Try Smorrebrod in Scandinavia

“It was at a holiday table where, in the 21st century, I sat with my husband’s Danish family for the first time. I wanted to make a good impression and felt confident in my manners until I was confronted with the ritual of eating smorrebrod. Suddenly, I was catapulted into a world of unknown rules, stumbling through a minefield of herring, rye bread and schnapps. If there is a Danish equivalent for the phrase ‘faux pas,’ then I committed it. Not only did I place the smoked salmon on rye bread (it must be white bread), but I also used the same plate when I switched from the fish to the meat course. When I gratefully reached for my schnapps, I committed an even worse blunder: I drank without raising the glass first, looking everyone in the eye and saying skol. By smorrebrod standards, I was a cultural Neanderthal. But once you get the hang of it, it’s difficult not to be enchanted by the simple pleasure of eating smorrebrod and the Danish culture that produced it.”

“In my search for a smørrebrød restaurant, I remembered coming across a well-reviewed place on a side street off of Nyhavn. Thankfully, my memory served me well, and I was able to find it. Told og Snaps was cozily tucked away in a near-basement space. They were able to accommodate us, though they told us that we’d need to be finished in just over an hour. Our server recommended that we order two smørrebrød each. We perused the lengthy list of options and ultimately settled on three to share between us: brisket of beef boiled in brown ale, served with relish and horseradish, liver pâté and salt silverside, and finally pickled herring with hard-boiled egg, potatoes and mayonnaise. [...] Our smørrebrød soon arrived, and we scarfed them down. They were all delicious. D and I agreed that Scandinavians do not appear to shy away from seriously intense flavours. I tried a bit of the beef brisket smørrebrød, and grabbed a nice sample of what I thought were Parmesan cheese shavings, which D generously consented to, and I soon discovered was actually horseradish, much to his amusement.”