Reykjavík Grapevine - 11.11.2016, Qupperneq 55

55The Reykjavík GrapevineIssue 17 — 2016 Best Of
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Icelanders have a bland palate.
They share their Celtic neigh-
bours in Ireland’s culinary tradi-
tion of boiling everything. The
traditional flavour notes in Ice-
land consist of bitter, sour, salted
and smoked. The reason for this
was isolation, lack of trade, and
an abundance of sheep shit and
rotten milk—or maybe flavour
became redundant with everyone
insufflating large amounts of
dry, old tobacco (if you get offered
some here, don’t do it. The black
ooze draining from your sinuses
in the shower will terrify you the
next morning).
With the increase of trade, the
first real addition to the Icelandic
palate was sweet things. To this
day, the dominant characteris-
tic of anything from mustard to
pickles tends to be sweetness.
Eventually, with more Iceland-
ers travelling and returning with
tales of this magical sensation
called “flavour,” the demand for a
larger culinary spectrum grew.
Which brings us to today.
Where can you, traveller or local,
get a restorative and spicy meal in
this one-street town?
By far the most impressive and
flavourful restaurant in Reykjavík
is Austur-India Felagið (or “The
East India Company”). The own-
ers have been showing and guid-
ing Icelanders, and now tourists,
through the complex and spicy
world of authentic Indian cuisine
since 1994. Many places in Iceland
start responding to complaints
and criticism by bending to the
Icelandic palate and “Icelandify-
ing” their menu. Austur-India
Felagið stood their ground and
educated rather than placated. By
doing so, they won the admiration
and love of an entire population.
It’s a great sit-down dinner after
a particularly cold or windy day.
Another Reykjavík staple is
Noodle Station. Its steamed win-
dows and billowing clouds of co-
riander scent are one of the perks
of a dark and blustery winter here.
It’s not inherently spicy, but you
can ask for extra spice or add your
own flaky chili sauce until your
nose runs, your tongue throbs
and your gums howl. Its bar-style
stool seating and cheaper prices
(for Reykjavík) attract prudent
solo travellers.
If you’re looking for some-
thing quick and portable, the
spiciest option is Ali Baba. Now
before some of you locals or fre-
quent visitors send me an angry
email—feel free, by the way—you
could also go next door to Mandi.
The premise of this little piece,
though, is “Best Places For A Spicy
Meal,” and Ali Baba has hotter,
more intense chili sauce on their
shawarma (when you request it).
I will concede, happily, that Man-
di has better falafel, which can
be made spicy, and placate (yes,
twice in one article!) your hunger
and murder-aversion simultane-
ously.
Maybe you want to enjoy the
sun and have a little spicy kick on
the side. Tacobarinn is a beauti-
ful venue, a glass atrium split into
two levels with plants and large
table seating. They have a non-
traditional Mexican menu that is
constantly changing, sometimes
for better and sometimes for
worse, but there is always some-
thing for everyone, both vegan
and carnivore. Their black bean
soup and chili sin (without) carne
is always good.
Now, for you heat junkies, the
hottest place in town is Ban Thai.
This place has been a consistent
favourite of locals and the Grape-
vine for years. It’s open for dinner,
starting at 18:00, but also has an
affiliated take-away place called
Yummi Yummi. Thailand may be
thousands of kilometres away, but
these places can, if you close your
eyes, whisk you from the North
Atlantic to Southeast Asia in a
couple of mouthfuls.
SPICY MEALS
Colours Of The World:
Spice Up Your Life
Words YORK UNDERWOOD
Photo ART BICNICK
Hverfisgata 12 · 101 Reykjavík
Tel. +354 552 15 22 · www.dillrestaurant.is
Lífið er saltfiskur
#109 Dill is a Nordic restaurant with its
focus on Iceland, the pure nature and
all the good things coming from it.

It does not matter if it’s the
ingredients or the old traditions, we
try to hold firmly on to both.
There are not many things that make
us happier than giving life to old
traditions and forgotten ingredients
with modern technique and our creative
mind as a weapon.
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