Reykjavík Grapevine - 18.07.2014, Blaðsíða 20

Best Hangover Meal
The Hangover Killer at Prikið
When you find yourself stumbling out
of bed with a skull-splitting headache
and a deep abhorrence of everything and
everyone, look no further than Prikið for
the perfect remedy. Despite there being a
significant chance that the café/bar/hip-
hop haven contributed to your hangover
in the first place, any hard feelings are
patched up by their back-to-back winner,
The Hangover Killer. This heaven-sent
meal comes complete with a hangover
sandwich (ham, cheese, bacon, egg, to-
mato, lettuce, and garlic dressing), a Jack
Daniels infused ‘Bruce Willis milkshake’
and a tablet of Treo painkiller. Working
together, this ensemble provides you
with a Hangover Holy Trinity: greasy
food, the hair of the dog, and a doctor-
recommended analgesic. Once you break
out of your subsequent food coma, you’ll
find yourself ready to go out and do it all
over again.
2013: The Hangover Killer
2012: Vitabar
2011: The Truck at Grái Kötturinn
2010: The Truck at Prikið
2009: The Truck at Grái kötturinn
Best Soup
Noodle Station
Ask a bunch of people living in Reykjavík
to name the best soup in town and you
will find yourself in the midst of a some-
what contentious conversation. There are
a fair amount of soups served here, and
a fair amount of them are pretty damn
good. But if you want to get the most bang
for your buck—or KRASH for your króna,
if you will—you’re almost guaranteed to
come away from Noodle Station happy.
It’s a simple, quick place that doesn’t
try to reinvent the wheel. You have two
choices to make: do you want Chicken,
Beef, or Veggie? Do you want spicy or
lame not spicy? (“Always spicy,” says a
panellist. “I want them to make me cry.”
And they do.) Every so often—“like 20%
of the time,” says our frequent noodler
who has eaten there “probably 70 times”
in the last few years—Noodle Station
doesn’t serve up the best bowl, but no
matter what, you’ll never leave hungry.
This is particularly true if you order your
soup to go, as word on the street is that
the take-away portions are generally
more substantial.
2013: Kryddlegin Hjörtu
2012: Höfnin
2011: Kryddlegin Hjörtu
2010: Súpubarinn
2009: Lobster Soup at Sægreifinn
Best Place To Go For
A Fancy Meal
Dill
Dill is New Nordic cuisine at its best.
While many restaurants in Iceland have
embraced some of the principles of New
Nordic cuisine, as one of our resident
foodies notes, Dill takes it the whole way,
“carefully sourcing and foraging its in-
gredients.” Dill’s head chef, Gunnar Karl
Gíslason, has worked at a number of Mi-
chelin starred restaurants in Denmark,
and has been known to bring in guest
chefs from the likes of Michelin-rated
Maaemo. For a visual taste of Gunnar’s
expertise, you can also flip through his
mouthwatering book, ‘North: The New
Nordic Cuisine of Iceland.’ Note: Don’t
go to Dill’s old location! The restaurant
recently relocated to Hverfisgata 12 after
a five-year run in the Nordic House on
Sturlugata.
2013: Gallery Restaurant
at Hótel Holt
2012: Grill Market
2011: Dill
2010: Dill
2009: Gallery Restaurant
at Hótel Holt
Best Place To
Go On A Date
Grill Market
If you’re looking for a fancy restaurant
for a romantic date, Grill Market is the
perfect place. You will enjoy the fresh-
est high quality food from local organic
farmers and a great selection of wines
from all over the world in a classy, luxuri-
ous setting. Portions are also pretty big so
they’re perfect for sharing! On that note,
there’s also a tasting menu for two put to-
gether by the chefs so that sample a vari-
ety of mouth-watering delicacies.
