Reykjavík Grapevine - 10.11.2017, Page 45

We’re Gonna Need A
Bigger Boat
Messinn, a fish-restaurant favourite, has
opened a second location by the harbour

Words: Björn Teitsson Photo: Art Bicnick
Messinn Granda
Daily fish buffet
Lunch from 11:30 AM-2 PM, 2,300 ISK
Dinner from 6-10 PM, 4,950 ISK
Most informal communication
between Icelandic locals and visi-
tors of this volcanic island have for
decades revolved around the ques-
tion “How do you like
Iceland?” In recent
years, however, visi-
tors of this country
have been ta k ing
the initiative, asking
much better suited
questions. Such as:
“ W here shou ld I
go out to dinner?”
For the past year
or so, that question
has been frequently
answered with the magic word:
“Messinn.” The restaurant’s name
is derived from the term “mess
deck,” which, in Icelandic, refers
to where the chef onboard a fish-
ing vessel cooks. The menu itself
is heavily influenced by the leg-
endary Ísafjörður fish restaurant
Tjöruhúsið. Its signature dishes
are actually skillets—fillets of cod,
wolffish, salmon or even fish stews
are served in the same pan they
are cooked in, seasoned and but-
tered to perfection, with new pota-
toes and fresh veggies. The works!
Real fish dreams
Jón Mý rda l is the ow ner of
Messinn. “It ’s no
secret that the ba-
sic idea i s heav-
i ly in f luenced by
Tjöruhúsið, where I
used to work during
the summers as a
young man,” Jón ac-
knowledges. He was
until very recently
the owner of Húrra
and Bravó, two very
p o p u l a r b a r s i n
Reykjavík. Now, Messinn has
his full attention, not least af-
ter opening a second location
in the Reykjavík harbour area.
“Even when I started Bravó five
years ago, my dream was always
to open up a fish restaurant,”
says Jón. “The idea was there,
but Bravó’s location, wasn’t ideal.
When I found the place in Lækjar-
gata I saw I could finally realise
this dream of mine, and since we
opened it has been a real success.”
Ever-growing clientele
Various Google and TripAdvi-
sor reviews support Jón’s words,
and Messinn’s original location
on Lækjargata has been more
or less booked out since its in-
ception. The 55-seat restaurant
was, therefore, perhaps too small
for the ever growing clientele.
“The problem was really that
taking large groups was begin-
ning to be too much of a challenge,”
Jón explains. “As soon as a group
of 10-15 would enter, the staff was
under immense pressure. Orders
slowed down, which wasn’t really
fair to the other customers. That
was why I jumped on the chance to
open up the second location. It has
a terrific view of the harbour, and it
is extremely spacious. Now we can
welcome groups of any size without
any added pressure to the kitchen.”
The second location offers a buf-
fet of fish skillets, rather than serv-
ing them individually to each table.
But are the skillets any different
from the original Messinn? “We do
offer all of our classics,” says Jón.
“But the positive thing is that, when
catering a buffet, it presents an op-
portunity for some experimenta-
tion. We can always add new dishes
to the table and just see how our
guests like them. If it’s a success,
then who knows? There could be
an emerging star on our menu.”
1 0 1 Ó Ð I N S T O R G R E Y K J A V Í K Í S L A N D S N A P S B I S T R O . I S
s n a p s b i s t r o @ s n a p s b i s t r o . i s + 3 5 4 5 1 1 6 6 7 7
F R E N C H O N I O N S O U P
I c e l a n d i c Í s b ú i c h e e s e , c r o û t o n s
2 . 3 0 0 . k r
M O U L E S M A R I N I È R E S
s t e a m e d m u s s e l s f r o m B r e i ð a f j ö r ð u r
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F I S H O F T H E D A Y
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E s t . 2 0 1 2R e y k j a v i k
45The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 20 — 2017
gpv.is/food
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Jón Mýrdal, the owner of Messinn: born for the job
“Even when I
started Bravó
five years ago,
my dream
was always to
open up a fish
restaurant.”