Reykjavík Grapevine - 09.03.2007, Blaðsíða 15

Fewer things are more frustrating than when you’ve
decided to be a little experimental in the kitchen and
your stomach is aching for a flavourful Asian meal, to
drive to the next supermarket chain only to find out
that they only sell a third of the ingredients needed to
prepare the meal. Wouldn’t it be easier, not to men-
tion much more enjoyable, to shop from someone
who actually knows the ingredients and has used
them in the kitchen? We would think so. If you tend
to find yourself in this annoying situation, stop by at
the shop Filippseyjar, a small Asian grocery store lo-
cated on the corner of Hverfisgata and Barónstígur,
and you won’t need to swear anymore.
Specializing in oriental supplies, the store imports
groceries not only from the Philippines but numerous
other Asian countries, particularly Thailand, China,
Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam. Every week,
the store stocks up on fresh fruit and vegetables from
Thailand and provides customers with various choices
of Asian giftware as well.
When walking inside the store you’ll be greeted
by the cheerful owner standing behind the counter.
María Priscilla Zanoria, a Philippine native, opened
up the store ten years ago and has run the shop at
the same location ever since. The business is steadily
reaching out to new customers and today it can pride
itself on being a true treasure chest full of exotic
products for customers to stuff in their baskets.
Shops like this one are an example of the many
great things about a multicultural society. All the in-
dividuals immigrating to the country bring with them
different culinary traditions from their homelands
and, to meet the growing demand for fine ingredi-
ents, grocery stores dedicated to oriental cuisine have
been opening up in the city for the past decade.
When you wind through the grocery aisles at
Filippseyjar, you’ll find brightly coloured cans and
bottles of coconut milk, bamboo shoots, dried mush-
rooms, bean sprouts, soy sauce, packs of noodles
with numerous flavours, tea, coffee and large sacks
of rice, ready to be boiled, fried or braised. Spices
you’ll have no clue on how to use line the shelves and
sauces that will make your taste buds jump for joy.
If your head is spinning with confusion, María will
most likely be more than willing to guide you through
the store and help you pick out the things you need,
and give you a tip or two on how to use them in
the kitchen. You might even walk out not only with
both hands full of products, but a secret recipe in the
pocket.
Opening hours: Monday to Friday 12-19, Saturdays
12-18. Closed on Sundays.
BEZT Í HEIMI: Filippseyjar Grocery Store
RVK_GV_INFO_ISSUE 03_007_BEZT Í HEIMI_B9
Hverfisgata 98, 101 Reykjavík, Tel.: 551 2400
B8_RVK_GV_INFO_ISSUE 03_007_REVIEWS/FOOD
Once again, a Grapevine food critic faces the almost insur-
mountable task of reviewing a meal that was damn near
perfect, and doing it without sounding like a thinly veiled
advertisement or a love letter. This doesn’t happen a lot,
mind you. In fact, it mostly seems to happen at one place.
The above analogy is even stolen from a previous glowing
review of the restaurant in question, and that is the very
restaurant you are reading about right now – Indian restau-
rant Austur-Indía Félagið. And I can tell you that they’ve still
got it. In fact, they may have gotten even better. Seriously,
when your only complaint at a restaurant is that you get too
full to finish all of the delights at hand, you know they’re
on to something.
Let me tell you about the chicken course we enjoyed.
Reshimi Kebab, it was called, and the only comment I wrote
about it in my notebook was ‘wow!’ Rarely have I tasted a
piece of chicken that was grilled to such perfection; its ten-
der and juicy meat would have held its own quite well, but
the addition of some nicely thought-out spices and a minty
aftertaste pushed it well beyond the ‘awesome’ category.
And then there was the Vindaloo lamb in all its spicy
glory. It is always telling when you feel compelled to keep
shovelling food in your mouth even though it is basically
burning holes in your cheeks and tongue. But a taste of the
vindaloo invited another one, and so on until the heat got
so scalding that not even the plentiful Rajita could soothe
the pain. But it was worth it.
In fact, everything my companion and I consumed dur-
ing our two-hour stay at Austur-Indía Félagið, from the
naan bread and tomato rice right down to the Cobra beer
was worthy of praise. The service was also excellent, and
befitting of the restaurant’s pricing policy (although the
staff probably knew we were there for reviewing purposes,
everyone else eating there seemed to get the same amount
of attention, too).
