Noma's original location was at
Strandgade 93, in an old warehouse on the waterfront of the
Inner Harbour in the
Christianshavn neighbourhood in central Copenhagen.
The building is situated by the
Greenlandic Trading Square (Danish: Grønlandske Handels Plads), which for 200 years was a centre for trade to and from the
Faroe Islands,
Finnmark,
Iceland, and in particular,
Greenland. Dry fish, salted herring, whale oil and skins are among the goods that were stored in and around the warehouse before being sold off to European markets.[9]
In 2003, the warehouse was turned into
North Atlantic House, a centre for the art and culture of the North Atlantic region.[10] Noma was opened at the same time by Redzepi and
Claus Meyer.[1][11] The restaurant's interior was designed by
Space Copenhagen.[12]
Between 12 and 16 February 2013, 63 of 435 diners became ill after eating at Noma, according to a
Danish Food Administration report.[13][14] The symptoms were attributed to
norovirus, which was believed to have been unintentionally spread by an infected kitchen employee.[15][16]
Redzepi planned to close Noma after 31 December 2016 and reopen it in 2017 as an urban farm near Copenhagen.[17]
Noma reopened on 15 February 2018 after a year hiatus.[18] The restaurant itself also moved from its previous Strandgade location, now housing Restaurant Barr, to its current location at Refshalevej 96.
In May 2020, during the
COVID-19 crisis, Noma re-opened as a wine and burger bar,[19] with takeaway options. It is sometimes referred as "Noma 3.0" by the food media.[20] Redzepi plans to keep this open for at least a part of the summer 2020.
Noma is expected to close at the end of 2024 and transform into a test kitchen, Noma Projects, for online ordering.[22] The dining rooms will occasionally be open as a pop-up restaurant.[23][24]
Food
The cuisine of Noma is
Nordic/
Scandinavian; the restaurant's founders
René Redzepi and
Claus Meyer have attempted to redefine this Nordic cuisine. Its cuisine can be considered more an interpretation of Nordic food than classical Nordic food itself, according to Meyer in the book Noma – Nordic Cuisine.[25] Famous dishes include 'The Hen and the Egg', a meal cooked by the diners themselves which consists of potato chips, a wild duck egg, slightly wet hay, salt, herbs, wild forest plants, hay oil, thyme, butter, and
wild garlic sauce.[26]
Staff
Redzepi formerly worked at restaurants including
The French Laundry,
elBulli,
Kong Hans Kælder and Le Jardin des Sens. The head chef is currently Kenneth Foong, replacing Canadian Benjamin Ing in July 2020. Prior head chefs include Dan Giusti and Matt Orlando.[27] The head
sommelier is Ava Mees List.[citation needed]
Temporary locations
From 28 July to 6 August 2012, Noma decamped to London for a 10-day
pop-up restaurant hosted by
Claridge's hotel in
Mayfair, while the restaurant in Copenhagen was closed from 22 July to 13 August for refurbishment. Redzepi, along with head chef Matt Orlando and staff from the restaurant, served up a £195-per-head nine-course menu that included their versions of
scones and
clotted cream,
Lancashire hotpot with British ingredients, as well as live ants foraged in Denmark and flown to London.[28][29][30][31]
On 29 March 2014, Noma announced that the restaurant would be relocating to Japan for two months at the beginning of 2015.[32]
On 24 July 2015, Noma announced that the restaurant would be relocating to Australia for 10 weeks at the beginning of 2016.[33][34]
In 2010, the restaurant, as a relative newcomer, startlingly stole the crown that
El Bulli had held for four consecutive years. This came soon after previous first and second place chefs
Ferran Adria and
Heston Blumenthal announced that they would be temporarily closing their restaurants. At the time, Noma was viewed as the head of a new movement to spread
New Nordic cuisine.[52]
In 2011, with El Bulli having withdrawn from the competition because they would be permanently closing, Noma was easily named the Best Restaurant for the second straight year. It was selected by a worldwide panel of journalists, chefs, restaurateurs, and food lovers. The restaurant continued its dominance without having earned a third
Michelin Star.[53]
In 2012, Redzepi won the award for Noma yet again, being praised by Restaurant as being "the standard bearer for the New Nordic movement" and winning respect for his attention to detail and innovative approach. His use of local and seasonal ingredients foraged from the seashore and forest was also recognized.[54]
In 2013, Noma was voted the second best restaurant in the world, having lost the first-place position to
El Celler de Can Roca in Girona, Catalonia, Spain.[55] In 2014, Noma regained the title.