Reykjavík Grapevine - 01.06.2018, Side 57

Cheers To Skál!
A vegetarian feast at Hlemmur Mathöll
Words: Björn Teitsson Photo: Art Bicnick
There are some privileges in writ-
ing about food. One of them is get-
ting assignments that you cannot
wait to complete, or at least taste
the food in question. One such job
was visiting Skál! at Hlemmur
Mathöll. A standout place for food-
ies in Reykjavík, I’ll fully admit to
being an existing fan. I was pretty
sure I was in for a treat.
Fanney Dóra, the head chef at
Skál!, along with her ambitious
crew, are plating up some of the
most interesting dishes ever seen
in Iceland. They are simple, but
complex; they offer the freshest
tastes, with deep, subtle notes.
They have a policy of using the best
mostly-local ingredients available,
while at the same time pursuing
a non-waste policy which is bril-
liantly executed. Now, to the food.
Small plates
The standouts are certainly the
dishes defined as either “smaller”
or “larger”. Now, remember, this is
a restaurant within a food hall, but
with fine dining qualities. Within
the “smaller” category is the best
dish in Reykjavík at this moment:
smoked carrots with seaweed, soy
and angelica. People go to Hlem-
mur Mathöll for the sole purpose
of ordering this dish.
The carrots are delicately
peeled and cooked in seaweed salt
to give them the perfect texture
and a note of smokiness. Served
on a grilled sourdough bread with
fermented garlic mayo and soy,
this comes highly recommended.
Priced at 1,350 ISK, it’s a steal.
Other notewor-
thy smaller courses
include gratinated
goats cheese with
delightful and salty
fennel crackers and
rhubarb jam (1,450
ISK). T he broc-
colini with sour-
dough crumbs is
a delight, coming
perfectly cooked
and seasoned. The
crumbs give the
dish a texture to
be enjoyed and re-
membered.
Deeply ambitious
The larger courses are somehow
“homely,” for the lack of a better
word. But they’re also original
and almost exotic. The sunchokes
and almond steak with a celeriac
julienne salad and fresh oranges
(2,000 ISK) is hearty and delicious.
The baked arctic char with mashed
potatoes and caper butter (2,200
ISK) is a local staple recreated in
a very original manner. It’s some-
thing for visitors to Iceland to en-
joy; like a home-cooked meal with
fine dining flourishes. My carnivo-
rous friends rave about the braised
pork cheeks with fermented chilli
and crackling (2,000 ISK). As al-
ways, simple, but deeply ambitious
and flavoursome.
A review of Skál! wouldn’t be
complete without mentioning the
terrific, attentive service from the
young staff, and, of course, Bára,
the sommelier of natural wines
who does wine pairings with out-
standing results. No fuss—just
enjoy.
Vast success
My companion and I
finished our visit on
a cold evening in May
with a taste of some
summer cock tai ls,
whereby the no-waste
policy comes into play.
Once-fresh herbs and
berries are frozen and
ground, or made into
syrups. The coriander
gimlet with touches of
fresh angelica will be a summer
hit for sure.
I n c onclu sion : H lem mu r
Mathöll is a revolution. It’s one of
the greatest success stories in the
Icelandic food scene, ever. One of
the biggest reasons for that is Fan-
ney Dóra and her team at Skál! This
food is as good as it gets, and the
prices are almost unfairly reason-
able. This is a steal. This is a treat.
Bon appétit, mahlzeit, gjörið þið
svo vel, and amen.
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
2 . 4 0 0 . k r
F I S H O F T H E D A Y
c h e f ´ s s p e c i a l
3 . 8 0 0 . k r
E s t . 2 0 1 2R e y k j a v i k
gpv.is/food
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49The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 09 — 2018
Skál! rules the street-food roost
“Hlemmur
Mathöll is is a
revolution...
it’s one of the
greatest suc-
cess stories in
the Icelandic
food scene.”
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