Reykjavík Grapevine - 01.07.2011, Page 29

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The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 9 — 2011
Experience excitement in Iceland’s
pure nature or get a bird’s eye view
of the country’s most beautiful places
Adventure tours Air charter servicesScheduled flights
This tour takes you from Reykjavík
to the island of Heimaey in the
Westman Islands archipelago.
Boat trip on the Glacier lagoon and
an ATV excursion in the area of
Europe’s largest glacier, Vatnajökull.
A never-to-be-forgotten trip
showing the sharply contrasting
faces of Iceland’s natural features.
Activity
Adventure
A Historical Tour of
the Westman Islands
Ice and Fire –
Glaciers and Volcanoes
Reykjavík Airport | +354 562 4200
info@eagleair.is | www.eagleair.is
Bookingsand information
Three decades ago, Icelanders couldn’t
go out for a pizza margherita or some
spaghetti alla carbonara without first
getting on an airplane. When Chef
Jakob Magnússon opened Hornið in
1979, he was a real pioneer on the Ice-
landic restaurant scene.
In fact, he was breaking into an
almost non-existent restaurant scene
for that matter. “People went out to
eat maybe once a month and it was an
occasion to dress up for”, Jakob says.
Even so, he says it wasn’t difficult to fill
the place. “People were excited to get
pizzas and pasta, which was all com-
pletely new”.
Today Hornið is amongst the oldest
restaurants in Reykjavík. Still standing
in its original location on the corner
of Hafnarstræti and Pósthússtræti, it
opens for business every day between
11:00 and 23:30. And more likely than
not, Jakob will be there running the
show.
But if he’s not here, Jakob could, as
an internationally approved judge from
WACS, be off judging in an internation-
al culinary competition like the Italian
Pizza Olympics!
Fun Fact: Hornið bakes about 1000 piz-
zas every week!
Special | Best Of Reykjavík - Institutions Special | Best Of Reykjavík - Best Place To Shop Organic
Hornið
Hafnarstræti 15, 101 D4
The Restaurant That Brought
The Pizza Margherita
To Iceland!
Straight From The Farm
ANNA ANDERSEN
JULIA STAPLES
Wedged between a 10-11 grocery store
and an ice cream parlour, Frú Lauga on
Laugalækur road is the closest thing
you will find to a farmer’s market in
Reykjavík. It’s also certainly the only
place that carried blood oranges from
Italy this winter.
Though it’s tempting to think that
the store is run by a frú (“mrs.”) Lauga,
it’s actually the brainchild of couple Ar-
nar Bjarnason and Rakel Halldórsdóttir,
who opened shop two years ago. Arnar
has a PhD in music theory and compo-
sition and Rakel studied art history and
museum studies. Neither of them have
backgrounds in farming, but they both
have a taste for good food and wine.
They personally shop from 40 dif-
ferent individuals, mostly farmers, who
come from all over the country. As far
as he knows, Arnar says Frú Lauga is
the only place like it in Reykjavík, where
people can shop for these kinds of
products in one spot. Not only that, but
they also import their favourite prod-
ucts from abroad, including wines, ol-
ive oil and mustard that simply put can-
not be found elsewhere on the island.
Everything in the store is labelled so
that the customer knows exactly what
they are eating and where it comes
from. For instance, there’s frozen yo-
gurt with blueberries from Holtsels-
Hnoss, rhubarb from Langamýri á
Skeiðum, bacon from Laxárdalur and
lamb from Brekkulækur, to name a just
a few.
Frú Lauga a rare refuge for the food
conscious in Reykjavík. And I wouldn’t
be surprised if there aren’t any fresh
expats jumping up and down to hear
that the dismal looking vegetables at
their local grocery store aren’t their
only option.
Fun Fact: Between the two of them,
Arnar and Rakel have three grandmas
who bear the name Lauga in one form
or the other. The store is in part named
after them and in part a reflection
of their store neighbourhood where
nearly everything also bears the name
Lauga.
Frú Lauga
Laugalæk 6, 104
ANNA ANDERSEN
JULIA STAPLES
Special | Best Of Reykjavík: Word On The Street
Favourite Restaurant? The Sea Baron. The
lobster soup is legendary. It must be one of
the best in the world. And it’s also relatively
cheap.
Best Burger? I would say Hlöllabátar. But
their fish and chips with Béarnaise sauce is
even better. I highly recommend it.
Best museum? Sadly I haven’t been able to
visit many museums here, but I very much
liked the Reykjavík Museum of Photography.
Best kept secret? Without a doubt, the
best-kept secret in Reykjavík is the little
geothermal pool near the lighthouse in Selt-
jarnarnes.
Best bar? I really like Barbara for dancing.
I love the music and I feel so comfortable
there. I am gay and I really like the atmo-
sphere. Also, I usually go to Hemmi og Valdi
for the delicious cakes and hot chocolate. It’s
a great place to meet young people.
Best restaurant? Hlöllabátar is a great
place to get a quick sandwich. When I want
something more fancy I go to the Nordica
Hilton restaurant, Vox.
Best place in Reykjavík? I like to walk
around Tjörnin, Reykjavík’s town lake.
Best pool? Laugardalslaug. I like it because
it is conveniently located next to the gym I
usually go to, and it is also the biggest in
Reykjavík.
Best Bar? I like Kaffibarinn because of
the candles, the music and the people. Oh,
maybe not the people. Be careful in the bars
of Reykjavík, because people can be pretty
violent.
Best Restaurant? Eldsmiðjan. I always have
Campania pizza. It’s the perfect mixture of
basil and fresh tomato. It also has two floors,
so you can always get high (giggles).
Best Museum? The Living Art Museum
(Nýló). They have really nice pieces of art
there and they also have performances.
Eva (Finland)
Best bar? Bakkus. This is the only place I go
because of the atmosphere and the music.
They have bad beer, but it doesn’t matter.
Best restaurant? Noodle Station because
when you’re hung-over it’s the best option.
Best pool? Sundhöllin on Barónsstígur, be-
cause it’s small and I’ve always gone there. I
don’t really like the biggest one in Reykjavík,
that is Laugardalslaug.
Loftur (Iceland)
Best bar? Bakkus
Favourite restaurant? Sushibarinn on
Laugavegur. I love Sushi.
Best pool? Vesturbæjarlaug. It’s the best
one. It’s nice and small and it’s outside, un-
like Sundhöll Reykjavíkur.
Best kept secret? Being on top of the Hall-
grímskirkja tower. The view is incredible.
Freyja (Iceland)Bertrand (France)Ramon (Spain)
Compiled by: JH, FG, and MB