marinated herring with curry salad, onions and capers (65 kroner) and "Karina's spiced meat roll" with onions and aspic (88 kroner).

第一次吃黄油黑麦面包是在一家叫“少纳门”(Schonnemann)的经典（且游客趋之若鹜的）馆子，这家餐厅始建于1877年，屋子里满是黑乎乎的木头，到处是传统，根据内部张贴的告示，包括“地上的沙子、桌上的青鱼”，都是传统的一部分。考虑到很容易会在一顿饭上花下500克朗，我请一位侍应生帮我压低开销（丹麦的餐馆通常没有小费，因此不存在向顾客推销昂贵菜肴的情况。）我说，我希望越传统越好，侍应生当即推荐了两款最便宜的黄油黑麦面包：腌青鱼配咖喱沙拉、洋葱和刺山柑（65克朗），以及“卡琳娜辣肉卷”配洋葱和花色肉冻（88克朗）。

He also graciously instructed me how to prepare the herring sandwich, which is a do-it-yourself deal. First, put lard or butter on a piece of rye bread. "The Danish use lard," he said, and I obediently spread a thin layer of pig fat on the bread. Next, a thick slice of herring, topped with curry salad and drizzled with capers and onions. The other smorrebrod came premade, and though he advised me to remove the aspic - a meat stock gelatin - I did not. Until I tried it. And then promptly added it to the list of salty and disgusting brown foods people in certain countries like for unknown cultural reasons (see Vegemite; Australia).

他还热心的教我怎么做青鱼三明治，我点的就是自己动手的那种。首先，把猪油或黄油涂在黑麦面包片上。“丹麦人用猪油，”他说，于是我就乖乖地在面包上涂了薄薄一层猪油。接着，一片厚厚的青鱼，上面放上咖喱沙拉，摆上少许刺山柑和洋葱。另一款黄油黑麦面包是事先做好的，虽然他建议我拿掉花色肉冻——一种肉高汤熬制的凝胶——我没听。直到我吃到了它。接下来我立刻将它归入某些国家的民众出于某些未知的文化原因而钟爱的又咸又恶心的棕色食物清单里（如澳大利亚人之于维吉麦）。

Over all, though, the best deals came not from restaurants but from friendly takeout shops, some of which are open just a few hours a day and serve one or a few dishes that you are meant to take home - or to one of Copenhagen's plentiful parks - to eat. After Dyrehaven, Nina and I went down to Kodbyen, Copenhagen's meatpacking district, and ordered two lunches: fiskeboller, or fish balls (45 kroner), and Danish-style fish and chips (70 kroner) from Kodbyens Deli, taking them across the street to some benches filled with Danes eating lunch. The fried cod was astonishingly light and crispy; the fish balls were excellent as well, and I had made the right call to skip the chips and substitute a salad topped with fiery red curry salad dressing.

不过总体而言，最物美价廉的食物不是在餐馆里能吃到的，要到那些和蔼可亲的小吃摊去，其中有些一天只营业几个小时，提供一种或几种让你带回家的餐点——或在哥本哈根随处可见的公园里找块地方享用。离开鹿苑，我和尼娜去了 哥本哈根的肉类加工区科布恩(Kodbyen)，在科布恩快餐店点了两份午餐：鱼丸（45克朗）、丹麦风味的炸鱼和薯条（70克朗），提着走到街对面的几张长椅旁，那儿坐满了正在吃午餐的丹麦人。炸鳕鱼惊人地清爽松脆；鱼丸同样令人叫绝，我明智的要求把薯条换成了浇有火辣红咖喱酱的沙拉。

If you had to choose just one takeout place, through, I'd go for the 65-kroner meal from MadGlad, a phrase in Danish that literally means food-happy. This place, too, serves just one dish a day. On the day I went, it was fiskeboller (again) - a bit bigger and fluffier than at Kodbyens Deli, bathed in remoulade (an extremely common Danish sauce), here served with potatoes and a whopping amount of unique salads; you can choose two or three. When I went, choices included the fascinating combination of pearl barley, elderflower, broccoli and apple, and an appealing red cabbage and red currant. Add a loaf of bread, and it was enough for dinner for two, though I ate it alone in my rented apartment.

