Reykjavík Grapevine - 05.03.2010, Page 21

EAT AnD DRInK:
3 X KIOSKS
1 RÍKIÐ
This isn’t a cramped “just the basics”
kiosk. Ríkið is spacious and stocks a wide
selection of household goods, movies and
food, including a large counter for ordering
burgers, hotdogs and the like. Snorrabraut
56
2 DREKINN
The selection, like this kiosk, is small, but it
still manages to have the bare necessities to
suit your needs – especially your snacking
needs. Rumour had it that Drekinn stocks
Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, though I’ve yet
to find them there. Njálsgata 23
3 SÖLUTURNINN GRUNDARSTÍG
This Grundarstígur mainstay once sold the
cheapest cigarettes in town. Cigarette prices
have been raised in recent months, but the
pleasant memory remains. Plus this little shop
makes a pretty good hotdog and has a wide
selection of candy. Grundarstígur 12
3 X ICELANDIC HOME
COOKING
1 POTTURINN OG PANNAN
Good’ ole Icelandic home cooking, and
as much of it as you can stomach during
lunchtime hours. What makes Potturinn
og Pannan special is that it manages to not
feel like a cafeteria, as some buffets can.
Brautarholt 22
2 FLJÓTT OG GOTT
Okay, so it’s the restaurant in BSÍ, but it’s
still Icelandic home cooked meals without
the frills or embellishments of modern
restaurants. This cafeteria restaurant offers
up the staples of Icelandic home cooking;
plokkfiskur, meatballs, breaded fish, potatoes.
Good simple food. Vatnsmýrarvegur 10
3 MúLAKAFFI
Their restaurant menu is set by the day and
offers the likes of plokkfiskur, hangikjöt tarts,
lamb chops and soups. Plus, if you’re looking
to have some quality home cooked Icelandic
fare at your next event, Múlakaffi caters!
Apparently this place has been around since
before street numbers existed. Hallarmúli
3 X PIZZA
1 GAMLA SMIÐJAN
So some former Eldsmiðjan employees
took over the space formerly occupied
by Pizzaverksmiðjan and ended up with
something pretty awesome. Gamla smiðjan
has been turning out some consistently
remarkable pizza since it opened a few
months ago. Try it. Lækjargata 8
2 SAFFRAN
Pizza with no white flour and a lot less guilt.
This healthy joint in the suburbs has a good
offering of pizzas among their other health
conscious choices. The chicken pizza, with
spinach, pine nuts and mushrooms is pretty
darn good. Álfheimar 74
3 DEVITOS PIZZA
Devitos serves up a classic greasy slice,
perfect for a quick bite of a post-bar binge.
Plus, they claim to have the cheapest
margarita pizza in town. Laugavegur 126
Sti
ck
wit
h u
s fo
r s
ush
i
For full menu : www.fishcompany.is
A new offering from the owners of
Rizzo Pizzeria, Græni Risinn, is rather
unremarkable from the outside: a
typical Skeifan strip-mall with the
establishment’s name marking the
building’s façade in bright green
lettering. This is a complete disconnect
from what patrons are faced with once
they’ve made it through the front
doors—glossy black walls, blood-red
banquette seating along the far wall and
six f lat-screen televisions broadcasting
the music video’s du jour on Nova TV
in unison.
While the décor hints that this
little eatery fancies itself a nightclub,
the menu is all about health. The
menu boasts that all the dishes on
offer are free of MSG and other f lavour
enhancing additives and lists such
items as salad, wraps, burgers (either
vegetarian or chicken—no beef),
healthy pizzas and a tandoori and
grilled menu.
Looking for something warm and
flavourful, I gravitated to the tandoori
menu, settling on the Tandoori Chicken
on a Spear (1470 ISK), which comes
with the soup of the day. Upon asking
the cashier what the soup of the day
was, he cartoonishly scratched his head,
shrugged his shoulders and directed
me to the sign by the door to check for
myself. It was Persian Vegetable. My
date chose a Jordanian Wrap (890 ISK)
and the soup of the day (200 ISK when
added to a meal, 430 ISK when bought
alone).
Then we waited. We watched
the music videos on a f lat-screen of
our choosing, taking in the visuals of
Justin Bieber and Rammstein without
being able to hear the audio over the
chatter of the packed space. We sipped
our beverages and read their respective
labels—apparently “if it matters [I
should] MAX it.™” We mused about
how the soup of the day being titled
“Persian Vegetable” implies that the
Persians consider chicken a vegetable,
as the main component f loating in the
watery and bland broth was chicken
meat. Then we began to question how a
wrap and a chicken dish could be taking
more than a half hour to prepare.
When the food finally arrived it
looked promising. The Jordanian Wrap
was massive and the Tandoori Chicken,
grilled veggies, rice and salad filled the
sizeable plate placed in front of me. The
promise of the meal withered away and
soon became slight disappointment
upon discovery that my “tandoori”
chicken lacked any f lavour or spice and
tasted only of blackening from being
cooked over a f lame grill. The same
blackened f lavour dominated the grilled
vegetables, and the wild rice tasted as
though it had been placed on my plate
a half hour earlier when my order was
first placed and was left to dry out while
the other components of the dish were
tediously prepared. The saving grace of
the dish was the fresh yogurt sauce, in
which I dipped my chicken, vegetables
and, in haste, even my dry rice.
However, once the sauce was depleted,
so was my patience for the meal.
My date was less disappointed
by his Jordanian Wrap, though the
bulk of it was shredded iceberg lettuce
and neither of us could understand
what made the dish “Jordanian” as
it lacked any of the nation’s classic
culinary staples—hummus, tabouleh,
cinnamon, nutmeg, etc. Plus it wasn’t
so much a wrap as a loose fold, which
spilled its contents when lifted to be
eaten. My date’s telling verdict was a
neutral “it’s nothing special.”
- CATHARINE FULTON
No, No, No Green Giant
Flavour: Blackened and bland.
Ambiance: Wannabe nightclub.
Service: Unhelpful and slow.
Green Giant
Vatnagörðum 20
What we think: Healthy doesn’t
have to be so boring.
We exceed high
expectations
Open for bistro style lunch every day from 11.30–14.00
and dinner wednesday to saturday from 19.00–22.00
Nordic House, Sturlugata 5, 101 Reykjavik, Tel. 6185071/8939693, www.dillrestaurant.is
Iceland’s
biggest band!
For concert information see
music listings on this spread
or visit us at www.sinfonia.is
Tickets » 545 2500 » www.sinfonia.is » Concerts take place in Háskólabíó.
www.procar.is | Fiskislóð 45 | 101 Reykjavík
Free pick up at Hotels
Tel: 551 7000
From
9.900/day
Free GPS if you
bring this ad