From the moment the heavy bronze doors swing open, inviting you in from a rough, post-industrial street to a dark space filled with wonders, the experience of entering Copenhagen’s two Michelin-starred restaurant Alchemist is like falling down a rabbit hole.
In the luxurious lounge where guests are served their first few courses, a window to the kitchen-laboratory illuminates jars of ingredients on the back wall. Then you are whisked to a domed space where plastic bags dance like jellyfish in the “ocean” above you, and a further 40 or so head-spinningly strange mouthfuls of food arrive.
A buttery lobster claw that lingers on the palate. Herbs arranged in the shape of Danish fairy tale writer Hans Christian Andersen’s profile that dissolves when soup is poured over them. A wonderfully round snowball that, when you bite into it, tastes of a ripe tomato. A silicone spoon in the shape of a tongue that you have to lick to discover its gooseberry and pumpkin seed flavours. A raw Faroese sea urchin blended with foie gras to produce a texture like silk.
As a drink containing bioluminescence extracted from jellyfish is served, the lights are dimmed, allowing it to glow.
Beyond creating a surreal experience for the privileged few who can dine here – menus cost 4600 DKK (£538) per head excluding drinks, and tickets, released three months ahead, sell out in seconds – head chef Rasmus Munk has bigger fish to fry. It’s not enough for him to create a double-Michelin starred restaurant featuring on The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list; he wants to change how we think about food.