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Reykjavik, and Iceland in General


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On 8/3/2016 at 2:47 PM, Gadarene said:

Dill in Reykjavik is easily one of the best restaurants in the world, or at least it was when I was there in April 2015.  A bartender in Berlin this weekend excitedly high-fived me when he learned I'd been there; he said he'd been last January and could still remember every dish. Phenomenal food. There was a series of five or six dishes in the middle where each one was the best thing I'd had in recent memory, and they kept topping each other.

Note Agern, its owner, and its Executive Chef. I strongly suggest focusing on my post before getting too excited.

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If you are in need of a "budget" option, Ramen Momo is great!  For a big ol' bowl of ramen, it's only 17 krona, plus extra for more add-ons.

Ramen Momo offers both meat-based and vegetarian styles and is delicious and the chef on duty is Tibetan and very friendly.

Ramen Momo is located between the city square and the harbor, behind the Black Pearl apartments/hotel.

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When dining in Iceland, the thing to remember is that there's Reykjavik, and then there's everywhere else. Not to disparage the country, as there are many things to love about it, but it is so sparsely populated outside the capital region that the options are limited. Here's how sparsely populated it is: portions of major highways are gravel. There are at least three tunnels under mountains that are several kilometers long and are ONE WAY. Not only are there very few traffic signals outside of Reykjavik, there are very few stop signs; yield signs are all that's needed. In many places sheep in the roadways outnumber cars.

How do you find good food outside Reykjavik? First, although there's not a lot of really great food, there's also not a lot of bad food. A sandwich from a privately-run parking lot concession stand near a waterfall was wonderful: basic ingredients, but treated with respect and freshly assembled. I was expecting just fuel but instead had a real treat. At a tiny crossroads on the far end of a ferry route in the Westfjords there was a little cafe that sold a really good hotdog. There was a food truck by another waterfall that had the best fish and chips ever.

I quickly formulated a rule: to eat well, keep it simple. Go for what's fresh, which is often fish. Also, keep your eyes open for the unexpected.

For example, after the 2 1/2 hour ferry ride that took us from the Snæfellsnes peninsula to the Westfjords, we had an hour and a half drive (partly on unpaved roads) over mountains to Þingeyri, a hamlet of about 250 people, which has exactly one food establishment, called Simbahöllin. It's a cafe with free wifi, good coffee, good pastries, great waffles, and, after 1800 (they use the 24 hour clock), lamb tagine. The sheer incongruity of this actually drew us back for dinner one night when we were staying in Ísafjörður, a forty minute drive north (including a 6km long one-way tunnel). And as you might expect, it was excellent. It's the only savory dish on the menu.

If Þingeyri is in the middle of nowhere, then Rif is at the end of nowhere. It's on the north side of the Snæfellsnes peninsula, and consists of two to three dozen houses, and a building that holds the post office and Kaffihús Gamla Rif, a tiny space with five tables arranged along a banquette, seating a total of 20. Gamla Rif has free wifi, coffee, cakes, and one savory dish: fish soup. The shop is owned and run by two women. The story is that their husbands are fishermen, and whatever the men catch, the women cook. Served with good homemade bread, it is absolutely wonderful.

Discoveries like this are often the highlights of my travels. Reykjavik has the highly regarded Dill, which you can easily argue is superior by any objective measure, but I enjoyed my meals at Simbahöllin and Gamla Rif so much more. I prefer good, honest food in almost any setting over fine dining, so take that for what it's worth.

There is one extraordinary dining experience outside Reykjavik, though: Tjöruhúsið, in the small city of Ísafjörður. The description "all you can eat fish buffet" might be a turn-off to the cosmopolitan diner, but let me tell you, it is excellent. Well, the fish is, anyway. The restaurant is in a historic building. You sit at long tables in a low-ceiling room, order your drinks, and help yourself to the good but not great side dishes on the buffet. On one end of that buffet is the fish. The chefs periodically come out of the kitchen bearing gigantic skillets of fish in any of a large variety of preparations. We quickly figured out that the strategy is to wait until you hear the sizzling, then queue up for whatever just came out. The night we were there, there were at least six different types of fish, each one prepared according to the chef's (or chefs', not sure if there are one or several) whim, in whatever style is deemed best for that particular fish. What fish they cook depends on what was caught that morning.

We spent ten days in Iceland last June, going from Reykjavik to Snæfellsnes to the Westfjords to Akureyri, then back south to a little place called Hella, near the volcano Eyjafjallajökull. Gamla Rif, Simbahöllin, Tjöruhúsið, and the fish and chips truck were the culinary highlights of the trip.

