Food
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Red Chili
Mention the term “American food” and the first thing that normally springs to mind is the holy trinity of hamburgers, hot dogs and pizza. While certainly classic examples, they’re not the only ones. American food, like many aspects of American culture, sometimes…
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Hamborgarabúlla Tómasar – Bezt í heimi
Q: What do you get in your burger to make it worth $10? A: Well, I’ll tell you what you don’t get: MAD COW!!!!! That’s right, it used to sound fucking crazy to pay $10 for a hamburger. But with seven cases…
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Reykjavík Pizza Company
I won’t go into a lot of detail about my experience at the Reykjavík Pizza Company. Located in the same building as the former Reykjavík Bagel Company, RPC still sells bagels as a part of their menu, but the main focus is…
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Þrír Frakkar
This cosy, mid-range restaurant, in a quiet, residential part of downtown Reykjavík, Þrír Frakkar is best known for its seafood, but could also be considered an excellent example of the Icelandic dining experience. The walls of the main dining room are adorned…
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Vín og Skel
Every once in a while, a restaurant will go out of its way to do more on every level, providing the perfect blend of tradition and imagination. Vín og Skel is one such restaurant. Located in a courtyard just off of Laugavegur,…
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Salt
As a rule of thumb, it is not so much the taste of the food that is the real criteria for a restaurant in Salt’s price range. You don’t go into an expensive restaurant hoping to be pleasantly surprised by the quality…
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Quiznos
Legend has it that the first submarine sandwich was the creation of Dominic Conti, an Italian immigrant to the US, who brought his favourite sandwich recipe with him all the way to New York. The traditional sub is created from a 12-inch…
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Þorramatur
The pagan holiday of Þorri, which begins on a Friday between the 19th and the 25th of January and ends on a Saturday between the 18th and 24th of February, still survives today in the form of þorramatur – a banquet of…
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Vox
Quiche was the big culinary trend of the 1980s, and it was hard not to find sun-dried tomatoes or an Asian-fusion creation on a menu in the 1990s. Now, it seems, foam is where it’s at. It’s the f-word of Reykjavík haute…
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The Best Putrid Shark in the World!
Okay, how do you win best putrid shark in the world? To start with, let’s check off some myths. As the Grapevine learned last summer, Icelanders have, for ages, captured shark and then used various techniques to age it—these techniques do not…
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Bolludagur, Sprengidagur and Öskudagur
Sadly overlooked by most visitors to Iceland, Bolludagur, Sprengidagur and Öskudagur are set up back to back, conveniently enough, on the last two days of February and the first day of March. Taken together, they afford you the opportunity to be a…
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Osushi
Contrary to popular belief, sushi does not actually mean “raw fish”, but rather “with rice.” This was among the many lessons the head sushi chef served my companion and me at The Train during a recent visit. Located on the second floor…
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Hlöllabátar
We should make no bones about it, whenever you eat a sandwich and the grease keeps running down your fingers, you know your health is probably best served someplace else. But the fast food industry works in light of a different virtue.…
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Hressingarskálinn
Hressingarskálinn, or Hressó as it is commonly referred to by the locals, is actually more of a café than a restaurant, although it has surprisingly extensive bistro section. The regular menu mostly consists of the sort of food you’d usually expect to…
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HAMBORGARABÚLLAN
They say the best indicator of a restaurant’s quality is not the way the place looks but the number of locals you’ll find dining inside. Hamborgarabúllan (“the hamburger joint”) passes this latter test with flying colours. Hamborgarabúllan is that grey, teardrop-shaped wee…
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CULIACAN
Welcome to Mexican Cuisine 101. Today’s lesson: How to Make Authentic Mexican Cooking Popular in Iceland. Case Study: Culiacan restaurant, situated in the strip-mall wastelands of Skeifan. The testers were, appropriately, two genuine Mexicans, ready to provide expertise on their nation’s favourite…
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VIÐ TJÖRNINA
ATTENTION TOURISTS! Are you looking for an authentic Icelandic dining experience? Then Við Tjörnina is just the place for you. It’s how you would imagine the genuine thing; ignore the fact that the authentic Iceland of your guidebooks might be a marketing…
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Hótel Borg
The classy atmosphere was well-suited to those on a romantic dinner. There was a fresh rose on each table, intimate lighting, and Nina Simone crooning in the background. There was also a very long wait between courses. If you are with a…
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Salt
Described as “chic, upscale and casual” on its website, the hotel restaurant, Salt, actually is. Each table is decorated with a small porcelain bowl with pink, white and black sea-salts, each imported from its own continent. The salts are, I was told,…
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Thorvaldsen
For regulars to Thorvaldsen in the evenings, it’s hard to shake the idea that you’re paying what seems like a lot to dine in a nightclub. Thorvaldsen deserves to be seen as a restaurant in its own right, however, and for tourists,…
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Sjávarkjallarinn
If you splurge on one meal out this year, make it at the Seafood Cellar. This dining experience is so enjoyable that everyone should know about it. That’s actually how this place became so popular. Although it has only been open for…
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Siggi Hall
The atmosphere at Siggi Hall is bright and cheerful, yet classy. It’s set in the sunroom of the Hótel Óðinsvé, so there is lots of natural light. The jazz greats are crooning in the background. It’s fine to dress casually, but a…
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Tveir Fiskar
The exquisite Tveir Fiskar, where everybody seems to be speak French, presents great fish. Great chocolate soufflé. Sophisticated yet friendly waiters, and a nice industrial harbour view out the window, and a great imitation of Northern Lights on the bar ceiling. Tveir…