Radio in Copenhagen

Salted cod, cabbage, parsley, brown butter

We here in the United States have long been exposed to the modernity of Scandinavian design in furniture, the sleek lines, clean surfaces, and wooden accents, but only recently has Scandinavian food made an impact in this country. With the rise of Marcus Samuelsson, Noma, and even the Swedish meatballs in the Ikea commissary, the recent emergence of Scandinavian cuisine has put Norway, Sweden, and Denmark on the map as modern dining destinations. A large part of my decision to visit Copenhagen was for the food; though because of late planning, a reservation at Noma was out of the question. Instead, I chose Radio, one of the Noma-alum restaurants focusing on local ingredients.

More... Radio, self-described as "unpretentious," has that casual atmosphere well-suited for a restaurant on Berkeley's College Avenue. The facade is simple and unadorned, the interior unembellished, with a rustic flair in the wood paneling. Large photos of the nearby organic farms where most of the ingredients are sourced line the walls. Also notable, like much of the Scandinavian population, the waiters were impeccably handsome.



The menu consists of five daily courses. Diners select either the full five-course tasting or pick and choose three of the five. You can also elect a wine pairing, or in my case, a non-alcoholic pairing. The waiter brought out an amuse of green beans, sour cream, and crushed olives. There was no preparation beyond tossing the ingredients together. It was all about the ingredients. This would set the tone for all of the courses--the chef's skill would come from combining the flavors more than the cooking technique.


Scallop, lettuce stem, cucumber, whey
Paired with cucumber juice
The first course featured excellently seared scallops. The dish's components clearly evoked sensations of the sea and surf. While I wonder whether seaweed featured in Danish cuisine before, I had no doubts that it was sourced locally. The cucumber juice pairing would characterize much of what the non-alcoholic pairings attempted. The juices would seize on a component flavor of the dish and try to highlight it. In this case, the refreshing cucumber beverage did just that.


Salted cod fish, cabbage, parsley, browned butter
Paired with elderflower juice
This dish wins the most beautiful plate award of the year. The wonderfully vivid cabbage had a crispness but none of the astringency associated with purple cabbage. The salt cod is actually uncooked, a preparation more similar to a crudo. Flavorwise, the cod held up, but I would've preferred for more of the natural flavor to come out rather than masked by the abundant use of brown butter. Cod is an oily enough fish without the addition butter. I've always been a fan of the slight medicinal quality of elderflower, and this pairing worked to cut through the fattiness of the cod.


Mushrooms, ramsons, ølandshvede, cress
Paired with sparkling blueberry juice
Despite the more exotic ingredients of this dish, the flavors were pedestrian. The waiter told us the mushrooms were wild chanterelles. Ramsons, also known as wild garlic, added little in flavor. And as far as I could understand, ølandshvede is a type of spelt wheat, manifested in the dish as little crunch granules. Although blueberries in the region are plump and delicious, the sparkling juice was too sweet to pair with this dish.


Flank of veal, carrot, dill, smoked cheese
Paired with carrot apple juice
The main course was the oddest tasting dish, though not necessarily in a bad way. Carrots prepared two ways, one fresh, the other pickled and steamed, were the predominant flavors. Although the smoked fresh cheese, with the consistency of cream, had such strong smokiness that a small dollop would flavor the entire dish. Veal flank was a little tough as can be expected with that cut. By itself, I don't think the meat was seasoned at all. Most of the flavor came from the cheese and carrot. Dill, the omnipresent Nordic herb, went well with the carrots.


Plum, fermented plum, chocolate, malt
Paired with plum iced tea
Dessert came in a soup bowl. The plum came in the form of a sorbet, floating in a white chocolate lake. Normally not a fan of white chocolate, I was pleasantly surprised by the mellowness of this dessert. It didn't have any of the artificial cloyingness I associate with white chocolate. The iced tea was also a refreshing way to cleanse the palate.

The overall meal had some hits and misses. For a casual dining experience, more affordable than Noma, Radio was right on target. Speaking of price, at 400 DKK (~66 USD)for the five-courses, it was very reasonable. Meals in Scandinavia are outrageously expensive; so in comparison, this was actually a steal. The non-alcoholic pairings were a nice novelty, but the wine pairings were much more successful. While I don't know if I would choose Radio as an alternate to the Noma experience, it would make a nice supplement for someone who planned his vacation better than me.