A few of the things I loved about Iceland:

  • Most of the hot water in Reykjavik is piped in from geothermal sources. Most homes are heated by it. So are some roadways (so I was told, haven't been able to verify).
  • At almost every restaurant, the table is set with glasses and a carafe of water. The water tastes great.
  • There is no tipping, anywhere (except some jars at coffee houses, a recent trend).
  • People are friendly without being intrusive.
  • Credit cards are used everywhere, for everything (except a few countryside attractions that ask for a cash donation to help with the cost of keeping the facilities clean).
  • According to one recent study, Iceland has the lowest crime rate in the world. (True story: a relative left her purse, with credit cards, ID, passport, etc., in a crowded bar in Reykjavik. By the time she realized what had happened, the place was closed. She couldn't get in contact with anyone until the next day, when she learned that someone had found it and handed it over to a bartender, who kept it safe until she could retrieve it. Nothing was missing.)
  • According to another study, Iceland is the second happiest place in the world, after Denmark.
  • People care about their environment. No litter anywhere.
  • Lopapeysa. Scratchy but warm and cosy.
  • The language is funky, impossible to pronounce, but has similar roots to English so given context you can often figure out meanings.
  • Wildflowers. Like any other high latitude/high altitude place, the growing season is short, so once things start blooming they really go to town.
  • The geology is fascinating. So is the natural history (why so few trees? humans + sheep). But it's beautiful in a barren sort of way.

I hope some day to go back and explore the east side of the island. But there's the whole rest of the world to see first.

 

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Porcupine's post reminded me...

Snaefellsnes Peninsula

Kaffi Emil – In the center of the village of Grundarfjordur (home for all things related to the spectacular Kirkjufell) at the intersection of Route 54 and Hrannarstigur Road is Kaffi Emil. It's a funny little place, kind of café, travel center, historic society/museum, but the coffee is good and we enjoyed the desserts.

Across the street from Kaffi Emil was a food truck in a parking lot.  Pickings were slim in Grundarfjordur! 

Vegamot Snaefellsnes – In the southern half of the peninsula at the intersection of Route 54 and Route 56 is a gas station with a small family run restaurant and hotel.  The restaurant sells burgers, coffee, and desserts.  It's known on Google Maps as Vegamot Snaefellsnes, it's pretty much the only roadside gas station you'll see in the southern section of the peninsula.  Apparently it also doubles as a bus stop.

Mighty Kirkjufell

Kirkjufell1.JPG

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On ‎10‎/‎10‎/‎2016 at 8:16 AM, porcupine said:

ps I agree with ozgirl about Ramen Momo, especially after ten days of fish. We had a grand time talking with the owner, who loves Washington, DC and its ramen scene. 

I thought Momo Ramen sucked.  It's ramen in name only, not in actual product.  Nice Tibetan guys but no clue about ramen.

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I meant to comment on this earlier, but figured better late than never. I was in Reykjavik for a total of four nights in late May. Here are a few comments on some bars and restaurants that we visited. To start, everything is absurdly expensive, to the point where you basically just have to roll with it. Also, all of the places we ate were good to very good, but none of them were spectacular. We had a larger group, so for most of the dinner places I ate at we ended up doing a tasting menu, or something along those lines. I'd recommend every place we ate. 

Forrettabarinn - Very solid dinner choice. While you can order a la carte, everybody in our group ordered from their choice of three, four-course set menus. I went with the Seahorse, which featured a langoustine soup, arctic char and scallops, a grilled fillet of horse, and a dark chocolate cake. Everything was good, but it was the least memorable meal I had in Iceland.  

Slippbarinn - This was the final meal I had in Iceland, and it was quite delicious. They have a very interesting and creative cocktail menu, and what we ordered was delicious. We went with the Marina Fish Soup, which was delicious, as was the Fish In A Pan. I'm not remembering what the catch of the day was at this point, but it was fish and a bunch of roasted vegetables. 

Fiskmarkadurinn - The best meal we had in Iceland. Because of the size group we had, we went with the tasting menu. Everything was delicious, and service was fantastic throughout. 

Grillmarkadurinn - Similar to it's sister restaurant, Fiskmarkadurinn, but focused on the grill. Again, everything we had was fantastic, and I really enjoyed the space as a whole. 

