How Would You Fare at a Six-Hour, 50-Course Meal?

Destination restaurant Alchemist is getting a big upgrade

Rasmus Munk, Alchemist, Copenhagen
@RasmusMunkAlchemist/Instagram

First, the bad news: Alchemist — the Copenhagen restaurant famous for its 45 courses, 15 seats and 27-year-old gastronomic wunderkind chef Rasmus Munk — is closed. The good news? It’s currently undergoing a massive $1.5 million expansion, with an opening set for January and plan to offer a dinner of 50 courses lasting as long as six hours.

You’ll find the new Alchemist in the Refshalevej neighborhood of Denmark’s capital city, in a three-story, 23,600-square-foot warehouse which, as Bloomberg reports, “is almost 25 times larger than the original.” But the seatings aren’t increasing at the same rate, with space allotted for just 44 people to dine each night. That exclusivity and personalization makes the estimated $650 price seem a relative bargain, with each course coming out to just $13 each. Also, there will be around two cooks for every three diners, with 30 set to work each meal.

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So what can you expect out of the 50 courses? While Munk’s cuisine has been categorized as molecular gastronomy, he prefers to call his current approach “Holistic Cuisine,” which brings together the chef’s ethical and social responsibility, as well as art and theater, as Food and Wine Gazette writes.

In the past, that’s translated into king crab and potato served under hay ash to “comment” on smoking; in the new Alchemist, expect dishes like a seahorse sorbet popsicle “commenting” on same-sex relationships, as Bloomberg writes. And there will be “20 one-bite courses.” Two of the themes that will guide the meal when the restaurant opens are the LGBTQ community and New York City.

Naturally, this kind of edible enlightenment will attract gourmands from all corners of the world. To get ahead of the pack, you can sign up for pre-booking right now, which we highly recommend doing now, before all the Instagram influencers inevitably pick up the scent and nab all available reservations.

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