When the Michelin stars for the Nordic region were awarded last week, Noma received none. The reason was simple: Noma had announced to the Michelin Guide – and to the world – that its restaurant on Refshalevej had closed.

When René Redzepi and his approximately 100 employees return to Denmark after Noma’s pop-up in Los Angeles concludes on June 26, the plan had been for Noma to enter a new phase. Both the facilities on Refshalevej and the roughly 100 staff members were supposed to transition into Noma 3.0, a food innovation institute dedicated to research and development.