Lebowski Bar - I love the Big Lebowski, so stopping in here was essential. And it's a fun bar, although if you're not a fan of the movie there's no real reason for you to go. They have a wheel on the wall where you can pay money for a spin, with the hope of winning free beer. It's a sucker's bet, which we still played a number of times. 

Laundromat Cafe - We went here for breakfast when we first arrived on the island (well, after we did a quick tour of parliament). It's solid. 

Reykjavik Fish and Chips - Icelandic Fish and Chips was closed, so we ended up across the street at this place. Very solid fish and chips, definitely hit the spot. 

Pylsuhusid Hot Dog House - This was a good Icelandic hot dog. 

On the touristing side of things, we used Extreme Iceland for a 10 hour tour of the Golden Circle for our group of nine. I have nothing but positive things to say. Our guide was friendly and knowledgeable, the vehicle was comfortable, and the sites were gorgeous. 

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Just got back. Want to give a shout out to the Sandholdt coffee shop. It’s lovely and the $25ish lasagna for two was an enormous amount of high quality (and weirdly inexpensive) food for dinner. 

(Skip the Blue Lagoon - go to the municipal pool instead.)

(Canopy Hilton - great!)

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Longshot, but does anyone have any updates or additional recs? We are going to Iceland for 4 nights in May. We will be spending one night each in (in order):

-A farmhouse off the beaten path, about 30 minutes from Selfoss (would likely eat dinner in Eyrarbakki or Stokkseyri, the Airbnb listing mentions good seafood restaurants in both)
-Hofn (about 15 min outside) - there's a restaurant in our hotel, but I'm thinking it may be worth splurging on langoustine in town?
-Hvolsvollur
-Reykjavik

Our flight lands far too early the first morning (5 am) so we plan to head to Reykjavik for a bit before making our way to the farmhouse so I was thinking we could start with breakfast at Laundromat Cafe if it's still recommended and lunch will either be on the road or something quicker in Reykjavik if we haven't left town yet. We plan to stop in Selfoss for groceries for breakfasts/lunches for the remainder of the trip so mostly need dinner spots. I would prefer to only break the bank on 1 or 2 of the 4 nights (and yes I realize it's outrageously expensive in Iceland so I'm speaking relatively) and am with Porcupine on much preferring good, honest food over fine dining most of the time so Dill is honestly not on my radar.

Porcupine - do you remember where you encountered that food truck, or what the name of it was? Though it's of course much less fun if we seek it out rather than stumble upon it. :)

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I think you would be good with Laundromat Cafe.  In my one experience, which was late night, the food was solid, very centrally located in the main drag area of Reykjavik.  but it's known for being more of a breakfast/brunch spot so that might play better to what you need at that hour.

Another suggestion is Bergsson Mathus, which is also in the downtown area.  It has more of a cozy Icelandic cafe feel.  Opens at 7am for breakfast/brunch.

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19 minutes ago, Tweaked said:

I think you would be good with Laundromat Cafe.  In my one experience, which was late night, the food was solid, very centrally located in the main drag area of Reykjavik.  but it's known for being more of a breakfast/brunch spot so that might play better to what you need at that hour.

Another suggestion is Bergsson Mathus, which is also in the downtown area.  It has more of a cozy Icelandic cafe feel.  Opens at 7am for breakfast/brunch.

Ohhh, thank you. Laundromat Cafe doesn't open until 8 so nice to have an earlier option.

ETA: So apparently The Laundromat Cafe is now Egill Jacobsen (still well reviewed).

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It sounds like you are heading to the South Coast. En route I suggest you visiting the hot stream on the outskirts of Hveragerdi.  There's plenty of info online.

Hveragerdi is very thermally active even for Iceland.  Just outside of town, there is an hike, which takes about an hour all uphill, to a thermal hot stream.  There are primative changing areas or wear a bathing suit under your clothes. bring a towel. But basically little Rock pools have been built in the stream, find the one that feels nice and sit back and relax.  It's like a hot tub stream surrounded by hills, fields, and sheep.  It's a popular spot on weekends so plan accordingly.  

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Choirgirl21, the fish and chips we loved so much was Sveitagrill Míu - Mia's Country Grill - Local Fish & Chips near Skogafoss in Skogar (see screenshot).

I second Tweaked's recommendation of Bergsson Mathus. You can sort-of put together a picnic from Ostabúðin (Skólavörðustígur 8, 101 Reykjavík). Get a piece of the hot-smoked goose, it's fantastic. And bring back a piece for me. (joking. mostly.) We also really loved Sandholt bakery. But it was two years ago that we were there.