2013: Tapas Barinn
2012: Sushisamba
2011: Ítalía
2010: Pisa
2009: Ítalía
Best Newcomer
Restaurant
K-Bar
K-Bar made a splash when it opened in
late 2013 and it continues to roll out inno-
vative new dishes. But thanks to creative
cocktails, a strong line-up of beers and
trendy yet cosy décor, K-Bar is satisfying
even before the food arrives. The menu
is detail-oriented and exciting, showcas-
ing a unique fusion of Korean and Por-
tuguese influences. Though the Korean
staple, Bi Bim Bap, is good, the soft shell
crab tempura sandwich and fish burgers
are standouts. For dessert, try the cronut,
their version of the croissant-donut fad
that in 2013 created five hour lines and
a black market outside its original bak-
ery in New York City. K-Bar also has a
special place in our hearts because they
offer what might be the best food and
drink deal in the city. Between 16:00 and
18:00, you can stop in and get their sauce-
slathered KFC (Korean Fried Chicken)
wings and the beer of the day for only
990 ISK. From the fresh flavours, the
steal of a deal and the cronuts, K-Bar is
an extremely welcomed addition to the
Reykjavík dining scene.
2013: Bergsson Mathús
2012: Forréttabarinn
2011: Sjávargrillið
2010: Noodle Station
2009: Saffran
Best Goddamn
Restaurant
Snaps
Since we started making our BEST OF
issues, Best Goddamn Restaurant has
remained one of the categories we have
the most fun with as, according to the
definition we initially made up, a ‘best
goddamn restaurant’ needs to be ‘on the
cheaper side,’ ‘consistent,’ ‘tasty’ and
‘available.’ And finding a spot that does
all of the above is both rare and wonder-
ful.
Even more rare—for Reykjavík, at
least—is for an establishment to maintain
those standards for a number of years
without faltering on the quality front or
blowing up its prices. This is perhaps why
it’s especially fun that we get to award
SNAPS this title for the third year run-
ning.
Ever since SNAPS appeared on the
scene (and on our BEST OF REYKJA-
VÍK list) back in 2012, the restaurant has
thankfully kept at it. SNAPS continues to
maintain a near-impeccable balance be-
tween good food, great atmosphere and
affordable pricing; the perfect place to
dine when you want to feel a little fancy
without spending an arm and a leg. Fish
of the day comes recommended, as do
any of their Smörrebröd. Coupled with a
drink, of course, or two.
Thank you, SNAPS!
2013: SNAPS
2012: SNAPS
2011: Ban Thai
2010: Saffran
2009: Segurmo at Boston
Best Family Restaurant
The Laundromat Cafe
The Laundromat Café has pulled off
the four-peat, legitimising their run as a
dynasty in the family restaurant arena.
Sure, there are other places that pride
themselves on being kid-friendly. A de-
cent number of restaurants serve up af-
fordable diner fare. And yes, even some
places have board games to play. But to
have all of these together, plus a down-
stairs play area, AND laundry machines?!
The Laundromat Cafe is truly one-of-a-
kind.
2013: Laundromat
2012: Laundromat
2011: Laundromat
2010: Piri-Piri
2009: Hornið
Best Cheap Meal
10-11 after 14:00
10-11 is not exactly the first place that
comes to mind in a conversation about
cheap food in Reykjavík. In fact, it prob-
ably doesn’t come to mind at all. For
cheap groceries, most people would
probably agree that you should head to
Bónus. However, if you’re looking for a
hot and seemingly healthy meal, 10-11
is actually not a bad option after two in
the afternoon, when said hot meals are
sold at a 50% discount. Their menu ro-
tates weekly and often features Icelandic
staples such as boiled haddock with po-
tatoes and plokkfiskur (“fish stew”) with
rye bread. You’d be hard-pressed to find
similar meals elsewhere in Reykjavík for
less than 1,000 ISK. In addition, you can
typically get a fairly hearty kjötsúpa (Ice-
landic “meat soup”) for less than 500 ISK,
regardless of the hour.
2013: ‘Sub of the month’ at Subway
2012: Íslenski barinn
2011: Noodle Station
2010: ‘Sub of the month’ at Subway
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20
The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 10 — 2014 Best Of Reykjavík!