Reykjavík Grapevine - 28.08.2009, Side 29

SHOP AND EAT:
VEGETARIAN, VEGAN,
ORGANIC
1 YGGDRASILL
Much like its eponymous mythological
counterpart, organic shop Yggdrasill
stocks most of what one needs in life.
Everything is organic, including Bio-Bú
butter, yogurt and skyr and fresh bread
from Brauðhúsið. If you’re on a budget,
check their reduced shelves.
Skólavörðustigur 16
2 ECSTASY’S HEART GARDEN
A health food shop supplying harder-to
find items on vegetarian, vegan and raw-
diet shopping lists. The small family run
Garðurinn lunch restaurant next door has
healthy lunches and impressive cakes on
offer.
Klapparstígur 37
3 BÓNUS
The almighty Bónus is good for the basics
at cut-price, including tofu for a bargain
229 ISK. Bónus also stocks the Himnesk
organic range from local health guru Solla.
Multiple locations
4 MAÐUR LIFANDI
The organic market on Borgartún has a
great selection including fresh fruit and
veg. There is also a lunch restaurant with
dish and soup of the day.
Borgartún 24
5 FRU LAUGA
A rare treat on the island—a farmers
market stocking products of the season.
Located in Laugardalur, open Wednesdays
through Saturdays. Doors are open
12–6pm, but go early—the store gets busy
and the goods go quickly. For information
on new batches, check them on Facebook.
Laugalækur 6
6 JURTAAPÓTEK
A herbal pharmacy with a huge selection
of all kinds of natural remedies. A great
place to pick up Icelandic herbs such as
angelica, yarrow and Icelandic moss—or
the topical hit-product Mímir, which at
2.140 ISK could help to counter even the
swiniest of flu.
Laugarvegur 2
7 GRÆNN KOSTUR
A vegetarian canteen-restaurant hidden
away in the backyard of Skólavörðustigur.
Raw cakes and hearty portions of lasagne
on Mondays.
Skólavörðustigur 8b
8 GLÓ
Organic restaurant, a collaboration with
the Rope Yoga studio at Laugardalur,
offering daily dishes, soups and salads as
well as a juice bar.
Engjateigur 19
For full restaurant and food listings
and venue finder visit
www.grapevine.is for detailed
information.
VEGETARIAN CUISINE
Skólavörðustígur 8 b, tel. 552 2028
Open from 11:30 am–21:00 pm
www.graennkostur.is
Á næstu Grösum was the first
vegetarian restaurant in town. It is
now well into its second decade
and has a loyal following and a bold
branding strategy: on their street sign,
Bill Clinton himself claims that this is
the best restaurant in the entire world.
And here I always thought he was
more of a pylsa-guy.
The dining room is located on the
2nd floor just off the main street. It has
a lunch café look with bright orange
walls and a canteen service desk.
At 5pm I was alone, but as the
dinner hours unfolded the place filled
up steadily.
The menu includes a lunch
soup—different each day of the week—
and a couple of daily specials. There
is always at least one vegan option
and on our visit the majority of dishes
qualified.
One can either pick a single
dish or sample up to five from the
canteen-counter. Both my vegetarian
dinner companion and I went for
the four-dish plate (1.890 ISK for a
mountainous portion) including rice,
dressing, particularly tasty lettuce and
home-baked bread with cinnamon
date-chutney.
On my friend’s recommendation
I went for lasagna with tomato
dressing—a good call on her count.
The accompanying green barley
salad with red onion and herbs was
also very good, but portions of the
day—noodles and the chickpea carrot
casserole—proved less exciting.
Guacamole sauce had too much
lemon and none of the sumptuous
richness of avocado.
My friend was happy with the
lasagna, agreed on the boredom of
the noodles and liked her filled red
pepper.
Most interesting was the dessert,
a delicious slice of barley cake (650
ISK) that we “shared” (i.e. I ate, she
watched). The crust of whole-wheat
crackers was an inch too hard, but the
filling of barley-apple-coconut milk
mix topped with fruit jam was light and
sweet with a curious texture.
“I’ve had better cakes, but I have
had a lot worse too” said my friend.
Once again, she was right on the
money. - SARI PELTONEN
Vegetarian Volvo
Flavour: Vegan and vegetarian
Ambiance: School lunch
Service: Fast, friendly and
refreshingly aware of what the
portions consisted of
Á næstu Grösum
Laugarvegur 20b
What we think: It’s like a Volvo—a
dependable classic that gets you
there safelyv
GRAPEVINE FOOD REVIEW KEY
0 God-awful
1 Awful
2 Passable. Much room for improvement
3 Good, but not great.
4 Really rather good
5 Extraordinary
The food is rated in three categories:
Fast food: Pizza, pylsa and kebab, food on
the go (0-2000 ISK)
Mid-range: Everyday eateries, sit-in. (mains
2000-4000 ISK)
Fine dining: Fancy, expensive-type food.
(3-course dinners 6000 and up)
To best judge the restaurant experience,
the Grapevine conducts its reviews anony-
mously. The sole exception is the payment
method: When the bill arrives, the reviewer
presents a written statement, previously
signed by the restaurant management,
allowing the reviewer and one companion a
meal on the house for review purposes.
Using this approach, we aim to best
preserve the reviewer’s objectivity (and the
restaurants’ consistency), within the humble
means of a free newspaper.
The Grapevine does not favour foie gras
over fast food. Restaurants are reviewed
for what they are; both burger and beluga
can be extraordinary in their own right.
In all evaluations, the food is key: Does it
taste good? Is it properly prepared? Are
the ingredients fresh and of high quality?
Secondary considerations include setting,
service and value for money.
All opinions expressed are the critic’s
own. SP
GOOD NIGHT & GOOD MORNING
In the heart of Reykjavik city center, Centerhotels offer the perfect
setting for your stay in Iceland. The hotels boast modern Scandinavian
design, providing guests with a sophisticated and stylish environment.
www.centerhotels.com
Tel.: 595 8500 - Fax: 595 8511 - Email: reservations@centerhotels.com