You definitely feel the presence of history as you draw up to the oldest inn in Denmark, though it may not look quite how you imagined. Bromølle Inn is not small and lopsided from old age, but surprisingly tall and upright for its age. Yet your mobile phone will not be able to pick up any signals in the Åmose valley, and the forest seems to be drawing closer and closer as if eager to whisper the stories of what it has seen down through the ages.

Denmark’s oldest yew tree – and probably one of the oldest trees in the world – grows on the other side of the road, just as it has done since Viking King Gorm was a wee lad. No carbon dating samples have been taken of the old tree, but it is believed to be almost 1500 years old – or almost as old as the King’s Oak in Jægerspris Forest, which is officially the oldest tree in Denmark.

The inn itself is “only” 800 years old. Its history begins on a summer’s day in 1198. At the time, the ageing Bishop Absalon was busily divesting himself of some of his worldly goods before he met his Maker. Denmark had only been a Christian country for about a hundred years, and it was clearly wise to stay on good terms with The Lord.

The Bishop therefore gave away his huge estates, including the present Holmstrup Parish, to the monastery in Sorø. This gift included the old Nævitzbro Mill at Åmose Brook, as the place was called at the time. The decision was soon made to build an inn next to the mill, because monasteries were required to offer shelter and food to all travellers. In the National Archives you can see the gift deed with Bishop Absalon’s signature, dated 8 June 1198.

The inn at Nævitz Mill soon proved a profitable business. Its location was perfect, since it was the only place in the area where people could cross the brook. The fact that scores of farmers came from far away and had always had to wait at the mill while their corn was being milled only increased the need for an inn. And when St Søren’s Spring suddenly welled out of the ground and became the site of markets and ceremonies in the sixteenth century, still more people flocked to the inn. Its name was changed to Bromølle Inn.

However, the times were changing and the water level in the brook fell. The mill was closed in 1776. The inn looked more or less like it looks now, but the basis for its income disappeared and changing innkeepers had to look for new ways of making money. One of the more infamous innkeepers and his wife practised a particularly creative routine: they drank well-to-do patrons under the table, hit them on a head with a mallet, stole their money and finally threw them in the brook.

This practice went well for quite some time, but then a cunning Dutchman entered his room and saw that there was a dead man in his bed. He quickly hid under the bed, from where he saw how the innkeeper and his wife came into the room and killed the man a second time, believing that the corpse was the Dutchman. That was the end of this practice. The innkeeper and his wife were “hung by their necks” on Holmstrup Gallows. Some people say that their victims still haunt the inn whenever a new owner takes over, just to make sure that he or she treats visitors well.

Today you will not be beaten up if you visit Bromølle Inn, and if you leave with a headache it will probably be for completely different reasons. You will be very kindly received and treated extremely well, and the atmosphere at the inn oozes fun and hospitality. Apart from being well trained in the catering business, all members of the Bresnov “innkeeping dynasty” are very friendly people. Hugo and Anne Bresnov, who leased the inn in 1972, have now handed it over to a younger generation; their daughter Bettina Bresnov and their son-in-law Jan Bresnov.

Both new hosts have been formally trained in Danish kitchens and restaurants that are known for excellent quality and service. Bettina has worked as a waiter for Erwin Lauterbach at Hotel Østerport and has been manager of the banqueting rooms at the Skovshoved Hotel. Jan has been a waiter at the Plaza Hotel in Copenhagen and later at Søllerød Kro, where Bettina also worked at the time. When Jan had finished his training as a chef in 1993, the couple “returned” to Bromølle, where the young couple and Bettina’s parents ran the inn as a family business until recently. The Bresnovs bought the inn in 1993. Until then it was owned by the Hastrup family from nearby Dønnerup Manor.

Some innkeepers are complaining about hard times, but the innkeepers at Bromølle Inn are not among them. Perhaps because of all the press coverage in connection with the inn’s anniversary? The Bresnovs don’t think so, since lots of people have found their way to the old inn in the forest for many, many years – even though route 225 between Jyderup and Slagelse is definitely far from the beaten track. Parties are held at the inn throughout the year. Not long ago the inn managed to accommodate three simultaneous wedding parties and a couple of newly-weds who had decided to spend their honeymoon at the inn.

“Even though we are located in the countryside, it is easy to reach us from all parts of the county”, says Hugo Bresnov. “All parts of Denmark, in fact. After the opening of the fixed link across the Great Belt we have certainly felt that Funen, Jutland and, indeed, Europe are closer. It only takes half an hour to drive to the bridge.”

But there are undoubtedly many other reasons why Bromølle Inn is such a success. One of them is three banqueting rooms, of which the largest sits up to 200 people. Excellent service is another, and the fine Danish cuisine – dedicated to “game from the forest” – and not least the Bresnovs’ extensive knowledge of the local area have helped make Bromølle Inn a popular destination.

One of the most common and filling dishes served at Bromølle Inn in the eighteenth century was søbekål or “cabbage slops”. It may sound like something served in a trough, but it was in fact hearty and nutritious fare for human consumption!

Søbekål:
500g fresh pork in slices
300g bacon
2 whole leeks
½ celeriac
5 large carrots
1 twig of thyme
25g cloves
400g chopped curly kale
400g cabbage
1 l water or stock
salt and pepper

Add the pork, bacon, leeks, celeriac and carrots to the water and simmer for 1-1½ hours. Skim regularly. Add the thyme and cloves and simmer for _ hour. Pass the soup through a sieve and add salt and pepper. Chop the pork, bacon, carrots and cabbage into suitable-size pieces and put them back into the pan. Served with wholemeal bread or French sticks.

Originally, this dish would have been more of a stew than a broth, since the original eighteenth century recipe included 2dl of rolled oats. But feel free to experiment!

Bromølle Inn is situated in a beautiful forest area near the lake of Skarresø close to the small town of Jyderup. This area is often referred to as the forest ridge of central Zealand. The forests are full of varied vegetation and are located in a rolling landscape with lakes, brooks, open marshland and meadows between which villages and scattered houses are tucked away. The area offers excellent opportunities for bicycling, horse-riding and rambling throughout the year. Large parts of the area are protected heritage areas because of remnants of old ramparts, castles and Stone Age dolmens.

The price for a weekend break is DKK 670 / EUR 90 per person in a shared double room.
A single room costs DKK 150 / EUR 21 extra. The price for a mini-break is DKK 1,195 / EUR 161 per person in a shared double room. Single room: DKK 150 / EUR 21 extra.