February 2010  

Red hot trendy spot

Vesterbro used to be known as Copenhagen's worker´s quarter and red light district. For many years the talk was of regeneration but little was achieved. But in the last few years a genuine transformation has occurred in the area to the west of the Central Station: This old, run down patch of dark tenements and cheap worker's accommodation which, since the 1960s, was famous around the world for its sex industry and having more butchers per square kilometre than anywhere else in Europe, is now one of the hippest places in the city - not just to live, but to shop, eat, drink and have a great night out. If you want to spot the latest trends in Copenhagen and, indeed, Scandinavia, this is not a bad place to start. As with Nørrebro to the north of the city centre, an influx of immigrants, students, creatives, media-types and bohemians has turned a neglected quarter into a trendy part of the town.

In the still active meatpacking district in Vesterbro, in what was formerly a slaughter house, art food and cocktails have been united in a unique, experimental café/restaurant/bar named Karriere that's open in the weekend. New artworks by leading international artists define the design and functions of the place. Guests are challenged with spectacular light objects (Olafur Eliasson), the bar counter slowly moving from side to side (Jeppe Hein), a sculpture made of a two way mirror alternating with perforated stainless steel on the square in front of Karriere (Dan Graham) etc. Karriere provides a new take on art in public with an emphasis on experience and communication through direct involvement with art. The context of the café/restaurant/bar is an informal and socially relaxed setting for the experience of art, as an alternative to museums. They serve dinner with a kitchen based on organic products. Transforming into cocktail bar at night, featuring concerts, djs, artist talks and performances. Jeppe Hein, the boldly advancing Danish artist, and his sister restaurateur Lærke Hein are the driving forces behind Karriere. Next door to Karriere you'll find V1 Gallery and DASK. V1 Gallery represents a select group of emerging and established artists and is committed to introducing art to an international audience as a profound and competent media for social and political engagement. DASK is Denmark's first photo gallery dedicated to the art of photography with hand signed special edition photographs. Galleri Bo Bjerggaard was founded in 1999. Focusing on international contemporary art it represents several great European masters in Scandinavia, including Per Kirkeby, Georg Baselitz, Sigmar Polke, Jannis Kounellis and Helmut Federle. The gallery also specializes in photography and video installations. They have extended their activities to producing 8-10 shows a year, each with a unique focus; one for the young talent and one for more established artists. HANS ALF Gallery opened in March 2009 and will show innovative art both national and international.

Paté Paté, next door to BioMio is a wine bar, restaurant, tapas café, coffee oasis and delicatessen that open in August 2009. The owners saw some old drawings of the building and realized that it had once been a liver paté factory, hence the name Paté Paté. Kødbyens Fiskebar opened June 2009 and is a lively hang out with seating for 100 inside and 60 - 80 chairs outside where you can sit in the sun throughout the long Nordic summer evenings. The décor is a little rough with room for 14 at the bar where the chef opens oysters, serves razor shell scallops and other raw delights. They also have seating for 8 around a jellyfish aquarium buying fresh seafood directly from local Danish fishermen. Also in the meat packing area is Jolene Bar. A 175-square-meter venue, transformed from its original purpose in the meat industry to a trendy nightclub and bar. . On the next street at Kødboderne 18, you'll find a three storied club. Behind the concept is a group of young DJs, VJs and producers in Copenhagen aiming at - you guessed it! - promoting young talent. . In the same area you will find the White Room, that opened in October 2009, a venue that hosts private parties and various clubs.November 2008 Tante T opened a tea house in the meat packing district with everything pertaining to the art of making tea.

Audio walks
Choose a route, press a number and you will be guided on a audio walk by an author on a tour of Vesterbro as seen and experienced through the eyes of six young writers. This is a completely new and quite thrilling way to get to know the district. At the City Museum on Vesterbrogade you pick up your MP3 player and a set of headphones, your stroll through Vesterbro will then become something to remember!

A must go district
Vesterbro now boasts the city's number one nightclub and lounge bar, Vega and Ideal Bar, one of its most charismatic exhibition spaces, Øksnehallen, some of the city's best restaurants and grooviest cafes, and several deeply cool fashion shops. Billions of kroner have been spent cleaning and repairing many of the buildings to create the new café square, Halmtorvet, turning a no-go area into a must-go district for locals and tourists alike.

Further confirmation of its ascendancy came in the November 2001 Danish-themed issue of Wallpaper magazine, which homed in on Vesterbro as Copenhagen's hippest quarter. However, the turnaround really began with the transformation of the old cattle market Øksnehallen into a light and stylish exhibition hall at the time when Copenhagen was the European City of Culture in 1996. Øksnehallen remains at the heart of Vesterbro's cultural life with a changing programme of art and photography exhibitions throughout the year.