假如只能选择一家外卖店，纵观所有，我还是推荐麦德格莱德(MadGlad)65克朗一份的套餐，“麦德格莱德”在丹麦语里的字面含义是“欢乐美食”。这家店也是每天只卖一种餐点。我去的那天，供应的（又是）鱼丸——比科布恩快餐店的略大一些，更蓬松一些，浸在雷莫拉酱（一种无所不在的丹麦酱汁）里，这家店的配菜是土豆和一大份特制沙拉；有两三种可选。我去的那天珍珠麦、接木骨花、西兰花、苹果的美味拼搭，还有诱人的红球甘蓝与红葡萄干。加一条面包，足够两人的晚餐，不过我是在我的出租公寓一个人吃完的。

Butchers occasionally get into the takeout act, too, and for one meal I stopped at Guldberg Slagter, which offers free-range meats along with one packaged lunch option (made in house) a day. When I went it was  offering fish lasagna for 50 kroner. I was suspicious - fish lasagna sounded about as appealing as goat sushi - but when I arrived home and tasted the big chunks of nonsalty cod, homemade tomato and pesto sauce and lots of creamy cheese of some kind, I was a convert.

肉店偶尔也加入外卖行列。我在古尔贝尔肉店(Guldberg Slagter)买过一餐饭，这家供应放养肉类的店，每天提供一种打包好的（店里自制的）午餐。我去的那天，卖的是50克朗一份的意大利鱼肉千层面。我心存疑虑——鱼肉千层面的号召力，似乎和羊肉寿司相当——可回到家，在品尝了大块的淡水鳕鱼、自制的西红柿和松子酱、以及大量奶油状干酪后，我被折服了。

One place has really gone for old-fashioned Danish comfort food: Grod. That's its name and also its menu: the word translates to porridge, although here it's far more than just gruel. The tiny spot, with seating for maybe 15, including outdoor tables, opened last September on Jaegersborggade, a street lined with boutiques, brunch spots and cafes that can probably claim more hipness per square meter than any other in town. Grod's menu, which changes weekly, is simple and short. For breakfast and until 5 p.m., it serves 35-kroner porridges, similar (but fancier and better sourced, one imagines) to what many Danish kids eat growing up. The first time I dropped by it was already dinnertime, and there were no more traditional porridges, so I had a pea risotto with cheese sharp enough to get my mouth tingling. It was 50 kroner, a reasonable cost for a bowl of risotto anywhere. It also had rababertrifli, a traditional Danish rhubarb compote (25 kroner, or under $5).

要想品尝真正传统的丹麦味道，有一个地方是必去的：格罗德(Grod)，这既是店名，也是菜单：翻译过来就是麦片粥，可其实它远不止粥那么简单。这家店店面极小，包括户外的桌子，大概只坐得下15人，于去年9月在耶丝柏街(Jaegersborggade)开张，这条街上布满了精品店、早午餐档和咖啡馆，要说单位面积内的时髦程度，大概是全城最高的。格罗德的菜单非常简短，每周不同。早餐和下午五点以前，供应35克朗一份的粥，与许多丹麦小孩从小吃的麦糊类似（不过这里的应该更花哨、用料也更讲究吧）。我第一次光顾这家店时，已是晚餐时分，传统的粥卖完了，所以点了一份豌豆意大利饭，配了味道浓烈的奶酪，刺激的我嘴直打哆嗦。50克朗，对一碗意大利饭而言，无论在哪儿都是个合理的价格。店里还有rabarbertrifli，一种传统的丹麦糖渍大黄（25克朗，不到5美元）。

Another way to tackle breakfast is to go to a Danish bakery, all of which seem to sport a pretzel-like symbol over their doors and send out  wafting cinnamon smells early each morning. I happened to start my food tour on a Wednesday, which is the day that St. Peders Bageri makes luscious cinnamon buns called ondagssnegle (or "Wednesday snail"). These coiled cinnamon buns (or "snails") are in fact available everywhere, so much so that I am tempted to suggest simply calling them "Danish." But I have another nominee for that - the brunsviger, a square of fluffy bread generously covered in a buttery brown sugar topping. I had a great one at Meyer's Bageri, on Jægersborggade, near Grod.

