Restaurant in Copenhagen, Denmark
Tokyo-trained edomae. Book 6 weeks out.
Sushi Anaba holds a Michelin star and ranks in Opinionated About Dining's top 150 European restaurants, making it Copenhagen's strongest case for serious edomae sushi at the €€€ tier. Chef Mads Battefeld, Tokyo-trained, applies Japanese precision to Nordic seafood — Norwegian scallop, Jutland lobster — with a sake list that goes well beyond the standard. Book four to six weeks ahead; the counter fills fast on its four-day-a-week schedule.
If you are deciding between Sushi Anaba and Copenhagen's wave of New Nordic tasting menus — Geranium, Alchemist, or Koan — the answer depends on what you are actually after. Those rooms are about transformation and spectacle. Sushi Anaba is about precision and restraint. It holds a Michelin star (2025), ranks #137 in Opinionated About Dining's Leading Restaurants in Europe for 2025 (up from #110 in 2024), and earns a Google rating of 4.9 from 195 reviews. For a first-time visitor to Copenhagen who wants serious Japanese technique without the theatrical production of the city's bigger-ticket destinations, this is the sharper choice at the €€€ price point.
Sushi Anaba is an edomae sushi restaurant run by Danish chef-owner Mads Battefeld, who trained in Tokyo before returning to Copenhagen to apply that discipline to Nordic produce. The format is traditional: edomae technique, focused sourcing, and a sake list that goes beyond the expected. What makes the proposition distinct is the ingredient base , Norwegian scallop, lobster from Jutland, and seafood drawn from Nordic waters sit alongside the classical Japanese approach to rice, seasoning, and aging. The result is a flavor profile grounded in cold-water richness: firmer textures, cleaner fat, and the kind of mineral intensity that Nordic seafood carries at its leading.
For a first-time visitor, it is worth understanding what edomae sushi means in practice. There is no à la carte menu where you point at a laminated sheet. The format is structured and chef-led, which means you are in Battefeld's hands from the start. That is a feature, not a drawback, but go in knowing that the experience requires engagement. The sake list is worth treating seriously: the venue is a White Star on Star Wine List (published December 2022), and the selection deliberately surfaces lesser-known producers. If you are not a sake drinker, ask for guidance rather than defaulting to wine.
The address , Mariehamngade 23 in the Nordhavn district , puts the restaurant in a quieter, harbour-adjacent part of the city rather than the central dining cluster. Plan your transport accordingly, especially for late dinner given the 12 am closing time Thursday through Saturday. Friday and Saturday are the only days with lunch service (12–3 pm); Monday, Tuesday, and Sunday are dark. The restaurant is closed three days a week, which keeps demand high and tables scarce.
At the €€€ tier in Copenhagen, Sushi Anaba is priced below the city's flagship €€€€ destinations like Noma or Geranium, but it is not cheap dining. The question for a first-timer is whether the service philosophy justifies that spend. The evidence suggests it does , a 4.9 Google rating across nearly 200 reviews is unusually consistent for a room operating at this level of formality, and Michelin recognition in 2025 signals that the full experience, including hospitality, meets the standard. Edomae sushi at this level depends on the counter interaction: the chef is also the primary host, and the quality of that exchange shapes the meal as much as the fish does. Sushi Anaba's format concentrates that relationship rather than diffusing it through a large front-of-house team, which can read as sparse service or as focused attention depending on your expectations. Given the ratings and the OAD ranking trajectory (moving from #110 in 2024 to #137 in 2025 reflects a larger field of entrants, not a drop in quality), the room is performing at a level that makes the price defensible.
For a useful comparison outside Copenhagen: Masa in New York City and Sushi Masaki Saito in Toronto occupy the leading end of North American edomae sushi, both at price points well above Sushi Anaba. Sushi Anaba gives you comparable technical seriousness at a lower entry cost, with the added specificity of Nordic ingredients that neither of those rooms can replicate.