Nearby is another more recent sign of the intensive brush-up: Halmtorvet. Café/restaurants like Carlton and Apropos now ensure this formerly unloved cobbled square now buzzes with life throughout the day and well into the night. On the other side of the square, Byens Lys - Café PH, beside Øksnehallen, boasts regular live music.

Cafes and wine bars
Despite the trendification of the eastern end of Vesterbro's famous 'sex street', Istedgade, the area from Gasværksvej and down towards the Central Station remains about as red light as they come. But as you walk for a few minutes further west beyond Gasværksvej you will notice more and more groovy, boho-cafes, retro-kitsch clothes shops and cool designer shops. Places like Simpelt V a 70's-style, hip, retro bar, Riccos Coffee Shop, a small, cozy coffee bar, where the coffee is roasted, brewed and served with expertise vinyl record's on the player. Strassen among others will tempt you to waste a day over a coffee or beer lounged on a comfy sofa - as will two of the true Vesterbro pioneers, cafés Bang & Jensen, and Hackenbusch, both housed in converted pharmacists and both still at the epicentre of hip Vesterbro. On Istedgade is one of Copenhagen's most charming wine bars in a former bodega since 1877, Malbeck, which offers more than 15 different wines that can be ordered by the glass. In another side street, Saxogade, you'll find the alternative Café Sonja, where staffs work voluntarily. Frederiksberg's Salon 39 opened the Brass Monkey on Enghavevej in November 2009. The style is a mix of what the American troops took home with them from the Pacific islands with jazz records on the gramophone and fresh pressed fruit juice in the shakers.

Everything from gourmet to fast food
Delicatessen, much further up Vesterbrogade, was one of the first venues to contribute to making Vesterbro 'hot and trendy', today the atmosphere is still tops. Det Gule Hus, with its excellent views over Istedgade, is a good bet if you're on a budget. If you are looking to bust your budget with a sensational food experience, Formel B on the border of Vesterbro and Frederiksberg remains one of the city's most stylish restaurants.

If you prefer to cook for yourself, Vesterbro is also packed with enticing food shops selling hard-to-find ingredients from Thailand, China, Greece, Italy and elsewhere. Solhatten on Istedgade has the organic produce angle covered, and the quarter even boasts its own 'food street', Værnedamsvej - a gourmet's paradise with specialist cheese, wine, fish and chocolate shops, as well as cafes and grocers.

On Værnedamsvej, is a small café called Granola with decor from the 30's, one of the few places where you can order the Danish fruit dessert -‘Rødgrød med fløde'. Impossible for anyone but a Dane to pronounce and therefore an ordeal everyone is asked to try! You can order old fashioned milkshakes with real fruit and the music you hear is 1960's or even older.

The twin brothers Alexander and Jonathan Berntsen opened Berntsens Ballade on Vesterbrogade in 2009. French and Spanish inspired cuisine served in a romantic and cozy setting, with a bistro on the ground floor and gourmet restaurant with a four to seven course menu on the first floor.

Dyrhaven on Sønder Boulevard was once a legendary bar that has now become one of the city's best cafes. The walls have gone from nicotine yellow to fresh white but they still have the large the central bar, original intimate eating booths and walls of teak. Retro music creating a time zone of the era, with food served in the style of times gone by.

Cool clothes and design
Vesterbro's best clothes shops tend to gather at the western end of Istedgade - places like Donn Ya Doll - where you'll find all that's cool for street, party or club. Ichinen, also on Istedgade, sells not just clothes but modern, Danish-designed furniture and interior design items. Sommerlund offers fantastic ball gowns and dresses for the big party. Girlie Hurly and Designer Zoo are also must see for designer fetishists. Designer Zoo brings together some of the city's most dynamic clothes, ceramic, jewellery, furniture and glassware designers over two alluring floors

Of course most of Vesterbro's cafes and restaurants keep swinging into the night which makes this is a great place to wander in the evening. Ultimately though, there is one place that most visitors gravitate towards at night: Vega. Everyone from Fat Boy Slim to the Manic Street Preachers, Bjork to Robbie Williams has played at Vega and this former trade union building with its two stages (Store - big, and Lille - small) plus its super-chilled lounge bar Ideal is reason enough to venture into Vesterbro. As if you needed one more!

 Film www.visitcopenhagen.com/vesterbro