I suggested in my post on things to do in Copenhagen on the weekend of week 22 to go to the “Free Your Mind” all-day house festival on Refshaleøen. Being a girl of my word, I did go out there myself on Saturday to enjoy some music and maybe a drink in the sun. The weather wasn’t fully playing along, but we decided not to let that stop us! On the bright side, at least it wasn’t crowded!
The place is virtually in the middle of nowhere so I do highly recommend to either come by car or to be prepared to walk at least 2km from the nearest bus station. Not even the “havnebus” (boat bus) will take you closer - it’s about 3.3km to walk from the stop. I guess you could always take your bike from the nearest train or metro station or invest in a taxi.
Located in an old, mostly abandoned factory area, café Halvandet is situated right at the waterfront, with a beautiful view towards Kastellet and Langelinie. You can even spot the Marble Church’s dome. A straw-roofed bar is the center of the large complex, surrounded by different types of seating/ relaxing arrangements. Tables seating 300, over 600 deckchairs and even large sofa-like areas, all kept in white, all invite to lean back and enjoy the atmosphere. There are also activities, like beach volleyball, “human foosball” or kayak polo, that can be booked.
The bar offers cocktails, wine, champagne by the bottle, coffee, and non-alcoholic drinks. The prices are absolutely fair, seeing as they don’t charge any admission fees even for the music festival. A cocktail costs 70 DKK. You can book a table or sofa for 1200DKK (up to 4 persons) that is then used as “credit” at the bar for food and drinks.
They also have a kitchen that’s open all day. You can start your day off with brunch, there’s salads for lunch, larger dishes such as burgers for dinner, and snacks like fish & chips, which I tried. I like when you can taste that the fries were made from real potatoes, though they could’ve been a tad bit crispier. The fish fillet was good, and the remoulade sauce was very tasty as well (but I’m a sucker for remoulade!). I didn’t try any other dishes, but from what I could see on other people’s plates, they looked nice as well.
Generally, the place was clean, although you should keep in mind that it’s and outdoors arrangement, so I wouldn’t expect to be able to eat off the floor. Toilets are availabe and clean as well (although I can’t say what it would be like on a completely crowded day). Big minus is the availability with public transport, although one could argue that this just goes hand in hand with picking such a unique location.
I would definitely recommend the place. You can either decide to spend the entire day, or come for a nice dinner and a sundowner!
Opening hours are from 10am-11pm during summer season.
More information on the website and Facebook page
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