Wining, Dining …
It’s worth the trip!

Dining in Reykjavik is a culinary celebration of fresh ingredients and cultural variety. There are over 170 restaurants in the greater Reykjavik area where top Icelandic chefs have the advantage of cooking with pure and natural Icelandic ingredients. Fruits and vegetables are grown organically in greenhouses and meat and dairy products are free of additives and growth hormones. Seafood is caught fresh daily from the glistening, pollution-free waters of Iceland. Very often the mouth-watering halibut swimming in a delectable sauce on your dinner plate was carelessly swimming in the ocean during breakfast.

One eatery with the market on scenery is Vox at the splendid new Nordica Hotel which overlooks Faxafloi Bay and the magnificent Mount Esja. The culinary team at Vox emphasizes the French style of cooking, while focusing on quality Icelandic ingredients. A dish based on this background is their slowly cooked filet of lamb with seasoned stock and Dijon mustard. The exquisite flavor of Icelandic lamb, which is famous around the world, comes as a result of an unpolluted environment and the mixture of grass, moss and berries the lambs feed on throughout the summer.

Named one of the world’s top 100 tables in 2004 by Conde Nast Traveler Magazine’s Hot List, Sjavarkjallarinn (The Seafood Cellar) resides in the oldest building on the oldest street in Reykjavik. In a contemporary backdrop seafood is the star of the culinary show where Asian influence meets Icelandic traditional cooking. Seafood doesn’t get any fresher than it does in Iceland and their lobster classico is served with garlic, mizuna, nan bread and the purest drawn butter you’ve ever tasted.

Speaking of dairy products, you haven’t lived until you’ve tasted Icelandic cheese. There are about 100 different kinds of cheese for chefs - and you - to choose from. At Italia, a cozy restaurant located smack in the middle of Reykjavik’s main shopping street, they serve Italian creations made from wholesome Icelandic cheeses. The pizza at Italia is so incredibly good that
even devout New York pizza fans get nervous.

Another Conde Nast Traveler Magazine favorite we should mention is Master Chef Siggi Hall’s selfnamed restaurant at Hotel Odinsve. Stylish settings and an informal atmosphere grace Mediterranean-influenced entrees made from seafood, bacalao, game or lamb.

A favorite local spot situated right in the heart of Reykjavik is Laekjarbrekka which serves, among other things, a traditional Icelandic-Danish open-faced sandwich known as smorrebrod. A typical smorrebrod can have thinly sliced roast beef, smoked lamb, or fresh Icelandic shrimp piled mile-high. Each sandwich is individually decorated with colorful condiments and crisp veggies grown organically in greenhouses. These epicurean masterpieces are as pleasing to the appetite as they are to the eye.

If you’re hungry for ‘a burger and fries’ look no further than to Hamborgarabullan (The Hamburger Joint) which opened in May 2004 in an obscure gray building by the old Reykjavik Harbor. Owner Tommi sure knows how to do a good burger: char-grilled, topped with cheddar and a Portobello mushroom, accompanied by crispy French fries and a milkshake. Of course we could go on and on telling you about the fabulous restaurants in Iceland, but you’ll just have to come and taste for yourself. Please note that prices on menus always include all taxes and gratuities. Dress is usually smart casual to formal and it is strongly suggested that you make dinner reservations.
Bon Apetit!

Coffee house culture
Long before Starbucks and Coffee Tree’s took over the world, Icelanders have embraced the art of sitting in a cafe, chatting with friends and leisurely sipping a steaming cup of java. In fact, Icelanders take their coffee drinking so seriously that you will rarely find it served ‘to go’. This is considered a sin against the almighty coffee bean as they believe that a cup of coffee should be savored and not rushed.

There are dozens of coffee houses throughout Reykjavik, each with its own unique charm. Anyway you pour it, coffee houses are a great way to sit, relax and get to know the locals.

Dog eat dog world
If there’s one Icelandic phrase every visitor should learn it’s ‘Eina med ollu.’ These magical words unlock the door to a hotdog-lover’s paradise. Literally translated it means “Give me one with the works.” The ‘works’ consists of an Icelandic hotdog (pylsa) served in a steamed bun topped with ketchup, mustard, crunchy fried onions, raw onions and a remoulade sauce. Pylsa-stands are sprinkled throughout the city but the most popular is Baejarins Bestu (The City’s Best) located directly across from Reykjavik harbor. People have been lining up there for delectable, secretrecipe hotdogs every day for decades!

Ice to go
Once your trip to Iceland is coming to a close and you’re already experiencing ‘Iceland withdrawal’ never fear the Duty Free is here! At Leifur Eiriksson International Air Terminal you can pick up all the Icelandic goodies you won’t be able to live without back home. Various seafood products are sold vacuumpacked: delicacies such as smoked salmon, smoked trout, or gravlax (dill-cured salmon). Pickled herring and lumpfish caviar are sold by the jar. Cheeses, hot dogs, and hardfiskur (dried fish) are all conveniently packaged for travel. And don’t forget to pick up some skyr, a traditional dairy dish the Icelandic nation has enjoyed for centuries.

… and Entertainment

Rocking Reykjavik
Many visitors often fly over to Reykjavik for the weekend — just to embrace the night. In the evening, the downtown area teems with activity, reaching its peak on Friday and Saturday. The number of pubs, cafes, discos, and other night-spots in the downtown area is astonishing — as though just about every other door led into a hopping, throbbing, pulsating hub of activity.

There is a rich variety of places to go: Europeanstyle cafes, chic bars for dancing and people-watching, nightclubs with live entertainment, discos, dance halls for seniors, alternative-lifestyle clubs, sports-theme pubs with big TV screens, romantic piano lounges, Irish pubs, French wine bars... yes, the list could go on. New places, it seems, open every week — each trying to outdo the other in terms of innovation and chic. Just to name a few: NASA, Pravda, Vegamot, Gaukur a Stong, Kapital, Sirkus, Kaffibarinn, and the bar at 101 Hotel which received an award in 2004 from Conde Nast Traveler Hot List as one of the global hotbeds of nightlife.

Now, you may just venture after dinner, primed and eager to experience some of the fun and excitement we’ve been describing — and find none! Well, do not despair. Here’s the scoop: It is an informal tradition for Icelanders to gather at intimate ‘house parties’ before hitting the city nightlife. Between midnight and 1 a.m., things are usually starting to hop — after which lines are quick to form outside the most popular places.

As for opening hours, most places close around 1 a.m. on weekdays, 6 a.m. on weekends, though some stay open longer. Late night, particularly in the summer, the downtown area takes on a carnival-like atmosphere. For the Icelanders, especially in the perpetual daylight of summer, the night is always young.