Where to Eat: Reykjavik, Iceland
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Braud & Co:
We discovered this bakery on our first morning in Reykjavik and returned every day for chocolate croissants! It’s tiny, so you might not get to sit while you eat, but the food is incredible and they blast indie rock all day. It’s right down the street from Hallgrimskirkja; you’ll be able to spot it from half a mile away thanks to its vibrant exterior.

Braud & Company
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Public House:
We came across this gastropub while wandering around Reykjavik on our first day. Its inspiration is a little confusing—a Scandinavian-yet-British pub with Asian tapas—but the food and decor were stunning!

Public House Gastropub

Sushi at Public House Gastropub
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Fiskmarkaðurinn:
We had our first dinner here thanks to its high TripAdvisor ratings and gorgeous, woodland-themed interior. It’s not cheap—as with many Reykjavik restaurants, it’s marked as $$$$. We got around this by ordering one delicious entree and glass of wine each, then split a dessert. (The kitchen sent over an appetizer on the house, too!) We left full & happy!

Fiskmarkaðurinn

Salmon ceviche at Fiskmarkaðurinn

Salmon with apple & fennel at Fiskmarkaðurinn
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Ostabúðin:
This restaurant quickly became our favorite spot in Reykjavik—we dined here on two consecutive nights because of its warm ambiance and intriguing menu. On the first night, we tried Arctic char & lamb—which we’d heard were the dishes to try on our visit—along with a selection of local cheeses and a tangy skyr mousse. On Night 2, we returned to sample baked Camembert, goose, plaice (a delicious white fish), and tiramisu, which were all ravishing. If I could recommend any restaurant, this would be it!

Ostabúðin

Camembert at Ostabúðin

Tiramisu at Ostabúðin

Ostabúðin
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My Advice for Dining in Iceland
Expect to spend a lot on food & drinks in Iceland. The sticker shock is unavoidable. The food is worth it (expect to pay $45-65 per plate at a nice restaurant), but a bottle of wine may not be. It can set you back $150-200 (apparently because Iceland only recently began to allow alcohol), so you may want to stick to a glass of local beer (we recommend Einstök White Ale if you’re a fan of Belgian whites!) and reallocate that money toward your meal instead.
The dishes you have to try: The salmon is 100% wild and is absolutely delicious. If you want to try a fish you’ve never had before, I highly recommend Arctic char (just like salmon in texture, but with a milder taste) and plaice (a delicious, meaty white fish that even those who find white fish boring will love!). They’re extremely proud of their lamb in Iceland as well—I don’t eat it, but Alex got it almost every night! Lastly, skyr is a type of yogurt that has been enjoyed in Iceland for over a thousand years. It’s very high in protein and has a characteristic tangy flavor that fans of Greek yogurt will love.

Einstök at Ostabúðin
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Bonus: A recipe, inspired by Ostabúðin!
Vanilla Skyr Mousse with Berry-Chia Jam
Ingredients:
1 pint of cream
1 large container of Siggi’s vanilla skyr (24 oz.)
1 egg white (you’re eating it raw, so make sure it’s from a smaller farm with high quality standards)
~1/2 tbsp. of vanilla extract (optional – depends on how strong you want the vanilla flavor to be)
~1/4 cup of powdered sugar (optional – depends on how sweet vs. tangy you want it to be)
1 package of frozen berries (strawberries are my favorite!)
~1/2 cup of chia seeds
Put the frozen berries into a pan with ~1/4 cup of water and simmer on medium until the solid pieces dissolve and the liquid begins to thicken. Set it aside to cool. When it’s room temperature, stir in the chia seeds & let them soak up the liquid overnight. In the morning, you’ll have chia jam!
Pour the cream, skyr, egg white, and vanilla extract into a large bowl. Whip into a frenzy… or until the mousse forms moderately stiff peaks. You want it to have a light, airy texture compared with the original skyr.
Layer the skyr mousse & berry jam into mason jars, and enjoy for breakfast or dessert! (I know I do.)
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Which meal are you dying to try? Let me know in the comments!
Liked this post? Check out these posts on where to go, what to pack, and more Iceland travel advice!
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Rose
All of the food looks amazing and really interesting. Thanks so much for sharing! Great resource.
robin@featherflint.com
Thank you so much, Rose! I’m so glad these posts are helpful, they were so much fun to write. I’m not sure what I expected Icelandic food to be like, but it seriously rivaled French food – and that says a lot!
Katrina Jean Carter
“Where to eat” is always a must know! Iceland is definitely a place I want to visit one day. I will keep this in the memo 🙂 That berry chia jam got my mouth watering….yum!!
KatrinaJeanCarter.wordpress.com
robin@featherflint.com
Thank you, Katrina! One of the first things I do when I book a trip somewhere is bookmark all of the restaurants I want to try – I’ve found that finding authentic restaurants frequented by locals (rather than 100% tourists) is one of the best ways to experience a new place… and enjoy yourself at the same time! Let me know if you try the recipe 🙂
Laura Dennis
I guess I need to put Iceland on my bucket list. Pinning to my “See the World” board.
robin@featherflint.com
Thanks for the pin!! Absolutely take a trip to Iceland if you get the chance, there’s truly no other place like it!
Cassey Yong
How I wished to go to Iceland, when I’m a kid, I kept thinking that Iceland is a place with lotsa ice. Thank you for blogging about this place, I hope that I can be able to see scenery as well. Love the food, makes me so hungry at this time. 2pm over here and I havent taken lunch yet.
robin@featherflint.com
Hi Cassey! I know, “Iceland” is such a misnomer – the country’s actual name is Ísland, which literally means “island,” so it’s our fault for mistranslating it way back when!!
I hope you get to visit someday – looking over the food pictures as I was editing them made me hungry, too!
Julia Dent
I’m going to try that mousse! I love skyr! 🙂
robin@featherflint.com
Let me know if you give it a go, I’d love to hear what you think! Skyr is seriously the best – so much protein and such a unique, tangy flavor!
Joana
Really helpful! Iceland is definitely in m bucket list. So I’m saving this post for later!
Thank you so much for sharing!
Love from Portugal,
Joana
robin@featherflint.com
Thank you, Joana – I’m so happy these posts are helpful!! Absolutely add Iceland to your list, I think you’ll love it 🙂
Sarah
Interesting concept! Scandinavian-british-asian fare! And they do serve it in and ON a real hotstone!! It all looked delish! The price tags on most resto food were a shock to me when I was there as well! But well, the experience doesn’t happen everyday…so, what the hell! LOL.
robin@featherflint.com
Hi Sarah – Exactly! It’s impossible to not get sticker shock in Iceland, but once you realize that you’re paying for extremely high-quality food that you will never find anywhere else on earth, it puts it into perspective! I tend to forego spending any money on tourist-y knick-knacks when I visit a new place and spend it all on food instead 😉
deena
Iceland is on my bucket list, thanks for sharing, shall book mark this x
robin@featherflint.com
Thanks so much, Deena! I really hope you do get to go someday, it’s an amazing experience – so glad my post was helpful!