Reykjavík Grapevine - feb. 2022, Blaðsíða 28

NATIONAL MUSEUM
OF ICELAND
Opening Hours
Daily 10–17
Closed on
Mondays 16/9–30/4
The National Museum of Iceland
Su!urgata 41, 101 Reykjavík
www.nationalmuseum.is
+354 530 2200
@icelandnationalmuseum
@thjodminjasafn
WELCOME
TO THE
NATIONAL
MUSEUM
OF ICELAND
Gunnar Karl Gíslason knows a thing
or two about running restaurants
amidst upheavals. Chef-owner of
Iceland’s only Michelin-starred
restaurant Dill, the force behind
New York’s now-closed Agern,
which garnered a coveted three-star
rating by New York Times, and the
author of “North: The New Northern
Cuisine of Iceland”, Gunnar has lived
many lives by restaurant standards
and continues to forge paths anew.
I spoke to Gunnar in November
2019 as he was reopening Dill or Dill
3.0 as I called it then. He’d moved
back to Reykjavik after a successful
stint in New York, Dill had moved
locations, revamped its menu and
wine programme — no traditional
wine pairing was in place. Little did
we know that we would be thrown
into a pandemic that would change
everything just a month later, and
which we are still reeling from.
I’m not freaking out,
but…
One wouldn’t guess what a rough
ride the pandemic has charted for
the restaurant industry going by
Gunnar’s sunny disposition. The
man always seems cheerful and
his soft-spoken demeanour belies
his stature both physically and
professionally. It’s late December
when we meet for a drink and he
smiles, “It seems like tourists are
still coming, our bookings for Janu-
ary are good, so I am not freaking
out,” he confesses. “But if things
were to get worse, I’d freak out.”
That ominous parting came true a
few weeks later with Iceland rising
Omicron numbers setting new case
records almost every day. January
has felt like a whole year already and
restrictions are now being lifted and
life is resuming some normalcy.
I sat down for a long-overdue chat
with Gunnar. Dill has ridden that
pandemic wave with elan, retained
its Michelin star, the chef has been
quite the attraction at Sweden’s
Stars du Nord food festival and he
has plenty of projects, culinary and
otherwise, lined up for the year.
January was fine
While we wait for our Campari
sodas at our mutual favourite spot,
La Primavera, Gunnar muses about
In a reflective moment
In conversation
with Gunnar Karl
Pullin! back the curtain on the joys and trials of runnin! a fine din-
in! restaurant durin! the pandemic
Words: Shruthi Basappa Photos: Art Bicnick
Food
Laugavegi 28
537 99 00
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sumac. is