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Top 10 places for smørrebrød (open sandwiches) in Copenhagen

Based on 11 food guides · Checked October 22, 2026

Restaurant Palægade in Frederiksstaden is number one for smørrebrød in Copenhagen, followed by Aamanns 1921 and Restaurant Schønnemann. The ranking comes from food guides such as the MICHELIN Guide, Visit Copenhagen and Falstaff.

Restaurant Palægade is recommended by 6 of the 11 guides we checked, Aamanns 1921 by 5 and Restaurant Schønnemann by 5.

  1. Restaurant Palægade

    Frederiksstaden

    Recommended by MICHELIN Guide · Visit Copenhagen · Falstaff · ELLE Danmark · The Infatuation · ALT for damerne (ALT.dk)

    Order Warm fried herring · Red pickled herring · Håndpillede rejer

    Palægade 8, 1261 København K, DenmarkApple MapsGoogle MapsWebsite

    6 guides

  2. Aamanns 1921

    Indre By

    Recommended by MICHELIN Guide · Visit Copenhagen · Falstaff · ELLE Danmark · Lonely Planet

    Order Pålægschokolademad

    Niels Hemmingsens Gade 19-21, 1153 København K, DenmarkApple MapsGoogle MapsWebsite

    5 guides

  3. Restaurant Schønnemann

    Indre By

    Recommended by Visit Copenhagen · Den danske Spiseguide · Falstaff · ELLE Danmark · Heartbeats

    Order Sildemad

    Hauser Plads 16, 1127 København K, DenmarkApple MapsGoogle MapsWebsite

    5 guides

  4. Selma

    Indre By (Nørreport)

    Recommended by MICHELIN Guide · Visit Copenhagen · Falstaff · ELLE Danmark · Time Out

    Order Herring with nettles

    Rømersgade 20, 1362 København K, DenmarkApple MapsGoogle MapsWebsite

    5 guides

  5. Restaurant Kronborg

    Indre By

    Recommended by Visit Copenhagen · ELLE Danmark · Lonely Planet · Heartbeats

    Brolæggerstræde 12, 1211 København K, DenmarkApple MapsGoogle MapsWebsite

    4 guides

  6. Møntergade

    Indre By

    Recommended by MICHELIN Guide · Den danske Spiseguide · ELLE Danmark

    Order Herring (fried, pickled or curried)

    Møntergade 19, 1116 København K, DenmarkApple MapsGoogle MapsWebsite

    3 guides

  7. Bobe

    Indre By

    Recommended by MICHELIN Guide · Den danske Spiseguide

    Order Duck sausage with pickled beetroot

    Gråbrødretorv 11, 1154 København K, DenmarkApple MapsGoogle MapsWebsite

    2 guides

  8. Koefoed

    Indre By

    Recommended by MICHELIN Guide · ELLE Danmark

    Landgreven 3, 1301 København K, DenmarkApple MapsGoogle Maps

    2 guides

  9. Café Dyrehaven

    Vesterbro

    Recommended by ELLE Danmark · ALT for damerne (ALT.dk)

    Sønder Boulevard 72, 1720 København V, DenmarkApple MapsGoogle MapsWebsite

    2 guides

  10. Judie

    Nyhavn

    Recommended by ELLE Danmark · Kristeligt Dagblad

    Order Tatar på ristet surdejsbrød · Marineret sild med rød karry

    Nyhavn 26, 1051 København K, DenmarkApple MapsGoogle Maps

    2 guides

More places

Also recommended, in the same order.

  1. 11Fasangården Frederiksberg1 guide
  2. 12Københavner Caféen Indre By1 guide
  3. 13Norrlyst Indre By1 guide
  4. 14Restaurant Amalie Frederiksstaden1 guide
  5. 15Restaurant Anton Indre By (Nyhavn)1 guide
  6. 16Restaurant Glassalen Tivoli1 guide
  7. 17Sankt Annæ Frederiksstaden1 guide
  8. 18Slotskælderen hos Gitte Kik Indre By1 guide
  9. 19Barr Christianshavn1 guide
  10. 20Café & Øl-Halle 1892 Indre By (Nørreport)1 guide
  11. 21Christianshavns Færgecafé Christianshavn1 guide
  12. 22Frk. Barners Kælder Vesterbro1 guide
  13. 23Hallernes Smørrebrød Indre By (Torvehallerne)1 guide
  14. 24Mad og Kaffe Vesterbro1 guide
  15. 25Restaurant Puk Indre By1 guide
  16. 26Sokkelund Frederiksberg1 guide

Smørrebrød in Copenhagen

Smørrebrød is the Danish open sandwich: buttered rye bread (rugbrød) with a topping such as herring, meat, cheese or a spread, finished with a garnish. Lonely Planet calls it the lunch to try in Copenhagen.

Møntergade won Den danske Spiseguide’s 2026 award for classic smørrebrød, and the MICHELIN Guide picks its herring, fried, pickled or curried. ELLE picks the sildemad (herring smørrebrød) at Schønnemann. For something sweet, see the top 10 cinnamon buns in Copenhagen.

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Questions

Where is the best smørrebrød in Copenhagen?

Restaurant Palægade in Frederiksstaden is number one, followed by Aamanns 1921 and Restaurant Schønnemann, both in the city centre. Six of our eleven sources recommend Palægade, and the MICHELIN Guide picks its warm fried herring and red pickled herring.

Is Selma in the top 10?

Yes, at number four. Selma has a MICHELIN Bib Gourmand, and Visit Copenhagen, Falstaff, ELLE and Time Out recommend it too. Time Out picks the herring with nettles.

How did you rank these restaurants?

We ranked each restaurant by how many of eleven sources recommend its smørrebrød, including the MICHELIN Guide, Visit Copenhagen and the nominees for Den danske Spiseguide's 2026 smørrebrød award. On a tie, places named by those three come first. Every restaurant was open when we checked on 22 October 2026.

How we ranked

We ranked places by how many of these 11 food guides and critics recommend them. We don't score or review places ourselves. Checked on October 22, 2026; things change, so check before you go.

Sources (11)
  1. Nomineringer 2026: Årets Smørrebrød · Den danske Spiseguide · 2026 · Award guide
  2. Copenhagen MICHELIN Restaurants - The MICHELIN Guide Denmark · MICHELIN Guide · 2026 · Guide
  3. The Best Restaurants In Copenhagen · The Infatuation · 2026 · Media
  4. Best smørrebrød and other traditional Danish food · Visit Copenhagen · 2026 · Guide
  5. The 5 best places for smørrebrød in Copenhagen · Falstaff · 2025 · Media
  6. The 9 best things to do in Copenhagen · Lonely Planet · 2025 · Media
  7. The 12 best restaurants in Copenhagen · Time Out · 2025 · Media
  8. Frokost i København: 21 steder, du skal spise frokost · ALT for damerne (ALT.dk) · 2024 · Media
  9. Smørrebrød: Her er de bedste steder i København · ELLE Danmark · 2024 · Media
  10. Her får du den bedste påskefrokost i København · Heartbeats · 2024 · Media
  11. Her er tre anbefalinger til smørrebrødsrestauranter, der sprænger rammerne for, hvad man kan forvente sig af en god, dansk håndmad · Kristeligt Dagblad · 2024 · Media

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