Esmée — Restaurant in Copenhagen Municipality

I think the four star rating for Esmèe is quite fair.

If we start with the atmosphere, the place is absolutely stunning. Probably the prettiest restaurant I’ve ever been at. It’s so beautiful inside and the attention to detail is crazy. Lighting, ambience and just overall layout, they’ve really nailed the atmosphere. The location is of course also super nice, right on Kongens Nytorv so of course a very expensive and extravagant address and it fits the interior for sure.

Service is absolutely incredible. The staff are nice, they’re attentive and they make you feel very welcome. Not only that they’re professional and also accommodating for wishes and wants throughout the meal. No comments on either atmosphere or service, top class.

The food however is what brings my rating a bit down. It’s obviously super expensive, and that’s okay, you pay for location and extravagance, but then the quality should also be up to par. We started with the oysters which were delicious, not a lot to comment on there because the preparation is quite simple. Then we had a bunch of starters for the table.

The truffle rösti was quite good, but nothing too overwhelming which was actually surprising considering the shaved black truffle on top. Then we also had the fried chicken, once again super delicious - but that goes for all fried chicken to be honest. I missed a bit of spice on those. They had some spice mix on top, almost like Nashville hot chicken but they should’ve coated it more because that was kinda the highlight for me. And then some olives.

For the main course I had the grilled turbot. We waited quite a long time for that, around 40 minutes from our starters to the main course. Fish was cooked perfectly, but to me the star of that dish was the seasonal greens in the sauce. Everything was just super nice and fresh. The main course was a 10/10 for me.

It’s a French restaurant, and honestly the menu selection for me was a bit flat. It didn’t feel like a French restaurant when considering the menu. Heavily dominated by fish, and lacked any other interesting French classics on the card. They say online they’re inspired by the Mediterranean area, while that’s true I think they’re probably a bit too inspired considering that it is supposed to be French.

I end at four because of the price to quality ratio, especially considering the rather standard entrees, and menu selection as well. For that price, I expect a bit more...

9/1/24 8:40 PM: My mother and I felt discriminated against at this place. I chose Esmee for my birthday dinner because it was highly recommended by a friend and we had a 19-hour layover in Copenhagen. However, we were initially turned away because we didn't have a reservation and they were "fully booked", even though half their dining room was EMPTY and nowhere was it stated that one was required to dine. To compensate, they suggested a Chinese restaurant next door that they claimed to own, and this was COMPLETELY off-putting because we are Asian-American. My mother and I easily felt their desire to not serve us. Not allowing us to be so easily dismissed, my mother then asked if we could at least be seated at the bar that was clearly open, but they would only serve us appetizers there. Not even three minutes after we acquiesced and seated ourselves there, the host comes back and apologizes for the "miscommunication" with the manager and that they do have "one" open table outside, which again was a lie because they offered us a choice between TWO tables outside and there was still the half-open dining room full of tables indoors (plus, at that point it was nearly 9 PM on a Sunday night and folks still have rsvp's that late? Come on.)

We had no qualms with our server, who was kind and polite to us, but it was a shame that we didn't get any silverware once our food started arriving, nor did we get the waters we ordered throughout our dinner and were still charged for them at the very end. Despite initially getting there around 8:40 or so, we didn't actually start eating until 10:15-:20.

Esmee's customer service at the beginning put a dark cloud over our whole experience. My mother is a strong woman and a force to be reckoned with, but the ordeal greatly upset her once we returned to our hotel. We were both very tired, having just gotten off a flight from the Czech Republic in the late afternoon, we were dressed appropriately for dinner service, we had high expectations for a restaurant we had heard great things about, we had the means to pay for our food, and we just wanted to enjoy and make the most of Denmark during the short 19-hour layover we had...

I've heard stereotypes about racism in Scandinavian countries, and the discrimination and lack of hospitality at Esmee just showed those seem to be true.

P.s. Do not get...

We had a lovely start to our evening at this restaurant. While waiting for our table, the lady at the bar was incredibly kind and prepared our cocktails exactly the way we wanted. It set a very pleasant tone for the rest of the night. The host who greeted us kindly offered to take our bags, which was a nice touch.

Once our table was ready, we were seated, and the food did not disappoint. The dishes were truly delicious. The brioche lobster roll was so good, we ended up ordering it multiple times. The green salad was incredibly fresh and crispy, and the scallop was nicely cooked, although the portion was very small—more like a tasting bite. The grilled sea bass had a fantastic sauce, though only half a fish was served, which felt a bit sparse. The French fries were also excellent, but we were surprised that no condiments were provided. The warm cherry pie was outstanding—flaky, flavorful, and melted in the mouth.

The ambiance and flavors absolutely live up to the restaurant’s reputation and pricing—however, what didn’t meet expectations was the service at the table. Unfortunately, our server was very unwelcoming throughout the night. He never smiled, barely acknowledged us, and avoided eye contact. At one point, he abruptly tossed a bucket of ice into the street, which even disrupted traffic. We genuinely couldn’t understand the attitude. We also had to make repeated efforts just to get attention, and in the end, we didn’t even try calling him for the check—we got up and paid ourselves.

All in all, a place worth visiting for the food and atmosphere, but we hope the service improves to match the...