Icelandic Chef To Bring New Nordic Cuisine To New York

Chef Gunnar Gíslason, the culinary mind behind the restaurants Dill, Hverfisgata 12, and Mikkeller & Friends, will be the head chef of an upcoming nordic restaurant located at Grand Central Terminal, Manhattan, New York, according to a press release from MeyersUSA.

The restaurant is owned by Danish food entrepreneur and chef Claus Meyer and will be Claus’s first restaurant in the United States. Claus is the co-founder of the Danish restaurant Noma, ranked Best Restaurant in the World in 2014 by Restaurant magazine.

“It’s going to be crazy. I’ll be adding so many ingredients to my list…it’s almost overwhelming,” Gunnar told us over the phone. “Not only ingredients but also meeting new farmers, producers, and suppliers—forming new relationships. I’m really excited.”

Gunnar plans to bring the traditions of Icelandic cuisine to New York, which includes salting, fermenting, pickling and smoking.

”I look forward to exploring new culinary territory and challenging myself,” said Gunnar. “The principles of the New Nordic Cuisine philosophy can be applied anywhere, as it is all about discovering the nature at hand.”

The upcoming place in Grand Central terminal is a food hall containing a granola bar, a hotdog stand, a little deli, and a casual fine dining restaurant.

Gunnar will be relocating to New York in January 2016 and his wife and children will join him in the summer.