Restaurants of the Month

Restaurant of the Month, Sweden

Stockholm’s largest rooftop venue has something for everyone

From April to September, the line to get into Northern Europe’s biggest rooftop venue – which offers high-end Nordic-Japanese cuisine in an informal, lively setting –stretches around the block.

By Linda A. Thompson | Photos: TAK

In just five years, TAK has become a leading destination in Sweden’s capital, packing eight rooftop venues into one location. One of them – the sprawling 150seat, Nordic-Japanese restaurant TAK – is inspired by the vision and philosophy of TAK’s culinary leader, Frida Ronge.

“That means Nordic flavours and produce with Japanese cooking techniques and flavours,” explains Henrik Jakobsen, TAK’s general manager. One of the restaurant’s signature dishes, chirashi sushi, combines Nordic Salmon, Nordic seaweed furikake, local vegetables and TAK’s own gari, made from Swedish rutabaga and served on sushi rice.

Under the same roof, you’ll also find a high-energy bar with a sprawling terrace, and the Izakaya restaurant, offering a street-food take on the main restaurant. Then there’s Unn – a teppanyaki restaurant with an eight-course menu that can welcome parties of up to ten people.

TAK also houses one of the city’s most exclusive private venues, IMA. Jakobsen explains that ‘ima’ means living room in Japanese. “And that’s what we wanted to create – a kind of living room-feel cocktail lounge” he says.

Finally, there’s SUS – short for Stockholm under the Stars – a festival-vibe rooftop venue centred around well-mixed cocktails, carefully curated street food, and DJ sets.

Biggest in Europe “All together, we are without a doubt one of the biggest rooftops – not just in northern Europe, but in Europe as a whole,” Jakobsen says, adding that the range of experiences on offer has been key to TAK’s success. “That’s why there’s a queue that winds around the block from April to September. Because there’s so much up here.”

The common ethos behind all the siblings in the TAK family is to introduce guests to new experiences. They have run sushi workshops with Frida Ronge, yoga classes as part of Sunday brunch events, and host regular sake tastings that introduce guests to the world of the fermented rice drink. “We love to educate our guests in our world of Nordic Japanese cuisine, beverages and experiences –that’s really what we stand for.”

More is on the horizon, too. In September, TAK will open a second location in Frogner, a neighbourhood to the west of Oslo’s city centre. Why? “Because we’ve seen that our combination of high-end Nordic-Japanese cuisine and an informal, lively setting really appeals to guests. And we think it’ll work incredibly well in Oslo, too.”

www.tak.se Instagram: @tak_stockholm Facebook: takstockholm

A bowl of Tantanmen ramen and a side of Yakitori. A spread of Momo Toko’s offerings varying from Takoyaki octopus balls to vegetarian Goma Ktsu salad.

Restaurant of the Month, Finland Japanese ramen served with a side of excellent customer service

It’s no stretch to accredit the arrival of ramen in Finland to the people behind Momo Toko. The first restaurant opened in 2015 and now, with eight restaurants in Southern Finland, and two about to open in Tallinn, Momo Toko is showing no signs of slowing down.

By Ester Laiho | Photos: Momo Toko

Momo Toko is renowned for their customer service and hand-made noodles. When the owners learned the craft of making ramen noodles, they set the Finnish restaurant apart from ramen restaurants across Europe which rely heavily on European importers. Today, hand-made noodles are a cornerstone of their success. All Momo Toko restaurants make them from scratch, as with everything on the menu, as a nod of respect to Japanese food culture and tradition. Even the sauce and broth recipes are their own and made in-house.

Unfortunately, along with every other business in the hospitality sector, Momo Toko had to alter their business model to survive COVID-19. “We launched takeaway products in Lidl and R-kioski. We also only sold takeaway for a while, and kept changing our model, depending on what the Finnish government guidelines dictated. We wouldn’t have done as well as we did, if it wasn’t for our amazing staff,” COO and training officer Jouni Quisbert explains.

Momo Toko may have started with ramen, but today, their menu includes ricebased dishes – such as donburi, gyozas and edamame. Momo Toko’s most popular dish is an excellent representative of the company’s ethos and dedication to

traditionally crafted Japanese flavours: Original Tonkotsu. It is made from Tonkotsu pork broth that has been boiled for ten hours, ramen, oven-roasted pork belly, house-made soy-marinated egg, wakame seaweed, sugar snaps and corn. This dish is garnished with rocket, fried garlic and black garlic and sesame oil. Even though making a ramen broth takes ten hours, the base concept of the restaurant is fast food of a high quality. This is all made possible by a highly skilled workforce who enjoy their work, and therefore serve a quality dish every time.

“Even if customers only drop in for a quick bite, we want them to feel welcome – from being greeted at the door until they finish their last scoop of matcha ice cream,” Quisbert explains. It’s a collaborative effort between front of house and the kitchen: guests are treated to a warm and attentive service, while they taste the love in the chefs’ skilfully cooked Curry Katsu Chicken Donburi or Chicken Karaage.

Quisbert himself joined Momo Toko as a restaurant manager in Espoo, after a friend who worked there recommended it. After being promoted to training officer, he worked his way up to COO six months ago. “I appreciate the open workplace culture we have. It’s very encouraging and everyone’s opinion is heard. We are also very hands on in our management team. This way, we ensure our employees and customers both enjoy their time,” he explains.

