I am loving the new Northern Food Hall by Danish top chef, Claus Meyer!

I have been wanting to go there ever since they started planning it about two years ago and now this Christmas I was finally able to go and was not disappointed at all. First of all, the design and Christmas decorations are beautiful and typically Nordic – and combined with the elegance of Grand Central Station it gets even better. Second of all,  it is not just a cafe/bakery, it is a little shopping hall consisting of many pavilions or bars. There is the bakery with delicious rye bread, baguettes and real Danish pastries which are so hard to find in the U.S. And there is a sandwich pavilion with the classic Danish “smoerrebrod” (open-faced sandwiches beautifully arranged on healthy and delicious rye bread).

Then there is a hotdog pavilion, a cake and coffee bar, a cocktail bar and even a grain bar. And as an extra surprise they also have a gift store with everything from the latest new popular design vases and candle holders to Christmas gnomes, gourmet chocolates and knitted sweaters.

I was so happy and excited and had a wonderful Danish lunch sandwich of liverpate topped with pickled red beet on a nice thick slice of bakery rye bread. The “tebirkes” (a special Danish pastry) had just the right amount of cream to make it not dry and not sticky. In other words just perfect. I definitely also felt a special energy and enthusiasm with the whole project from the people working there and can not wait to go there again! And definitely a place to go to get in the mood for a “hyggelig” Christmas full of beauty and atmosphere.