Reykjavík Grapevine - jan. 2019, Side 26

BEST OF REYKJAVÍK
Best People-
Watching Spot
Hlemmur Mathöll
Laugavegur 107
Reykjavík’s premier food hall,
located in the old Hlemmur
bus station, is the perfect spot
to grab a bite to eat and watch
the world go by. The various food
stands have a lively and bustling
seating area where people park
up for lunches, dinners, dates
and drinks. “It has a fast-moving
pop-in-pop-out nature,” said the
panel. “There are hotels close by,
so there are tourists, but Iceland-
ers go there too, and it’s also a
bus interchange. And it’s still not
completely gentrified. You can
get a drink and see an absolutely
diverse mixture of people pass-
ing by.”
Runners-up:

Lækjartorg
Lækjartorg
This city-centre square is busy
by day, and crazy by night. “If
you want to see the real Iceland,
come from 5am-6am any Satur-
day to see a stumbling guy trying
to chat up girls whilst hailing a
cab back to Kópavogur and in-
haling a lobster roll. It’s a vortex
of Icelandic life any time of the
day or night.”
Kolaportið
Tryggvagata 19
Iceland’s largest flea market is
the perfect place to pick up a bar-
gain—or just to watch the world
go by. “You’ll see old fishermen
selling their catch, Icelanders,
students, celebrities, locals and
tourists all shopping there,” said
the panel. “You get a cross-sec-
tion of Iceland that you don’t find
anywhere else.”
Mhmmm...Carbs
Keep your diet to yourself, Becky
Words: Hannah Jane Cohen Photo: Art Bicnick
While we’re all about the seven
course tasting menu at Dill,
sometimes you just want to stuff
carbohydrates in your mouth till
you pass out. Enter comfort food,
something that everyone loves,
even if they pretend all they eat is
kale and sunshine. So appease your
hangover, get over your ex, and ruin
your diet at these Reykjavík comfort
food classics.
Prikið
Bankastræti 12
Prikið serves up a whammy in the
category of simple, warm, and calori-
cally questionable foods. Sit down
and pick between the red and blue
pill, or rather, brunch or a burger. If
pancakes get you all giggly, Prikið
has all the breakfast hall of famers.
Pancakes, sausage, eggs, you name
it. That said, the French Connection is
a true gem. It’s bacon, ham, cheese,
pancakes and syrup in-between two
slices of french toast. Yes, that’s a real
meal. For lunch—the Snoop Dogg is
a true crowd pleaser, as it’s basically
a combination of everything good:
pepper cheese, bacon, bernaise and
sweet potato fries. They also have
milkshakes. Lord, help us.
Icelandic Street Food
Laekjargata 8
For soup to really fit the bill of com-
fort food, it has to be substantial—
not any of that dinky ginger aspara-
gus nonsense. Reykjavík’s newest
low-key dive, Icelandic Street Food,
offers three dishes: lamb soup,
shellfish soup, and a stew called
fisherman’s favourite. All three can
be ordered in bread bowls and have
the perfect protein to broth ratio
for them to be not only fulfilling, but
toasty and relaxing. They also have
free desserts and coffee to munch
on after (or before) your meal. Di-
rectly next to the restaurant is local
hot-spot Secret Cellar, which allows
you to BYOS (bring your own soup),
so you can enjoy some comedy
while you slurp. There’s also free
refills. We repeat: FREE REFILLS!
Veganæs
Tryggvagata 22
The recently opened Veganæs—in
the Gaukurinn music venue—bills
itself as a vegan comfort food
restaurant. While that’s true, a more
accurate description would be that
it’s a comfort food restaurant that
just happens to be vegan. The vegan
fish dish—called fish-ish—tastes
just like properly fantastic fish, and
throw it on a burger and you’ve got
the epitome of what a messy, yum-
my, finger-licking fish burger should
be. The Burnt sandwich—basically a
jalapeno grilled ‘cheese’—will give
you probably the most squirm-
worthy cheesegasm ever. Make sure
to grab a booth. You’ll need time to
digest in your post-eating glow.
Eldsmiðjan
Laugavegur 81 & Bragagata 28
You can’t talk about comfort food
without mentioning the king of the
genre: The bold. The beautiful. The
pizza. While Reykjavík has a tonne of
options, from the gourmet pies of
Hverfisgata 12 to good ole’ Dominos
delivery, Eldsmiðjan is without a
doubt your go-to for a simple greasy
slice that’s not too complicated
nor too simple. Their basic cheese
slices are juicy and filling, but throw
some pepperoni on there and you’ve
got an afternoon worthy of your
future heart-attack. While they’ve
got a casual, cosy ambiance in their
dining rooms, if you prefer to gorge
yourself while watching ‘Sex In The
City,’ they have a separate entrance
for take-away orders.
Ramen Momo
Tryggvagata 16
This charming hole-in-the-wall Tibet-
an and Japanese fusion spot is the
best place to warm your soul with
carbohydrates in the form of long
strings—everybody say (r)Amen!
The restaurant’s portions are hearty,
with more noodles than you can
munch on and delicious poached
eggs and seaweed to match. It’s the
perfect mix of a culinary experi-
ence and a comfortable, substantial
meal. It’s also the best choice of
comfort food for those people who
hate cheese, or as we call them,
Satanists.
26The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 01— 2019
Hypnotic comfort food is the next wave
Best of Reykjavík
Open 11:30-22:00
saegreif inn. is
Geirsgata 8 • 101 Reykjavík • Tel. 553 1500 • seabaron8@gmail.com
An absolute
must-try!
Saegreifinn restaurant (Sea Baron) is like none other
in Iceland; a world famous lobster soup and a diverse
fish selection.