ESSE

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

A Warehouse Reborn in Nordhavn

ESSE — from the Latin "to be" or "to exist" — occupies a warehouse on Trelleborggade that dates to 1895. The building has been restored to its original bones: raw exposed walls, vaulted wood ceilings, large lamps fashioned from reclaimed wood, and an open view straight into the kitchen. It is a space designed for reflection, and the question the restaurant poses is a genuine one — what does it mean to exist, and how can that existence be made meaningful?

The answer, here, is worked out plate by plate.

Matt Orlando's Philosophy on the Plate

The driving force behind ESSE is chef Matt Orlando, whose approach is captured in the phrase the restaurant uses for itself: Responsible Deliciousness. Regenerative organic farming is the starting point; the seasons dictate the menus; Danish produce is the primary inspiration, with occasional excursions to Norway for seafood. Nothing about this is decorative — it runs through every course.

The White Guide recognised ESSE at Masters level for 2026, singling out the way the kitchen turns food waste into a red thread rather than an afterthought. The opening snack — "Reincarnated Crisps" — says it plainly: yesterday's bread puffed into crispy chips, flavoured with lacto-fermented vegetables. Umami and kokumi are the flavour registers the kitchen reaches for, and they carry the concept without compromise.

What to Expect at the Table

The flagship ESSE Journey Menu runs to ten courses. Fjord shrimps arrive with smoked Søtofte cream, alliums and seaweed. Zander is paired with dashi, magnolia and fennel flower. Chilled buckwheat noodles come with sunflower seed miso and Swedish Szechuan peppercorn. Scallop — the seafood element that recurs naturally through a menu rooted in Nordic waters — is finished with brown butter, hazelnut and Japanese quince. The meal closes with Søtofte milk ice cream, noble fir and burnt beetroot meringue.

A shorter ESSE Menu offers six courses for guests who prefer a tighter experience, and both menus shift with the seasons.

The wine list is built around producers who farm with care for biodiversity — people, as the restaurant puts it, who translate their craftsmanship into "liquid expressions of the remarkable places they call home."

Bar, Walk-ins and the Communal Table

No reservation? ESSE keeps walk-in seats at the bar and in the lounge, where à la carte dishes are available alongside the full drinks list. It is a genuinely flexible room — equally suited to a full dinner, a glass of wine and a snack, or anything in between. The kitchen accommodates all dietary requirements; 24 hours' notice is appreciated.