Reykjavík Grapevine - 29.07.2011, Page 59

Iceland’s
Restaurant of the year
2009 & 2010
by the Nordic Prize
Nordic House Sturlugata 5 101 Reykjavik tel. +354 552 1522 www.dillrestaurant.is Open for lunch every day from 11.30 and for dinner wednesday to sunday from 19.00.
Thai Reykjavík is an extension from
Suðurnes-fave Thai Keflavík. They
recently opened in the old location of
Kínahúsið, a friendly old building that’s
well situated in downtown Reykjavík.
I arrived just after lunch service,
having missed the very reasonable 1490
ISK lunch offer. I ordered the Satay
Kai (1.490 ISK) starter and Pad Thai
(1.590 ISK), the Satay Kai being a Pan-
Asian street food, and Pad Thai a basic
national dish of Thailand.
The Satay Kai arrived more boiled
than charred, served in one of those
fashionable high bowls that are very
poorly suited to a brochette of chicken
crowded in with a tossed pickled salad
and a small bowl of satay. I like my sa-
tay emulsified and heavy on the peanut,
and this sauce was neither. To top it off
there were two small hairs on the rim
of the plate.
Pad Thai. The prawns were actual
prawns (jumbo shrimp) and were sur-
prisingly good. However, those six
lonely prawns felt out of place on the
sea of sloppy noodles. The noodles were
overcooked and chewy, and the whole
thing was heavy on fish sauce and oil.
The tofu was soggy, the eggs were strips
of omelette instead of scrambled in
and the whole thing was as depressing
to eat as it was to look at. It definitely
needed more tamarind, more crushed
peanuts. Oh, and one less hair.
With a little more attention to detail
we could be looking at a kick-ass hang-
over dish. But instead we are left with
this.
Here’s the thing, Thai Reykjavík is
quite affordable and would work fine as
a sloppy lunch deal for Johnny Brick-
layer (God knows it would have worked
fine for me back in my masonry days).
But it doesn’t work with this location
and presentation.
The options are either to scale down
the presentation or whip the kitchen
into shape. Frankly, we have enough
sloppy Asian takeaway food and it
would be great to see them going up
against Ban Thai.
Thai food shares with Mexican food
an amazing scalability. You will get
Thai places that cover the whole spec-
trum, everything from bland inner city
feeding-slots to fine dining experiences
that rely on atmosphere and fresh in-
gredients. And every grade in between.
The location, exterior and decoration
could lead you to believe Thai Reykjavík
was aiming higher, but Thai Reykjavík
falls far on the darker end of that spec-
trum.
BLAH REYKJAVÍK
RAGNAR EGILSSON
JULIA STAPLES
3 X ICECREAM
1 ÍSBÚð VESTURBæJAR
The undisputed master of Icelandic ice
cream, Ísbúð Vesturbæjar beckons the
people of Reykjavík to queue in the wind and
rain, cold and less cold for a taste of the old
and new soft serve with toppings and sauces
of their choosing. Delish!
Hagamel 67, 107 Reykjavík
2 THE KIOSK IN INGÓLFSTORG
It’s your ice cream fix in the heart of 101. The
bonus feature of this place is that you can
order your ice cream to look like a smiley
face… ya know, if you’re into that.
Ingólfstorg
3 10/11
Okay, so it’s not nice fresh soft serve, but
10/11 on Austurstræti stocks a rather
impressive freezer case of ice cream in more
flavours than you’ll find at the parlours.
Austurstræti 17
3 X FISH
1 MELABÚðIN
Isn’t it nice to walk up to a counter at a
grocery store and there is somebody on the
other side to serve you an assortment of fresh
fish. It’s reasonably priced, too.
Hagamelur 39
2 KOLAPORTIð
Reykjavík’s weekly flea market boasts an
expansive fish and meat section. Often some
of the mongers are offering 2 for 1 on fillets of
frozen fish. Sweet deal!
Tryggvagata 19
3 FISKBÚðIN FREYJUGÖTU
This quintessential Icelandic fish store offers
up a fresh catch of the day as well as pre-
made fish dishes that just need to be tossed
in the oven.
Freyjugata 1
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 likes.
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
Reeses Peanut Butter Cups, though I’ve yet to
find them there.
Njálsgata 23
3 SÖLUTURN 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
R E V I E W S
Whales are being killed to feed tourists
Don’t let your visit leave a bad taste in your mouth
What We Think: The prawns
were alright
Flavour: Heavy & blunt—like a
greasy mallet
Ambiance: Bright, friendly,
workmanlike
Service: Nice
Thai Reykjavík
Lækjargata 8, 101 Reykjavík