Book at least four to six weeks ahead. A Michelin-starred edomae counter open only four days a week with limited covers fills quickly, and Copenhagen's dining calendar tightens further in summer. There is no listed phone number or website in the public record, so your booking route will be through the reservation platform the restaurant uses , check the current booking channel before you travel. Lunch on Friday or Saturday is your leading chance at a slightly shorter lead time, but do not count on last-minute availability at either service. If Sushi Anaba is full when you check, Koan offers a kaiseki-influenced tasting format at the €€€€ tier that shares Sushi Anaba's Japan-meets-Nordic premise, though at higher cost and even more restricted availability.
Copenhagen's fine dining scene is dominated by New Nordic creativity , Geranium, Noma, Alchemist, and Kadeau all operate in the higher price band with multi-course formats built around concept as much as ingredient. Sushi Anaba occupies a different register: the concept is minimal, the technique is borrowed from Tokyo rather than invented in Copenhagen, and the Nordic element lives in the sourcing rather than in the presentation style. That makes it a complementary booking rather than a competing one. If you are spending a week in the city and want to understand Copenhagen's food culture from multiple angles, Sushi Anaba fills the Japanese-precision slot that none of the New Nordic rooms can. For dining beyond Copenhagen, Denmark's Michelin map extends to venues like Jordnær in Gentofte, Frederikshøj in Aarhus, Henne Kirkeby Kro in Henne, Alimentum in Aalborg, ARO in Odense, and Domæne in Herning. Our full Copenhagen restaurants guide covers the broader picture, alongside our guides to Copenhagen hotels, bars, wineries, and experiences.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Booking Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sushi Anaba | Sushi, Japanese | €€€ | Hard |
| Geranium | New Nordic, Creative | €€€€ | Unknown |
| Noma | Creative | €€€€ | Unknown |
| Alchemist | Progressive, Creative | €€€€ | Unknown |
| Koan | New Nordic, Kaiseki, Creative | €€€€ | Unknown |
| a|o|c | New Nordic, Mediterranean Small Plates, Creative | €€€€ | Unknown |
Key differences to consider before you reserve.
Lunch is only available Friday and Saturday, while dinner runs Thursday through Saturday, so dinner gives you more flexibility on timing. If you can get a Friday or Saturday lunch slot, it tends to be slightly easier to book than prime dinner hours at this Michelin-starred counter. Either service delivers the same edomae format with Nordic produce, so the meal itself is not diminished at lunch. For first-timers, lunch is a practical entry point if the dinner calendar is already full.
Edomae sushi counters are structured around the chef's pace and typically run small cover counts, which makes large groups a poor fit. Sushi Anaba is best suited to parties of two to four. If you have six or more, the format will feel constrained and booking will be significantly harder. For larger Copenhagen celebrations, a New Nordic tasting menu venue with private dining capacity is a more practical choice.
Yes, provided the occasion suits a focused, counter-format meal rather than a long sociable table. A Michelin star, Opinionated About Dining Top 137 in Europe ranking for 2025, and a chef who trained in Tokyo give the evening clear weight. The Nordic ingredient sourcing — Norwegian scallop, Jutland lobster — adds a local distinctiveness that makes it feel considered rather than generic. It works well for two people marking something specific; less so for a group celebration that needs open-ended atmosphere.
At the €€€ price tier, Sushi Anaba sits below Copenhagen's €€€€ flagships like Geranium or Alchemist, making the value case stronger relative to the Michelin credential it carries. The edomae format means you are paying for precision, produce quality, and the chef's direct execution rather than theatrical presentation. If omakase is the format you want, this is one of the few places in Scandinavia to get it at this level. If you want more narrative or spectacle with your fine dining spend, Koan or Alchemist are different propositions.
Book four to six weeks ahead as a minimum. The restaurant is closed Sunday through Tuesday, operates only four service days a week, and holds a Michelin star — cover counts are limited by design. Copenhagen's fine dining demand is high year-round, and this is not a walk-in venue. If your travel dates are fixed, book the day they open in your booking window rather than waiting.
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