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12. September 2015: Restaurant Kiin Kiin

| December 8, 2015 | 0 Comments

When you have lunch at a two-star Michelin restaurant you kind of feel like you’ve had enough food for the day. But when your friend is dedicated to provide you with the best possible experience while in Copenhagen, you dine at a one-star Michelin restaurant in the evening!

I went for the “Kiin Kiin Menu” (925 DKK) with the “Wine Pairing” (775 DKK) and I must admit that the way the dishes are presented is also rather unique. When you enter the premise you are seated downstairs in an area which seems at first like a waiting room – Asian style, but still a waiting room. But it is actually where you’re experience in the Restaurant Kiin Kiin begins! And it starts with “Cold Pandan Tea” (Pandanus amaryllifolius is a tropical plant, commonly known as Pandan leaves and used widely in Southeast Asian cooking as a flavoring). The taste of the Pandan tea is rather intense and definitely unique, unlike anything I have tried so far.

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The starter orgy continued with a best of of the starters of the past couple of years …”fried lotus root with lime leaves, 2007″ …

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… “salted merengue with cashew, 2010” …

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… “rice soup with ginger” …

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… “Miang Kam, 2008” which means “small bite” and is really nothing more than that – but a very tasty one …

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… probably one of the most interesting starters that evening was the “pad krapow with ‘fried rice’, 2012” which had basil and fried wild rice in it. The dish would usually be enjoyed out of the shell of an egg, however, today it was in a ceramic egg but it didn’t loose any of its appealingness.

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The last sixth starter that evening was the “gai doon & dancing fish flakes, 2013” …

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… followed by “chicken satay with fried chicken skin and peanut icecream, 2011” and last but not least, number eight, “Sai Oua sausage in smoke, 2008” which was really …

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… a smokey experience.

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The sausage itself was rich but not outstanding. But the way all the starters were presented was definitely unique.

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Once you are done with the starter orgy, you are brought upstairs to your actual dining table where the experience continues. What is to mention at this point that you are handed over a pile of little cards on which there are small stories which inform you about the dishes, the restaurant, the owner, and the ingredients used. So, while it is quite a lot of paper (~110 cards), it is definitely an experience. In addition to that, the chef’s book is brought to the table and I must admit that it is a very lovely and interesting book.

The first “actual course” were “oysters in dried squid shell with edible pearl, 2008” which was okay. I am personally not such a big fan of oysters but they were okay.

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The next course were “cashews scented with kaffir leaves and lemongrass, 2006” which was basically a bag of peanuts in a bag which was edible. Something which was quite surprising for my company that evening.

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With the acutal start of the menu, which begins now, the wine pairing also started. The first wine was a “Grüner Veltliner, Zillinger, Austria” which was paired with a “soup based on galanga & prawns” which was then …

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… enriched with “instant noodles”. The dish was rich and intense, quite spicy but simple in its overall setup.

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The next course was a “pad thai with prawns tamarin & lemongrass” accompanied by “Champagne Deutz”. The idea of grissini chopsticks is lovely but frankly, not very practical, as they broke before the first bite.

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Coure number three looked really breath-taking and when the neighbour table got it (before us), we were wondering what it was. It was a “salad with mackerel mint & spicy marinade” accompanied by a “Riesling, Peter Lauer, Mosel, Germany”. Obviously, you can’t eat the “salad” when it is served as depicted below …

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… but a simple sauce is prepared right in front of you and is then poured over the “salad” …

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… making it look not that appealing anymore. However, while not being too appealing it is actually quite tasty and definitely an interesting experience. I am not that sure if called it a salad but I definitely consider it an interesting dish.

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The next course was “red coconut curry lobster with litchee” served with a “Gewürztraminer, Zind Humbrecht, Alsace”. The red coconut curry was decently applied and not overwhelming the taste of the lobster. The litchee provided a nice balancing element of sweetness.

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After the lobster, another dish was served. Unfortunately, I didn’t manage to write down what we had, however, I remember the dish to be interesting due to its consistency which was rather appealing. Dry, crumbly, but on the other hand also nicely intense and smooth in combination with the icecream.

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The next course was a “om Ka Coconut Soup with mushroom” which was good but a bit late in the course of the meals as soup is really – at least to my experience and standards – a dish you have initially and not throughout the meal.

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The quail leg as a next course was absolutely good.

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The “meat skewers” which were served in between definitely provided a nice element to the menu – as you would not expect to get something like a “starter dish” towards the end of the menu.

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The next course was lovely in taste – the meat was super tender and the combination of flavors fit perfectly with the “Cabarnet Sauvignon Xanadu Margaret River”. The “rib eye fried with oyster sauce”.

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Definitely one of the most interesting dish, especially the way it was served, was “The Scent of Koh Samui” (served with a glass of “La Spinetta, Moscato”). To the left you can see some ice cream which does not look that interesting – however, to the right you can see a bowl filled with sand, shells and a stone. And they are all real, so nothing edible there. But: The straw you can see leads into a little plastic bag where they have some pina colada and it is a lovely experience when your brain thinks it is drinking sand but it is actually drinking pina colada.

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After that, another dessert was served. Once again, I did not manage to reconstruct what it was but I remember it to be tasty.

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The last dish was one to share, “banana cake with salted ice cream” accompanied by a glass of “Lustau Sherry Solera”. It was served on a piece of wood and was actually quite delicious. And definitely a good ending to a marvelous dish.

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Overall, I must say that the dishes you get are very good. However, there was not really any surprising element to it – taste-wise. When it comes to presentation they do a marvelous job.

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While the atmosphere downstairs where you enjoy your “starters” is absolutely lovely and relaxed (besides the fact that the speed with which they serve the dishes is breath-taking), it is very crowded upstairs which takes away quite a bit of your comfort.

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With regards to the service I must say, it was almost flawless downstairs but not really up to the task upstairs (where the actual dinner was served). It was rather uncoordinated upstairs, or at least it left the impression. Overall, it is worth paying the Kiin Kiin a visit, but then again if you want to enjoy a Michelin starred restaurant, I can recommend you the Geranium. The prices are relatively steep (understandably so), but what I kind of don’t get is that they charge extra for coffee (75 DKK) and water (50 DKK) when you are already enjoying such an extensive meal.

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Contact Details:

Restaurant Kiin Kiin

Guldbergsgade 21

2200 Copenhagen (DK)

Tel.: +45 35 35 75 55

Cell: +45 29 45 81 35

E-Mail: kiin@kiin.dk

Homepage: http://www.kiin.dk

About the Author:

I started the blog in October 2009, while living in Milan which I definitely consider to be one of the food capitals of the world. I was in touch with food since my early childhood (as my father is a former chef). Whenever I can, I travel the world to discover new places, to meet people but mostly to try local dishes and to find hidden gems! If you know a place worth going, please drop a line to: info@thediningexperience.org. Currently, I am a member of the following food-related associations: Chevalier @Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Zurich-Ville; Membre Gourmet Dégustateur @Ordre Mondial des Gourmets Dégustateurs [OMGD]; Gesellschafter @Goldener Fisch and Member @Slowfood Convivium Zurich City.
3'800 DKK (incl. tip) Filed in: Copenhagen (DK), Restaurants
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