Reykjavík Grapevine - 05.11.2010, Síða 39

F D
For your mind, body and soul
paella. It was also bordering dry-town.
The escargot in garlic butter (970 ISK)
was rubbery as though it were a frozen
tray of those snails one can buy at
Hagkaup. Not cool.
The final dish to arrive at the table,
a Spanish omelette with onion and
potato (950 ISK) left me on the fence.
The egg was f luffy and the f lavour was
lovely and subtle but the potatoes were
dry. However the aioli this sizeable slice
of omelette is served with is so good I’d
eat it with everything. I love garlic aioli.
My date and I departed as the dining
room was beginning to fill up, creating
a nice and social atmosphere. We’ll
have to go back with a larger group to
experience tapas how they’re meant to
be.
Fish And Chips With A Twist
I’ve walked past Icelandic Fish & Chips
hundreds of times and each and every
time I have found myself scoffing
at the restaurant’s name. “Fish and
chips aren’t an Icelandic thing,” I say
to myself and sometimes aloud to
whomever I am with at the time. “How
ridiculous.”
So when my lunch date and I
ventured into the surprisingly spacious
eatery at Tryggvagata 8 I felt kinda
bad for my pre-judgment as we were
greeted by a friendly and personable
young woman in an adorable apron and
took in a menu boasting of organic this
and home-made that, and it struck me
that this isn’t the typical greasy stand-
by I thought it would be.
After perusing the simple menu
my date and I both settled on the fried
wolf fish on a bed of mango salad. My
date chose rosemary potatoes and chilli
skyr dipping sauce (called skyronnaise)
on the side of his, while I opted for
garlic potatoes and coriander and lime
skyr sauce (2.390 ISK for the fish,
salad, potatoes and sauce). To drink we
ordered a couple of home made ginger
and lemon sodas (250 ISK) and helped
ourselves to some water.
The food came out quickly and
beautifully presented – three large
breaded filets of wolf fish atop a salad
and sided by golden roasted potatoes.
The skyronnaise were brightly coloured
in orange and green and served in
separate dishes alongside the main
plates.
The first thing that struck me
about the food on our plates was the
breading; it didn’t look deep-fried. One
bite confirmed that it was an airy and
light crust that was not at all greasy. If
the menu hadn’t specified that it was
fried I would almost venture to call this
a healthy meal. The salad beneath the
fish was super refreshing and crisp and
I found myself daydreaming about how
nice it would be if I could ever find such
lovely produce on the shelves of my
local Bónus. Oh, how happy I would be.
The potatoes were oilier than the
fish but not to the point of leaving
puddles of grease on the plate beneath
them. The garlic and rosemary f lavours
of each batch could have stood to
be more pronounced, but there was
something quaint and home-made
tasting about the subtlety. Like the
fish, the potatoes were delicious when
dipped in the colourful skyronnaise –
try the coriander and lime, and then
send me and Icelandic Fish and Chips
a raving ‘thank you’ note.
The home-made sodas received
mixed reviews from my date and I. He
thought it wasn’t sweet enough. I found
it to be too carbonated for my tongue,
though the sweetness level was just
fine. Either way, it’s not something I
would go back for, however comforting
it was to know that my beverage
was made without refined sugar or
additives.
Icelandic Fish and Chips has
taken an artery-clogging, pub-food
specialty and turned it into something
really lovely and gourmet. My inner
monologue will take on a completely
different tone when I pass by from now
on.
Icelandic Fish & Chips
Tryggvagata 8
What we think: Awesome fish
and chips
Flavour: Home-made, light and
surprising
Ambiance: Quaint café
Service: SO nice! Great Apron,
too!
CATHARINE FULTON
ALÍSA KALYANOVA
As if We Existed:
Experimental Film Screening
Bíó Paradís previews Ragnheiður
Gestsdóttir ś new documentary about
Iceland ś submission to the 2009 Venice
Biennale
Bío Paradís
November 18, 20:00
In the foreground, an artist and a model,
working together in a studio. In the
background, a serene and sinking city. The
artist and the model repeat the same task
again and again. The model drinks beer and
smokes cigarettes while the artist paints a
new version of him every day for six months.
This was the setting for Ragnar Kjartansson’s
submission to the 2009 Venice Biennale.
Ragnheiður Gestsdóttir’s latest documentary
captures the performance on 16 mm film,
investigating the boundaries between reality
and fancy, capturing the commonplace in
staged performances and fantastical ele-
ments in the everyday. Bíó Paradís offers a
preview screening of As if We Existed with
English subtitles Thursday, November 18 at
20:00. AK
2011 Sequences Art Festival:
Call for Submissions!
Your chance to participate in Reykjavík ś
annual Sequences Art Festival.
SEQUENCES Art Festival is an annual
independently run festival, established in
Reykjavík in 2006 by four artist-run galleries.
Its aim is to produce and present progres-
sive visual art with a special emphasis on
time-based art, such as performances, sonic
works, video art, art in public space, and to
create a cross-platform for these art forms.
The fifth Sequences Art Festival will be held
from April 1-10, 2011, and promises a range
of performances, happenings, discussions
and lectures, involving a number of Icelandic
and international artists. For further informa-
tion visit www.sequences.is/.
Sequences will accept applications until
November 12. Please send your project
proposals to:
SEQUENCES / Nýlistasafnið
Skúlagata 28
101 Reykjavík Iceland
Deadline: November 12 2010.
AK
18
November
Unglist /
Festival of Young Art
Young art is unique, awesome and super cool
Hitt Húsið and Tjarnarbíó
November 5 - November 12
Unglist, The Festival of Young Art, is an
annual event held in conjunction with Hitt
Húsið that has been running since 1992. The
program consists of music, design, fashion,
photography, art and drama, all of which
focus on the various issues facing young
people today.
The festival offers an opportunity for
talented young artists to showcase their
work, with most of the exhibitions and events
being held at Tjarnarbíó. The concerts feature
young Icelandic bands as well as talented
new groups from Iceland, France, Norway
and Holland. Admission is free and all are
welcome. See www.hitthusid.is for more
information.
Don't miss your chance to see some of
the artists of the future at this unique and
super cool festival!
EF
5
November
12
November
GRAPEVINE FOOD REVIEW KEY
0 Should not be considered food
Edible, but not more than once
OK; not good, but not horrible eithert
Good, but not great.
Pretty damn good
Extraordinary