Austur-Indía Félagið
Hverfisgata 56, 101 Reykjavík, Tel.: 552 1630
Bistro-bar and restaurant Geysir is located in the old and dig-
nified Geysir building by the corner of Aðalstræti and Ves-
turgata. A relatively new eating destination, open since last
summer, its bright and stylishly decorated dining hall offers
plenty of seating for couples up to large groups who can
enjoy the meal and the nice downtown view from lunch to
dinner hours.
After a couple of lunchtime visits, arriving at Geysir on
a Friday evening was a completely different experience. The
place was almost packed and every table seated with cus-
tomers enjoying their dinner while in deep conversation. The
lively casual vibe was welcoming and although the tables
are lined in close proximity to one another the closeness to
other dining guests never gets annoying. The sound of other
people chatting rather adds a lively twist to the whole experi-
ence.
Geysir’s new menu features a diverse yet consistent selec-
tion of bistro-style dishes for a very reasonable price. When
seated right by the window our waitress offered us a nice
bottle of white wine and recommended some of the restau-
rant’s tastiest dishes. As starters we were served two sepa-
rate courses, one containing a rather bland tomato-soup, the
other a plate of large shrimps on a stick and a small vegetable
stuffed and crusty quiche served with a bowl of sour cream.
The quiche was especially flavourful and the shrimps, when
dipped in the sauce, an excellent and light starter.
We weren’t let down with our plates of lamb and salted
cod as main dishes nor the bottle of red wine that our wait-
ress brought to the table. The fillet of lamb served with po-
tatoes, grilled vegetables and bearnaise sauce was spot-on
and cooked to perfection. Likewise, the salted cod, served on
top of an Italian-style olive and tomato sauce was tasty and
filling.
Although a little short of stomach space there’s always
some room for dessert. The creamy chocolate mousse and
an exceptionally rich portion of crème brulée both made a
fine conclusion to an excellent meal. If looking for a fun spot
to go with friends for a fine meal before a night out, a drop
in at Geysir can be recommended. A fine way to start your
evening. Also, as the prices are fair, there should still be a lit-
tle something left in the wallet to spend at the nearest bar.
Geysir
Aðalstræti 2, 101 Reykjavík, Tel.: 517 4300
Located on the shopping street Laugavegur, Tivoli is a cosy
café during the day offering light snacks and lunch meals
such as pizza, burgers, and tapas dishes. Downtown pedes-
trians have already caught on to this new dining opportunity,
and the place, open since November, has developed a regular
customer base of shoppers and locals alike.
Around dinner hours, Tivoli turns into a nice restaurant
where the homely decor adds character and extra charm to
the place. At this time, light refreshments are replaced by
gourmet cuisine, although small dishes are still offered to
those who only want something to go with the wine. The
restaurant’s menu is very tasteful in both prices and com-
bination of inviting dishes influenced by Italian and Spanish
cuisine.
While we carefully examined the menu, our friendly wait-
ress offered us a sample of whale sashimi as an appetizer.
The meat was supremely tender and when dipped into the
soy sauce and wasabi, much to my surprise, it tasted rather
good.
As a starter I decided on the all-Icelandic hangikjöt, a dish
of smoked lamb traditionally served with potatoes, white
sauce and green peas. Tivoli’s owners decided not to prepare
the lamb old-style though. Cut in thin slices and served with
rucola, fresh melon and horseradish sauce, this experimen-
tal dish turned out to be the best hangikjöt I’ve ever tasted.
My dining partner decided on a more classic course, a beef
carpaccio with oil and parmesan and wasn’t let down by her
choice.
For the main course, our waitress recommended the Roco
– a pasta dish with lobster, mushrooms, spinach, garlic and
cheese sauce – and the Mohjito lamb. The generous portion
of lamb fillet with mint sauce was satisfying, although they
could have added a bit more mint to supplement the flavour.
The pasta dish on the other hand was just perfect. A blend of
tasty sauce, large chunks of lobster and generously stuffed
tortellini topped with fresh rucola was more than enough to
satisfy the taste buds.
For dessert, we ordered the sweet chocolate mousse
served with cream and berries and the Panna Cotta served
with cream and raspberry sauce. In line with previous dishes,
these proved to be excellent, confirming that Tivoli is a res-
taurant boasting high class but reasonably priced meals.
Tivoli
Laugavegur 3, 101 Reykjavík, Tel.: 552 0077
Reviewed by Haukur Magnússon Reviewed by Steinunn Jakobsdóttir Reviewed by Steinunn Jakobsdóttir Text by Steinunn Jakobsdóttir
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