Kung Fu Izakaya

It may be dark in here but it sure is a good time with the right people. Kung Fu Izakaya Bar isn't quite a den, but with a little modifications it could be. The bar doesn't seem too interested in that, though. Instead they go for the cool, trendy and modern. Normally I'm not a fan of that, but when you can also get food - didn't taste it, but the people that did seemed happy - it evens it up. In the end I'll recommend it. That's what it all comes down to.

 

Sundevedsgade 5

Copenhagen, Denmark 

Sokkelund

I always get so bored walking in Sokkelund, a cafe in a rich pat of Copenhagen. It looks like any other place, it's dreary and yet, somehow I've been coming here a lot. Maybe because it's good for so many things: brunch on Sundays, spontaneous dinners, meetings, you name it. Besides their food is good. Good, not great. And as Harper's Bazar editor-in-chief Glenda Bailey once said: "good is the enemy of great". But even though I have such strange feelings towards this place (not liking it, but still seeing why it's good, no, okay), I've still decided to included it. At least, now you know where to have your next meeting in the Danish capital, right?

 

Smallegade 36

Copenhagen (offically Frederiksberg, but come on, it's practically the same thing), Denmark

Byens Bogcafe

If I was a coffee shop in Copenhagen, this is what I'd do: I'd struggle onto my two legs, kept deep down in the ground. I'd struggle to free my arms, kept tied to me by windows and cement. And I'd struggle to walk. I'd walk and walk and walk until I got to a place where there seemed to be no coffee shop in sight. I'd walk down the path, ignoring the neighbors from the windows eyeing me from the comfort of their homes. When I'd finally get to my destination, Edvard Thomsens Vej 47-49, I'd sit right down in the grass and let my arms cover Byens Bogcafe (The Book Cafe of the City) in one big embrace. Because that's how I feel about this place. I feel like I want to hug it and tell every single person there that I dig their idea to create a place where books and coffee are first priorities and where reading is not frowned upon. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Edvard Thomsens Vej 47-49
Copenhagen, Denmark

Granola

Do you know what's good? Milkshakes. So after you've been to Thiemers Magasin and bought What I Loved by Siri Hustvedt (because you really should buy and read that book), you can cross the street and enter Granola, a cozy - and often crowded - place in one of the most pleasant streets in all of Copenhagen. They also have this lunch plate of various items for those of us who can't decide, but just leave enough room for the milkshake, too. It's gooooood.

Værnedamsvej 5
Copenhagen, Denmark

Thiemers Magasin

Damn, I'm sorry. Life got in the way as they say, and suddenly I didn't have time for my petite blog that I therefore let down. Boo!

Now that I've started again, I want to let you in on a - in Copenhagen - wellknown fact: Copenhagen has a lot of bookstore. Most of them suck though. I mean, they really, really suck. Most of the time it seems about 90 per cent of them have no idea what they're doing and that's why it's a beautiful thing to enter a shop that does. Know what it's doing, I mean.

First of all, Thiemers Magasin in the middle of Copenhagen offers something that is almost unheard of in the literary environment of the Danish capital: readings. Readings! Let's have more! When I lived in New York, I went to readings all the time. Then I move back to Copenhagen and they're gone! Thiemers Magasin, that lovely place, know that readings belong to any truly great bookstore. Because Thiemers is truly great. They offer seats outside, you can buy tea from the counter where a woman is sitting, reading a book. But most important, they know their books. There are no stupid crime novels here. No mindless, hip authors sprawl the shelves. There a crime novels, yes. Hip authors too, yes. But they're only here if there's quality in their work, and that what I most love about Thiemers Magasin. They allow themselves to be part of the elite.

 

Tullinsgade 24

Copenhagen, Denmark

Saiakangi Kohvik

The final entry on Tallinn is also the place with a pretty unpronouncable name for those of us who are not Estonians: Saiakangi Kohvik. Despite of those particular difficulties, this little cakeshop is one cozy place. But then again, in Tallinn what isn't? The girls behind the counter are definitely nicer to the locals than the tourists, but who can blame them really? After all, this is situated right by the tourist centre and it must be rare that they see fellow-Estonians in here. Despite of being overly visited by tourists, the cakes here are really, really delicious which must be the reason that the locals still occasionally do visit.

Also, in winter the windows are wet with steam from inside. Some people don't like that. I do.

Saiakang 3
Tallinn, Estonia

Krambude

If you've been to Olde Hansa, you've been to Krambude as well. This is their store, Old Hansa's that is, and has everything that is even remotely medieval. From things you'd buy (the pointy shoes!) to things you'd never (those glasses!). The people working here are always so jolly - this is the perfect word for what they are, trust me - and the light always dim. What do they do when it's also dark outside?

 

Also, everyone loves taking pictures of Krambude. Just look at the last picture and see if you spot the professional-looking photographer...

Vana Turg 1
Tallinn, Estonia