Reykjavík Grapevine - 05.11.2011, Blaðsíða 43

R E V I E W S
Yggdrasill • Rauðarárstíg 10
Phone: 562 4082 • Fax: 561 9299
e-mail: shop@yggdrasill.is
shop organic in Iceland
If you want to
Yggdrasill is the place to go
Yggdrasill offers a wide range of premium quality, certified organic products,
including a variety of organic fruits and vegetables. We are located down town,
next to "Hlemmur", one of the two main bus terminals in Reykjavík.
Pioneer in delivering organic products for 25 years
Harry’s has been the topic of much
discussion in the Icelandic media lately.
At the time of writing, Harry’s is rated
the third best restaurant in Iceland on
TripAdvisor with a rating of 4.5 out of
5. Although it should be noted that, for
some strange reason, almost every res-
taurant in Iceland averages a rating of
4.5 (as do most of the places in Manila,
incidentally). And for the occasional
negative comment, Harry himself has
gracefully decided to reply and correct
those erroneous opinions. What the
heck is this place and where did it come
from?
To the best of my knowledge, there
is no exclusively Filipino place in Reyk-
javík and I’ve just realised that I need
one.
The Philippines have a ridiculously
complex cultural heritage, it’s a na-
tion obscured by a forest of invading
flags left behind by an international
conga line of starving conquistadors
that make Sicily look chaste as Agnes
of Rome. As a result, Filipino people
like mixing sweet and savoury along
with basically anything they can get
their hands on. This can result in
some surprising combinations like
ginger+hard-boiled eggs+safflower,
macaroni+cabbage+fish sauce and
milkfish+soy sauce+raisins. Pure Fran-
kenfood and often pure genius.
So I grabbed wifey and the parents
and headed down with a big stupid
smile on my face.
First impression: the place isn’t
much to look at, but so what—I went
hoping for a simple, hole-in-the-wall
Filipino place with some character.
Nothing fancy, just a solid emphasis
on regional ingredients and techniques
(think: Noodle Station).
The sign at Harry’s beckons you
in, promising fish & chips, Guinness,
Belgian waffles and burgers. Strange.
Somehow they have stumbled on the
only four things not used in Filipino
food.
This is a tiny family business. The
lady is by herself, holding down the
kitchen fort with the man, presumably
Harry, pulling the rest of the strings
like the Wizard of Oz. Half of the ten
tables in use and they already seem in
over their heads. Yet, Harry manages
to maintain a surprisingly high level
of service. They seem like nice people.
The interior is a little tacky, not enough
to be charming, nor enough to be of-
fensive. Regrettably, that’s about all the
positive comments I can muster.
First of all, there is nothing I would
call Filipino about this. The group had
eaten at Filipino places, wifey had eaten
Filipino home cooking through friends.
This was bog standard pan-Asian take-
out food served with plenty of fat, salt,
oyster sauce and fries on the side. The
only plus side being that it was cooked
to order. The wife had salty pork in oys-
ter sauce. Large portion but didn’t taste
of much. Parents had roast pork with
crackling (!?) which was dry and dull. I
ordered a salad (it contained olives and
hard-boiled eggs, which are somewhat
Filipino ingredients). Nothing special.
Some calamari on the side that weren’t
too chewy. Finished with a stale waffle
for mom because it was her birthday
(really).
I take no joy in rating places
like Harry’s. I’m guessing the folks
aren’t professional chefs. They aren’t
responsible for their clients rating it the
third best in Iceland. But here we find
ourselves and I owe it to the men and
women that have devoted their lives to
cooking good food, who were rated be-
low Harry’s, to give an honest appraisal.
I wouldn’t eat at Harry’s again and I
wouldn’t recommend it to the people I
know. Harry’s might do well as a regu-
lar lunch joint—I might have jumped
in there for a bite during my lunch
break and felt differently—but with a
liquor license and a focus on dinner
service...I’m not seeing that at all.
Overall, the food reminded me of
the Chinese place on the corner of my
street in Brooklyn. That place had bul-
letproof glass, offered a free soda with
each purchase and all the fish in the
aquarium were dead.
Off TO See THe WIzarD
RAGNAR EGILSSON
HVALREKI
What We Think: Good-size
portions if you don’t mind the
food. Decidedly not the third best
place in Reykjavík. Long wait on
busy nights. Wouldn’t repeat it.
Flavour: Low-end take-away
food. Overcooked and drenched
in brine like a shipwrecked sailor.
Ambiance: Friendly. Nautical.
Service: Impressively attentive
considering it’s only the one guy
Service: Impressively attentive
considering it’s only the one guy
HARRY’S
Rauðarárstígur 33, 105 Reykjavík