You end up with mixed feelings about that famous international corporation, Shell. Here in Iceland, Shell has been tied to one of the greater shames of the last few years, a price fixing scandal that cost local consumers millions. On the other hand, Shell also played a significant role in the Hydrogen Bus project, a pride of the country, and quite possibly a project that will lead to Iceland’s eventual conversion away from a fossil fuel-based economy.
And then there are some damned tasty burgers at these gas stations.
“Listen to me closely: You go to the Shell gas station drive through. Do not go inside. You get the sloppy burger with everything on it, including pineapple, and you get the fries in the middle. Then they wrap it up, and you rest it on your dashboard for five minutes. That lets everything mingle together. Then it’s perfect.”
These are the words of an Akureyringur describing the prize food of the capital of the North. And we followed his advice, at ten in the morning on a Sunday, no less, to more than satisfactory results.
The key warning is that the Akureyri-style burger gets extremely addictive. On the bright side, the Skalli-Shell gas station on the northern edge of Reykjavík, (also home to the hydrogen fuel station), serves up a decent Akureyri-style burger, if you don’t want to make the five-hour drive.
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