Copenhagen Corner

🇩🇰 DENMARK / In the deep south of Orange County, the Southland has an impressive kitchen showing off both the land and sea delights of Danish cuisine.

🇩🇰 DENMARK
📍 31161 Niguel Road,
Laguna Niguel, Orange County
🅿️ Ample parking in plaza
🥤 Beer and wine

📸 All photos by Jared Cohee
for Eat the World Los Angeles

Before Copenhagen Corner opened in late 2022, Greater Los Angeles’s only tastes of Danish food were the wonderful baked goods at Copenhagen Pastry and some mediocre open faced sandwiches elsewhere. If you are in the community you will of course see some more at private events or church functions, but now a full menu of favorites lives in a Laguna Niguel strip mall.

This location might keep it off the to-do lists of many in Los Angeles, but a meal here is worth seeking out if you plan to enjoy the beaches of the area or are on your way to or back from more distant lands. They take care of all aspects of a good meal and the casual spot is as friendly as can be.

Danish cuisine has gained worldwide notoriety from very upscale and modern restaurants like Noma, but this could be considered a branch called New Danish. The origins of the country’s more well-known classics that are enjoyed by every class are from the fields and have also evolved dramatically through recent time periods as cooking techniques improved and changed.

You can begin by choosing one option from the delightfully long list of open faced sandwiches (smørrebrød), somewhat of a Danish specialty. Each of these, like the boiled egg and shrimp ($14, above), is placed on a slice of Danish-style rye bread made here at the restaurant. Squeeze some lemon on the fresh shrimp, which is joined by tasty tomatoes, avocado, and caviar.

If you have friends from northern Europe, you will already be familiar with how much they miss their breads, and the thin slices of rye here will go a long way in curing these longings. You can also get smørrebrød with marinated herring, but the appetizer ($10, above) is a slightly smaller version if you are apprehensive about eating a lot of the pungent fish. It still gets you a slice of rye and has all the same components, just a bit less. In the end, the pickled onions and capers go a long way to tone down the herring and create a balanced flavor.

Those friends may have also made you lovely frikadeller at Christmas parties, the famous Danish meatballs that are available a few different ways here. Mini frikadeller ($10, below) is a good option to share as a group of four, the meatballs are plopped in a large pile of mashed potatoes and covered in gravy.