Quisbert and the Momo Toko team are excited about launching a new menu – but he is coy about what precisely it will entail, revealing only that it reflects the ideas of their employees and wishes of the guests. “The new menu will represent what we’ve done thus far: Japanese flavours made possible by fresh Finnish produce – but now with more vegetarian and vegan options, which I’m very excited about.” The new menu will be rolled out in all restaurants, while the two new venues will open their doors for the first time in the Telliskivi Creative Hub and in the Noblessner harbour area in Tallinn, later in the summer.

While ten Momo Tokos for Southern Finland and Tallinn might sound like a lot, Quisbert reframes the number: “There are over 30,000 ramen restaurants in Japan, so we’ve got a lot of work to do to match that!”

A bowl of Curry Katsu Chicken Donburi and gyozas. Tonkotsu ramen is Momo Toko’s best-selling dish. Noodles made for ramen in one of eight Momo Toko restaurants.

The entrance to Momo Toko Kamppi in Helsinki. www.momotoko.fi Instagram: @momotoko Facebook: momotoko

Lovparken & Benny.

Restaurant of the Month, Denmark Ambitious Danish haute cuisine

A relative newcomer on the Danish food scene, Duevangs Deluxe is an absolute must for fans of fine dining. With an outstanding menu and experienced, skillful staff who are passionate about the whole dining experience, it is little wonder that this gem of a place has big ambitions. Watch this space and book a table before everyone else does!

By Trine Jensen-Martin | Photos: René Duevang

Situated by the picturesque Lovparken (a public park and gardens) in Køge, only 25 minutes south of Copenhagen, Duevangs Deluxe offers modern high-end cooking at its finest. Owners and proprietors Jimmy and Rikke Duevang are behind this family affair and labour of love, with seven dedicated and passionate full-time members of staff. Their focus is on quality and flavours, and the creative kitchen delivers delicious, beautifully-crafted seasonal food. The restaurant is small and intimate, catering for up to 30 people à la carte and 60 people for larger functions. During the summer months, guests at Duevangs Deluxe can dine under the trees of Lovparken – a truly unique experience.

French cuisine adapted to Danish tastebuds Rikke and Jimmy previously ran a small eatery in Præstø, serving more traditional Danish food, but Jimmy felt pulled by his passion for and background in French cuisine. The idea for a high-end restaurant started taking shape. In 2018, Jimmy went to Køge with the intention of buying interiors and white goods from a closed down restaurant. He got talking to previous owner Jørn, who recognised Jimmy from years before in Køge, and knew of his reputation as a fine chef.

Jørn made Jimmy an offer he couldn’t refuse, so he came back with a lease to reopen the restaurant – rather than a truckload of furniture and cookery ware. Duevangs Deluxe opened its doors in August 2018 during the popular Køge Festuge (Køge Party Week), which attracts thousands of visitors. They were an instant, roaring success. The place continues to attract guests and is regularly fully booked.

“Our guests are hugely supportive and keep coming back for more,” explains Jimmy’s cousin and Duevangs Deluxe inhouse events coordinator, René Duevang. They already have a loyal local following, but word is spreading fast, and people

are coming from further afield to sample their exciting and refined food. Jimmy’s education and inspiration is the classical French kitchen, but “adapted to Danish tastebuds,” René explains. The result is a beautiful fusion of classical French cooking with seasonal Danish ingredients.

Attention to detail goes beyond the food they create at Duevangs Deluxe and extends to the special crockery they use in the restaurant. Some years back, Jimmy and Rikke bought a collection of plates from an antiques shop in Præstø, made by renowned Danish designer and sculptor Jens Harald Quistgaard. Quistgaard’s collection has recently gone into a museum and is considered a truly distinctive example of Danish heritage and style. Using these unique plates is more than an elegant touch; serving up modern Danish cuisine on antique Danish plates brings together Denmark’s old and new. This is kitchen art, and each stunning piece can be appreciated on the plate and on the palate, too.

An evening full of surprises Duevangs Deluxe unique Gourmet Evenings are hugely popular. It’s not a traditional tasting menu, as the guests book a table knowing only the theme of the evening, not the menu. One such recent theme was fish and seafood. This allows the kitchen to use the freshest foods available that very morning, as they forage for herbs in Lovparken, and adds an element of surprise to proceedings.

Jimmy and his sous-chef Martin introduce the small delicate dishes, all created meticulously and with the greatest care, whilst their visiting wine expert introduces the accompanying wine. There is often a story to tell behind the dishes, such as the amusing time Jimmy found himself buying truffles out of the boot of a clapped-out car in what, to an innocent bystander, might have looked rather unsavoury. “Our guests really enjoy letting us choose for them,” Rene says, which speaks to their trust in Jimmy and his team, and explains why they return time and again.

Future ambitions Duevangs Deluxe have their sights set even higher for the future. “The first step is a Michelin recommendation,” says René. “The next step would be to aim for a star!” he continues. They pride themselves on personal recommendations and there is something refreshingly honest about their reputation, which grows by word of mouth. “Feedback is very important to us,” Rene says. “We always take on board what our guests say and want to become better at what we do at every turn.” This is of huge importance to everyone at Duevangs Deluxe – to continue to improve the whole dining experience for their guests so that they not only leave satisfied, but come back for more.

www.duevangs.dk Facebook: Duevangs Deluxe Køge Instagram: @duevangs_deluxe

Duevangs Deluxe Køge Sankt Gertrudsstræde 2, 4600 Køge, Denmark

Mad & Quistgaard.

Jimmy & Rikke.