It's today explained, I'm Noelle King, and earlier today I went online and tried to book

a table at the famed Noma in Copenhagen.

It's game and forest season, so moose-malored and reindeer are on the menu.

But I couldn't get a table.

Noma's booked up through the end of the season.

And that is okay ultimately because in this economy spending $500, the fixed price,

before wine, on any meal is a lot.

And it's not just for me that this feels unsustainable.

Noma's renowned chef, a man named Renee Redzepi, has acknowledged it's too much for him to.

He's closing the restaurant saying, this is simply too hard, and he's going to turn Noma

into a food lab.

Noma's considered by many people to be the best restaurant in this world.

So how is it possible that it can't survive?

And what does that mean for the places where the rest of us go to eat?

It's today explained, I'm Noel King.

Evan Climent is the host of Good Food on KCRW.

Evan is never eaten at Noma in Copenhagen, but she does know Renee Redzepi.

A Renee Redzepi is, you know, the words genius, I think, would not be inappropriate here.

He's just one of those people whose passion, curiosity, and focus,

managed to result in this very different experience of what a restaurant is,

and what the food is served in that restaurant.

Where did he come from?

...