Iceland!

Iceland, indeed! I’ve never been there. Nancy was one of the hoards of college students who took advantage of the cheap fares on Icelandic Air to travel to Europe, back in the day. The island has long intrigued me, especially the geothermal and other geologic marvels. So far, other places have intrigued me more, and usually have promised better weather.

I’ve also been skeptical about the food, perhaps due to that Andrew Zimmern episode that featured rotted shark. I’m rethinking things, however, thanks to this report from our good friends and Senior Iceland Correspondents, Leslie Buhler and Bob Berendt. Leslie and Bob have been friends since our daughters were in Pre-K together, and we continue to see them regularly through our respective lunch groups. Bob and Leslie braved the Icelandic autumn for a few days in Reykjavik before embarking on a tour, and graciously sent this sketch of their trip. Leslie writes:

If you mosey up to Iceland and stay in Reykjavik be prepared for good food and high prices. Our first night we were exhausted and went to the closest place for dinner which featured fish and chips. It was a disappointment. The second night we had Vietnamese pho, mine with mushrooms and Bob’s with chicken at the casual Bánh Mì down the street from our hotel, the Exeter, at Laugavegi 107.

The pho was delicious and perfect for a brutally cold windy and rainy evening.

The last night before our big tour around the island we had dinner at Messinn, a seafood restaurant at Lækjargata 6b.

Salmon fish pan Perfectly spiced salmon, just caught, with chili, broccoli, carrot, arugula, lime, cashews, butter, and honey.

The salmon was served in a pan with potatoes and more, as was

Atlantic Wolffish fish pan with arugula, tomato, red bell peppers, grapes, potato, paprika, and mushrooms in a light cream and white wine sauce.

It was a hit! It was delicious and by comparison to many restaurants it was reasonable.

[Ed. Doesn’t that bread look good! It has a nice crust and what looks like a substantial interior, and there’s all that pan juice just waiting longingly for a dip.]

Our tour took us to the very contemporary Hallgrimskirkja cathedral sitting on top of a hill, near which is a wonderful funky breakfast and lunch place called Babalu, at Skólavörðustígur 22. I had a delicious tomato soup with a cheese sandwich,

and Bob, being more judicious, had a salad and crepe with mushroom, cheese and spinach.

Babalu

At the northern-most town of Akureyri we ventured up the fjord to a small fishing village to go whale watching and did we get a show! Afterwards we had a delicious fish and chips, the best ever!

UPDATE! Glen Howard, whom you met at the Parkway Deli, reports in the comments that “In Akureyri (near the Arctic Circle), we enjoyed one of the best meals we’ve had anywhere.Rub23 Restaurant”

Note — If you go to Reykjavik, be sure to book a restaurant as soon as you can and be ready for sticker shock!

We’ve experienced that sticker shock in Hawaii and various Caribbean Islands, and I’ll tell you, sticker shock is quite bad enough, thank you, at the local grocery stores here in Washington. Putting money aside, however, and we all should have been putting money aside all along, it sounds like a delicious and, despite the October weather in the far North Atlantic, fun trip.

If you’re planning a trip to Iceland I’m happy to offer another food resource from one of my favorite food blogs, Dining with Frankie, which offers detailed reports on eight Reykjavik restaurants from a 2017 visit here. Reports include, along with many modest restaurants, some with tasting menus which you don’t find here in this blog. I guess the closest is this. It’s a great resource to check before you go to any city. We’ve used it in Key West and elsewhere, and I’ve wished I’d consulted it before many trips.

Again, Many thanks to Leslie and Bob for a fine report. I’m eagerly awaiting a report on their next adventure. And my interest is now re-piqued in a trip to Iceland. We’re kind of booked up for the coming year or two, but who knows? Give a thought to a trip yourself.

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