Vegetarian Copenhagen

Many vegetarians and vegans are nervous about studying abroad in a new country where they may not know how to live according to their ethical beliefs. Luckily, it is not difficult to live as a vegetarian or vegan in Copenhagen if you know where to look.

Vocabulary

Once you've arrived, your first trip to the supermarket can be a challenge.  If you don't speak the language, it can be difficult to know which products you would like to avoid and which products meet your needs.

It can be helpful to have a pocket vocabulary reference.  Print this out and take it with you when you shop!

Groceries

Some things that are easy to find in American grocery stores are more difficult in Denmark. In general, expect to do a little more shopping in more stores, especially if you are on a limited budget. The cheapest grocery stores (Netto and Aldi) tend to not have a very large selection.

• Dry beans & lentils: A very large variety of dry beans, grains, and the like can be found in the many small greengrocers throughout the city, especially just outside of the city center in Nørrebro, Vesterbro, Østerbro, and on Amager. You can recognize these places by the large racks of produce that they have outside.
• Soymilk: Soymilk is now regularly available in all of the following grocery stores: Føtex, Irma, Rema 1000, Super Best, Super Brugsen. In addition, about half of the city’s cafés have it available for coffee, including the chain “Baresso”.
• Tofu: While some of the largest grocery stores sell tofu, it tends to be very expensive. It is best to buy it at a Chinese or Thai specialty shop. There are a few of these across the street from the central train station (on Reventlowsgade), as well as by Nørreport Station (Den Kinesiske Købmand, Nørrevoldgade 54, 1358 Copenhagen K).
• Imitation animal products (soy yogurt, meat substitute, etc): These can often be found in the high-end grocery store Irma as well as in health-food stores. The closest health-food store to DIS is City Helse on Vendersgade, by Nørreport Station.
• Many spices that aren’t available at grocery stores can be found at Dhadra Food Store, Nørrebrogade 60, 2200 Copenhagen N.

Fast Food

The absolute easiest vegetarian food to find everywhere is falafel, a fried mix of chickpeas and spices. Look for small restaurants that advertise “Shawarma” or “Kebab”. Note that there is usually a yoghurt or crème fraiche-based sauce, so if you don’t eat dairy then you should ask for it without the dressing.

Restaurants

In order to get a map to any of the following, go to http://www.krak.dk and click "Kort". Type the address in the box labelled "Hvor adresse, postnr., by eller sted". If you need travel directions, try the site Rejseplanen which will give you directions using public transit to get anywhere and has an English version available.

• Raw Tribe serves raw vegertarian food to the people of Copenhagen. The mission of The Raw Tribe is to "be a pioneer within new, sustainable and active lifestyles and to disseminate and share this knowledge in a lively and accessible way." Starting with food!
  • Open Monday-Saturday, 11.00-20.00, Sunday 11.00-18.00
  • Address: Blågårdsgade 2a, kld. 2200 Copenhagen N
  • Phone: 26 84 26 72

• 42 Degrees Raw is another restaurant specializing in raw food - i.e., food which has been heated to 107 degrees farenheit - or 42 celcius.
  • Open Monday-Friday, 08.00-20.00, Saturday 09.00-18:00, Sunday 10.00-18.00
  • Address: Pilestræde 32, 1147 Copenhagen K
  • Phone: 32 12 32 10
• Riz Raz is a very popular Mediterranean restaurant with an inexpensive all-you-can-eat vegetarian buffet. They have two locations in the city, named according to the color of the walls.
  • Open from 11.30 to 24.00 every day
  • Addresses: Store Kannikestræde 19, 1169 Copenhagen K (brown) and Kompagnistræde 20, 1208 Copenhagen K (blue)
  • Phone: 33 32 33 45 (brown) and 33 15 05 75 (blue)
• Atlas Bar is not a vegetarian restaurant, but they have a huge variety of good vegetarian food and are very close to DIS. The prices are mid-range.
  • Open from Monday to Saturday, from noon to midnight, though the kitchen closes at 10 PM.
  • Address: Larsbjørnsstræde 18, 1454 Copenhagen K
  • Phone: 33 15 03 52
• Morgenstedet is a mostly organic vegetarian restaurant in Christiania.
  • Open Tuesday through Sunday, 12.00 to 21.00.
  • Address: Fabriksområdet 134, 1440 Copenhagen K (Christiania)
  • Accepts only cash
• Estin Madbutik is open for lunch and sells vegetarian salads. They are near Nyhavn.
  • Open Monday through Friday, from 11.00 to 15.00.
  • Address: Lille Strandstræde 13, kld., 1254 Copenhagen K

Sweet Tooth

Many vegan cakes and pastries along with organic and some gluten-free breads are available at Naturbageriet (The Nature Bakery), which has two locations in Copenhagen:

• Frederiksborggade 29, 1360 Copenhagen K (close to Nørreport Station)
• Istedgade 98, 1650 Copenhagen V

Resources in Malmö

Since the building of the bridge from Copenhagen to Malmö, Sweden, there has been an increasing integration of the two cities.  If you travel to Malmö, there are a number of resources for vegetarians and vegans.

Vegegården is a Chinese vegetarian restaurant in Malmö with a large variety of vegan food, including dessert.

• Open Monday through Wednesday 11.00-17.00, Thursday 11.00-21.00, Friday 11.00-23.00, Saturday 12.00-23.00, Sunday 12.00-21.00
• Address: Rörsjögatan 23, Malmö
• Tlf: 00 46 40-611 38 88 (from Denmark)

Astrid och Aporna (Astrid and the Monkeys) is an inexpensive organic vegetarian food store. The address is Gustav Möllers gata 2, Malmö.  They've also recently opened a restaurant, Astrid och Aporna Kök, at Bergsgatan 20.

Vegan Malmö is an online guide to vegan resources in Malmö.  It's only in Swedish, so Google Translate may be useful.