Reykjavík Grapevine - 07.04.2006, Blaðsíða 36

Fine dining costs money. Typically, it costs a
lot of money. Occasionally, though, you’ll find
a place that’s not only worth dropping a size-
able portion of your salary for; they meet you
halfway and don’t demand that much of you
financially after all. Grillið, located on the 8th
floor of the Radisson SAS hotel on Hagatorg,
is not only such a restaurant – it also provided
what, for me, was the most perfect dining
experience of my life.
Guests are first seated in a lounge – leather
couches and chairs arranged near a large
window overlooking a spectacular view of
Reykjavík’s southern shore – where they are of-
fered aperitifs. I went with a Rémy Martin. The
hostess, noticing that my wife is very pregnant,
offered to “make up” a non-alcoholic cocktail
for her. The result – a mixture of banana, pine-
apple, lime juice and cream – proved far better
than it sounds.
We were given our menus with our cock-
tails. Prices range between the high end, with
the Gourmet Game Menu (five courses for
7,900 ISK) to a fish entrée (3,600 ISK). Always
up for a surprise, we decided instead to go for
the Discovery Menu – five courses for 6,900
ISK, where you only discover what you’re going
to eat when it’s brought to your table.
The dining room of Grillið is enormous,
with tall windows on three sides providing more
of the stunning view seen from the lounge, and
classic place settings that reminded me of a
hotel dining room from the 1940s. Miles Davis
played at an unobtrusive, atmospheric volume.
From the moment the first of three starters was
brought to us – fresh scallops in a cold orange
and chilli soup – one thing became immediately
apparent about Grillið: the service. The servers
move quickly, quietly and leave enough time
between courses for the memory of the previous
one to linger while not leaving you wondering if
you’ve been forgotten.
The second starter, grilled langoustines
with cauliflower sauce and nut foam, was
extraordinary. The freshness and natural flavour
of the meal made it clear that the chef had an
emphasis on classical French cuisine. This was
confirmed when we were brought the grilled
turbot with olive purée and aubergine in a
passion fruit sauce. Again, the pacing between
these courses was impeccable.
We arrived at last at the main event – in
this case, tenderloin of beef and veal with half
a lobster tail, potatoes and Madeira glaze.
The sheer brilliance and spectrum of flavour
in this course is off the charts. Suffice it to say
we chewed each bite slowly, our faces in goofy
ecstasy.
At this point we were both stuffed beyond
hope, but when the desserts were brought to
the table – a chocolate cylinder over a choco-
late-covered strawberry with melted chocolate
poured over top of it at the table, alongside a ly-
chee sorbet, as well as a milk chocolate mousse
– we decided it wouldn’t hurt to at least try it.
In the end, it was all we could do to keep from
licking the plates. I had to have a word with the
chef.
Bjarni Gunnar Kristinsson, the chef de
cuisine, received his certification at Grillið, but
told us that he travels “constantly” to France,
New York and the UK to keep up with the
ever-changing trends in fine cuisine.
“You have to,” he said, as if it were a given
that a chef should fly overseas several times a
year just to visit other kitchens.
When asked about the freshness of the
ingredients, Kristinsson said he considered this
a special point of pride for the restaurant.
“Everything is either produced as close by
as possible,” he said, “or flown in fresh, twice
a week.” (Insider’s tip: book a reservation for a
Wednesday evening – that’s when the veggies
from France arrive.)
After a meal at Grillið, it’s hard to take the
elevator back down to your slightly less glamor-
ous life, but with the prices as they are, repeat
visits are a realistic and well-deserved possibil-
ity.
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 bor-
rows from abroad to create something modified
and/or new, and sometimes invents something
outright. And for a good example of American
food done right, Red Chili is an excellent place
to start.
There’s already one Red Chili on Lau-
gavegur 176 (where the restaurant Old West
used to be), but we visited the new location at
Pósthússtræti 13. For those who remember the
spacious environs of Póstbarinn, you won’t be
disappointed – the changes made to the interior
are few. However, the changes that were made
give the place a subtle Southwest feel, without
any sombreros and guitars nailed to the walls.
To start out, we thought it best to go with
the starter sampler: deep-fried shrimp, chicken
wings and potato skins served with bleu cheese
and ranch dressing. This is a great choice for
couples and for those seeking an introduc-
tion to some staples of American bar food,
and it is usually safe – bad chicken wings can
be smothered in ranch dressing in a pinch.
Fortunately, though, we found the quality of
these staples above par – rather than burying
everything under a thick, oily layer of fried bat-
ter, the Red Chili approach is clearly to class up
the old favourites. Although the bleu cheese dip
didn’t have as strong a flavour as I remembered
(which might be due to a faulty memory or
some adjustments in the kitchen to better suit
the Icelandic palate), it served as a good entry
for the main event.
Ever the health conscious one, my wife
went with the barbequed chicken breast, baked
potato with sour cream and salad (as well as an
additional plate of “steak cut” – very large – fries
ordered later). But from the moment I opened
the menu there was only one thing I had in
mind: baby back ribs. Those who’ve visited
Ruby Tuesday’s or TGI Friday’s are probably
familiar with the dish. As these are the ribs cut
closest to the pig’s spine, on the top of its back,
the meat is generally lean but also greatly un-
der-exercised, and thus tender. However, due to
the low fat content (for pork, anyway), it’s easy
to overcook them to the consistency of leather.
Once again, Red Chili improved on the
American standard. The ribs were served
with steak-cut fries and a little bowl of extra
barbeque sauce, as per tradition, but this wasn’t
your run-of-the-mill barbeque sauce – the
recipe had been tweaked a bit, successfully.
The meat from the ribs practically fell from the
bone, as it should. I couldn’t help but sample
some of the baked potato with sour cream, and
wasn’t disappointed.
For those looking for reasonably priced
American food, classed up a bit and served in
a relaxed, open space, you can’t do better in
Iceland than Red Chili.
Paul F. Nikolov on Reykjavík Dining Photos by Héðinn
Under ISK 1000
Between ISK 1000
and ISK 2500
Between ISK 2500
and ISK 4000$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ Over ISK 4000
DINING, EATING
GRUBBING&
8th floor Radisson SAS Hotel on Hagatorg
Tel.: 525-9960
$ $
gRillið
$
Pósthússtræti 13
Tel.: 562-7830
$ $
Red chili
$
$
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