Bringing Nordic Flavor to the United States

In the culinary world, exploration and experimentation provide important opportunities for growth. Working in a kitchen is inherently collaborative, and chefs take both their craft and their role in building an effective workplace culture seriously.  

Over the past few weeks, two Danish chefs — Morten Hassing, Head of Food and Product Performance and Christian Riisgaard, Head Chef at our ISS global headquarters in Copenhagen — visited several Guckenheimer kitchens across the United States to get firsthand experience of the hospitality, diversity and innovation at U.S. client sites.  

We spoke with Christian and Morten about their travel experiences, the inspiring work they saw from their colleagues, and the standout meals they ate and prepared along the way. Here’s what they had to say: 

How do American kitchens differ from Danish kitchens? 

Morten 

The two countries have very different food cultures. But because ISS is a global organization, it’s important for us in Denmark to explore the best practices coming out of the U.S. and work together with those colleagues to do things in the best possible way — you don’t have to reinvent the wheel in every kitchen. Between Denmark and the U.S., it’s about sharing ideas and finding ways to help and be inspired by each other. 

Christian 

Also, the cuisine itself is quite different. It was really interesting to see the variety of food available on a daily basis and how it’s presented. This approach is inspiring because each site is built for purpose, which is not always the case in Denmark. In the U.S. market, we’ve made a lot of investments to provide a restaurant-quality experience and unique food options, things like offering handmade naan cooked in a Tandoor oven or having an Argentinian grill on-site. There’s a focus on making things as good as they can possibly be.  

Morten 

I agree. It’s inspiring to see chefs take ownership of their food, as well as the craftsmanship they bring to each recipe. I was blown away by the people we met, and I’m already in the process of sharing recipes, sending concepts — it’s exciting to see this kind of passion for service and providing a great food experience. 

You visited several cities throughout your trip — which was your favorite?  

Christian 

It’s hard to say because we went to five amazing cities, but I think it has to be San Francisco. When I was 10 years old, a good family friend visited the Golden Gate Bridge and showed me a picture of it, and I knew I had to see it at some point in my life. And 30 years later, there I was. I got a little misty-eyed when we drove up to it — it was a big experience for me. 

Morten 

There was something to love in every city. Walking around in the U.S. feels like being in a movie for me and each place has its own culture, but I think San Francisco was also my favorite, especially for the weather. When we first arrived in New York, it was freezing, and I had to buy myself a winter hat immediately. Then when we got to San Francisco, there were palm trees and beautiful hills everywhere. But we had an amazing time in each city and so much thought went into the details and planning of this trip.  

What was the best thing you ate in the United States? 

Christian 

That’s also a hard one because we ate a lot of food. But something Morten and I have talked about many times is the pizza we ate in New York. We had a weekend of sightseeing before we started work on Monday, and we walked from Lower Manhattan all the way to Williamsburg. There, we had a pizza with fig jam and bacon, and it was the best pizza I’ve ever had in my life. I know it’s a cliché to say the pizza in New York is good, but it really is spectacular.  

Morten 

There really is something special about New York pizza. I think my best food experience actually came out of one of our kitchens — and this isn’t something I feel obligated to say because we work for ISS or Guckenheimer. At a client site in California, we ate a dish where vegetables were the focus and meat was served as a complement instead of the centerpiece of the meal, and it was so seasonal, colorful and flavorful. While all kinds of food were available, there was a huge line for this chef’s creation because it was so delicious and well-prepared.  

Christian and I also share a love of oysters, so we’ve been eating a lot of seafood, as well. San Francisco was especially great for that. 

Christian 

It’s almost an unfair question because we ate so much incredible food, it’s hard to keep track of it all. 

What was your biggest takeaway from your time in the U.S.? 

Morten 

We have to be bold. You can always feel secure if you’re doing the same things, the things you know you’re good at. These places operate like high-level restaurants, and we have an opportunity to adopt some of those concepts and create better value for our clients. When you see it in person, that value is so clear — every placemaker knows exactly how they contribute and there’s a culture of pride and excellence.  

Christian 

Yeah, I agree. It’s an environment where people love to talk about food and share what they know. It was fascinating to see the variety of programs and how many things are offered — seeing the snack programs, for example, or the ability for people to get breakfast, lunch and dinner whenever they want throughout their workday, every day. Our kitchens have standout approaches to their food programming. 

Is there anything about the trip that surprised you? 

Christian 

I was just talking to some of our colleagues about this, but some of the campuses are huge, like the size of a university in Denmark. It’s incredible to see these huge spaces dedicated to doing creative work, where everything was so detailed and precisely where it was supposed to be. The coffee bars had a theme, the restaurants had a theme — it’s amazing to visit a site where service and providing the best possible solution is the most important factor.  

Morten 

I totally agree with Christian. We’ve talked about how these places set high standards for service and we can do the same kind of thing across the globe. We saw hundreds of placemakers who were passionate about their work and just wanted to do the best possible job. At some sites, it was like opening the doors to Narnia, it was so amazing. Lots of different and bold concepts, and every person we met on this trip was so welcoming and warm. There’s a real mentality of hospitality and of being the best of the best — I feel like I made 300 new friends in the U.S. thanks to this trip. 

I’m already thinking about how I can take what I learned home with me and how we can be more consistent and clearer in our concepts. You get so much out of this kind of face-to-face collaboration, especially with people who love food and are willing to share their knowledge. 

Christian 

I saw a real passion for food, and it’s an everyday kind of thing. There’s lots of brainstorming and engaging relationships, as well as the structure and communication to make things happen. I hope we can keep the communication going with the f.i.t. kitchen and all the Guckenheimer teams — we’d love to have some American chefs visit Denmark!