Radio
restaurantradio.dk
Julius Thomsen Street 12 (Near the Forum)
1632 Copenhagen V ^

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California's Pizza Kitchen: The Cheese Board Collective

Cheese Board's pizza of the day with gratuitous extra slices

Being a transplant from California to New York, I am often asked to verify New York pizza claims. Is it really that much better? Does it put California pizza to shame? I always respond with the politically calculated answer--they're different. Those who know me know that I don't need to hedge my response to save feelings. If something is objectively better, I'll say it. But pizzas from California and New York really are different. Too often people only make the distinction between Chicago style deep dish and the Neapolitan thin crust as the only two kinds. Yet, my recent trip to Berkeley's famous Cheese Board Collective reaffirmed my conviction that the differences even among thin crust pizzas need to be highlighted and celebrated.


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Breaking it down simply, New York pizza is all about simplicity and execution while California pizzas are about complexity and creativity. Both types emphasize the importance of quality ingredients, but the East Coast cares much more about the fundamental building blocks of the pizza--dough, sauce, and cheese. California pizzerias don't cling to tradition; of course they don't, there is no pizza tradition in California. Starting with Wolfgang Puck, the pizza in California has always been innovative and new. The focus is on the ingredients, often a blend of the unexpected. In fact, if you look for a "traditional" pizzeria in California, you're likely to be steered towards New York or Italian transplants.

Just as a personal anecdote, during my first New York pizza experience years ago at Grimaldi's, I had a plain cheese pizza. I hadn't had pizza with no toppings since it was forced on my as a kid at party's thrown by picky eaters. It was then that I realized New York and California pizza just don't compete in the same field. Just as you don't order a pizza with no toppings in California, you don't order a combination pizza in New York.


Long lines, but fast moving customers

The Cheese Board Collective started in 1967 as a cheese shop. In the 1970s, it began baking bread and earned renown for its baked goods. It actually wasn't until 1990 that it began selling pizza, the draw by which I first discovered it. In an informal poll among my friends, any reference to the Cheese Board was always followed by, "the pizza place."



The Cheese Board offers one pizza selection a day with no substitutions. Its emphasis is on fresh, local ingredients, no surprise given the store's location on the other side of the street from Chez Panisse. While many California pizzas strive to impress you with over-the-top exoticism (hello, Jamaican jerk chicken and Peking duck), this pizza was comparatively plain. The pizza was outstanding, with lemon citrus notes and cilantro playing up the garlic and roma tomatoes. Sharp hints of feta gave some variety to the workhorse mozzarella. Best of all, the pizza was accessible, something you think you can make as long as you have the best ingredients.


Live jazz music

The appeal of the Cheese Board is beyond just a solid appreciation for its food. It is a collective, owned and operated by its workers. The open store front and live music play up the atmosphere and it's hard to come out of the experience without a smile. And of course, a healthy amount of civil disobedience was thrown in across the street by patrons without a table at this busy joint. Let's not forget where we are boys and girls.



The Cheese Board Collective
cheesboardcollective.coop
1504 Shattuck Ave.
Berkeley, 94709
(510) 549-3183
$2.50/slice, $20/whole

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Why Locavorism is a Pipe Dream

I grew up in California and I've lived here all my life. While I don't necessarily want to stay here forever, I do love the state. As a foodie, California's appeal is apparent. The incredible bounty of the state is unparalleled by anywhere else in the Union. California's climate and soil conditions are so versatile and suitable to a wide variety of produce. Visiting New York, I hated paying a premium for fresh fruits and vegetables that look like they came from the bottom of the sale bin at 99 Ranch. Considering my love for the ingredients here, its easy to appreciate the utopian dream of the locavore movement.

Sure, eating local foods seems to be a great concept for building self-reliant communities. The food on your plate comes from no further than your nearest farms and ranches. The huge carbon footprint on that Australian rack of lamb is enough to deter some environmentalists. Why not have lamb from the farmers' market instead?

Well as Stephen Dubner and James McWilliams argue on the Freakonomics blog, the local food movement is just not very sound from an economist's perspective. When you emphasize small farms, you lose economies of scale. When you lose that, you create inefficiencies may have other undesirable effects. True, agri-business sounds pretty sinister these days, but mostly because these large companies are efficient at what they do. The Green Revolution has been credited with feeding groups of people with cheap and readily available foods, but perhaps at the cost of the environment. Yet how many people are willing to give up most of the foods on their local grocery shelves for the sake of the environment. I like to eat bananas, but they don't grow anywhere near me. How many of you are willing to make that sacrifice?

Not everywhere that people live is suitable for agriculture either. California is lucky in that sense, but ask the people in Arizona if they're willing to only eat locally. Would it be worthwhile to heavily irrigate Arizona for the sake of growing oranges? How can that be good for the environment.

On paper, the local food movement is quite appealing. But in practice, it just doesn't address all the complexities. Our agricultural system is flawed, but certainly not broken.

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