另一个解决早餐的方法是去丹麦的面包店，所有店的店门上方都挂有一个像椒盐卷饼样的标志，每天清早随风飘出阵阵肉桂的香气。我开始美食之旅的那天碰巧是周三，是圣佩德面包房(St. Peders Bageri)制作馥郁的肉桂卷的日子，他们管这东西叫“星期三的蜗牛”(ondagssnegle)。这些一圈圈盘起来的肉桂卷（或叫“蜗牛”）其实到处都有，多得直让我想建议干脆的把它们命名为“丹麦卷”。不过我还有另一个候选者可冠以此名——布隆斯维格(brunsviger)，一种方形的蓬松面包，上面覆有厚厚的含黄油的红糖。我在耶丝柏街离格罗德不远的梅耶面包房(Meyer's Bageri)尝过一块，味道好极了。

The Danes aren't known for their ice cream, and several people suggested that I head to an Italian-style gelateria, Siciliansk Is. What gave it a Danish touch, though, were the unusual flavors. There's the molasses-colored licorice - salty and strong enough to pack a wallop, and ultra smooth and creamy rhubarb gelato. The best pick, though, was an ice cream inspired by a milky, sweet Danish drink made from buttermilk, egg yolks and lemon with crumbled cookies on top. At 25 kroner for a small, though, it stretches frugal limits.

丹麦人的冰激凌不出名，好几个人建议我去一家意式冰激凌店——西西里岛之冰(Siciliansk Is)。然而，不同寻常的口味，赋予了它一抹丹麦风情。那儿有蜜糖色的甘草——味道之咸和浓烈，给人莫大的冲击，还有细腻柔滑至极的大黄意式冰激凌，而最佳的选择是一款灵感来自某种乳白色甜饮料的冰激凌，用脱脂乳、蛋黄和柠檬制成，上面撒有饼干碎。不过，25克朗一小份的价格，已超出便宜的范围。

I had feared I'd be stuck eating agurkesalat-covered hot dogs from the ubiquitous street stands, but I ended up doing pretty well. And I gained enough appreciation for Danish food that, if I ever do end up in Noma, I might actually appreciate better what it's trying to do.

我曾经担心，自己会沦落到只能在随处可见的街头摊点吃盖了酸甜黄瓜沙拉的热狗，可结果吃的相当不错。我对丹麦食物有了足够的了解和认识，假如最后有机会去诺玛，我也许能更好地领会他们想要做什么。

If You Go

如果你要去

Copenhagen is pricey, but not so much that people here don't complain about prices in Oslo. I spent an average of $92 a night staying in two apartments rented through Airbnb and one night at the well-located Loeven Hotel, essentially a hostel with private rooms.

哥本哈根的物价水平是高的，但也不算太高，至少这里的人还在抱怨奥斯陆的东西贵。我住了两间通过Airbnb租赁的公寓，并在地段优越的鲁汶酒店(Loeven Hotel)——实质是一家带单人间的青年旅舍——住了一晚，平均每晚92美元。

I especially liked the apartment I rented from Maja Nielsen, a young nurse who rents out her cute flat in Fredericksburg (a tony neighborhood not far from the city center) when she's out of town. Both Maja and my other host, Rasmus Hansen, lent me their bikes free of charge, which was essential to keeping my budget in check, since the subway and buses are expensive. You may have heard of Copenhagen's cycling culture, but it has to be biked to be believed. It's not enough to call Copenhagen a bike-friendly city: I'd call it a biking city that is moderately car-friendly. Just try to avoid rush hour, when bike traffic jams can slow you down (and I am not kidding).

我尤其喜欢玛佳·尼尔森(Maja Nielson)租给我的公寓，她是个年轻的护士，每当人不在城里时，便把自己位于弗里德里克堡（离市中心不远的一个时尚区）的小公寓出租出去。玛佳和另一位接待我的房主拉斯穆斯·汉森(Rasmus Hansen)都免费把他们的自行车借给我，这对我控制预算起了不可或缺的作用，因为地铁和公交车价格不菲。你也许对哥本哈根的自行车文化有所耳闻，但只有亲身骑过才算是真正相信。哥本哈根这个城市不只是自行车友好：要我说，它是个对汽车不甚友好的自行车城市。尽量避开高峰时刻就是，自行车塞起车来是会减慢你的速度的（不是开玩笑）。

With food, lodging and transportation covered, all that's left is finding things to do. I was focused mostly on eating but did slip in a few inexpensive tourist stops. The standard hourlong boat tour is 70 kroner and provides a nice sense of the city; the National Museum is great and free, as is a visit to Christiania, Copenhagen's oddball "freetown," originally formed when squatters took over a derelict military base and turned it into a commune. Despite run-ins with the government, it still operates by some of its own rules - cannabis sales are tolerated if not legal - and has free music performances on Sundays. In other words, there's plenty of ways to fill your time (and your stomach) without spending too much.