I think you'll be near the famous greenhouse that grows so many tomatoes. It was mildly interesting with a decent cafe for lunch. I would have liked it more if I could have gotten an in-depth tour of the physical plant, but it is amusing to see how they grow warm-weather crops.

Honestly, go for what's fresh and simple, particularly fish and lamb.

And be sure to post here after.  :)   Góða ferð!

Screen Shot 2018-04-21 at 07.11.22.png

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ps Hofn is a very close drive to the Icelandic Sheep and Wool Center. Bring an extra suitcase and buy some sweaters. Bring back one for me. (joking. mostly.)

One other recommendation if time allows Hraunfossar near Reykholt -this is a different Reykholt from the one near where you're staying. (I would attach a screenshot but apparently Invision does math differently from me and thinks that 944KB + 365KB > 2 MB...)  It wasn't utterly packed with tourists, and the sideways waterfall is really something different. 

...edited to add: and now Invision won't show either attachment, but won't let me add anything because I've exceeded the allowed 2MB. With nothing. 😖

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43 minutes ago, porcupine said:

And bring back a piece for me. (joking. mostly.)

My ultra-secret wine mailing list that I mention from time to time ... we have a couple dozen members from around the world ... there's an "unwritten rule" that when someone visits their country, the host from the host nation opens bottles as if it were for a friend. Example: In the Netherlands just last week, a (new, life-long) friend named Cor and his wife Els came up and picked us up at our hotel, gave us a tour of Nijmegen (the oldest town in the Netherlands), and had us over for a multi-hour, multi-wine, afternoon-long meal, and probably opened a half-dozen bottles in the process, expecting nothing in return. I, too, have done this with people on the mailing list, and will continue to do it in the future - Cor and Els have a standing invititation to stay at my house for as long as they like when visiting DC, and I fully expect they'll do it, too. It would be wonderful if we could start a tradition like that here - we need to expand to a worldwide membership, which is my responsibility to pull off, but I want this community to be a vehicle for forging lifetime friendships from around the world. We have to start somewhere ....

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On 4/20/2018 at 5:02 PM, Choirgirl21 said:

Our flight lands far too early the first morning (5 am) so we plan to head to Reykjavik for a bit before making our way to the farmhouse so I was thinking we could start with breakfast at Laundromat Cafe if it's still recommended and lunch will either be on the road or something quicker in Reykjavik if we haven't left town yet.

When I land in KEF early in the morning and have a car, I usually just drive to the Hotel Keflavik for breakfast.  It's nothing special, but they open at 5 am, and have coffee and skyr (and other assorted European breakfast offerings).  If you don't have a car...well good luck at the Joe and the Juice in the airport!

As for other meals:

For higher end places, Dill is worth the Michelin star.  Matur og Drykkur is also wonderful.  They both were more than accommodating for vegetarians.  

I like Sæta Svínið Gastropub for a laid back, more casual dinner.

I have a real soft spot for Mikkeller bars, and the one in Reykjavik is no different: fantastic beer and warm environment.  The unnamed pizza place on the ground floor is also really cozy and delicious.  

While Microbar is another good place to grab local beer, I also enjoy Skuli.  They both don't offer much in the way of food, but do have a lot of local craft beer.  Don't go to these places for Viking or Gull!

For affordable lunches or snacks, Glo and Kaffi Vinyl are good options.

 

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Just back from 4 days in Reykjavík 29 Dec - 1 Jan.  Lots of tourists in the winter now. Beautiful city and even though the sun rises at 11.24 and sets at 3:30, it was light from 10 am 4:45 pm or so.  NYE, Icelanders are crazy about fireworks—buying and setting off 500 tons of private fireworks — professional quality.  We ate at Dill NYE and it was excellent -particularly memorable was the depth of flavor in the consommé and later cod bone soup.  Service was warm and the head Chef served most of the courses and stayed long enough to answer our questions each time.      
Matur og Drykkur has a new chef and the meal was disappointing but the old chef has opened a great lunch resto  in the Hlemmur Foodhall called Skal— an extraordinary fish soup was just one highlight.  Another find and a reasonably priced one is The Icelandic Bar.  Simple, local foods ....and a great horse burger.  Very cozy and welcoming.  Mostly locals. I think Porcupine mentioned the street art and it is impressive!  The donuts in the very small shop in the Exeter Hotel were very very good—

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