Yes, I did eat a Danish in Copenhagen. But in Denmark it’s called Kanelstang. And it’s a hell-of-a-lot better than that sad, goopy frisbee of dough you bring for your colleagues at office parties. My old friend who, after 2 years in Sweden has become quite the Scandinavian herself, “does fika” now. That means coffee or tea with pastries, a tradition in most Scandinavian countries. She knew just what we had to try and where to get it, a bakery called Lagkagehuset on Torvegade near the Christianshavn St. metro stop. Despite her praises, I wasn’t convinced when we entered. The place is pretty large, modern-looking and a chain with multiple locations and a large selection of pastries in the window. I’m not typically keen on sweets and the older I get the less I seem to tolerate them, especially the cake-y, frosting-drizzled kind. But I figured my bitter Americano with no milk or sugar would balance out the excess, and I understood the absurdity of going to Copenhagen and not trying a Danish. So I got a piece of Kanelstang upon her recommendation.

And I’m very happy I did. The dough of this cinnamon twist, which had looked slightly dry in the window, turned out to be crunchy and flaky on the outside, the egg brushed over the surface turning it golden brown in the oven. On the interior, it was fluffy, with just enough of a bite, further hydrated by the eggy, rich filling of cream, yolk, vanilla and plenty of cinnamon. A simple icing graced the top of the thing, adding an extra kick of sweetness to a cardamom-scented dough that wasn’t overly sweet and to a filling that was actually more spiced from cinnamon that sweet.

The three of us ended up sitting around with our coffees and Kanelstangs for quite some time, glancing out the window at the colorful houses directly across the canal and waiting for our phones to charge up for the rest of the evening. After an especially chilly day and around 20 km of walking, Lagkagehuset provided the perfect place to take a break, warm up, catch up on our emails and chat about our dinner plans. The only fika experience of our Copenhagen trip, executed perfectly.