Iceland review - 2006, Qupperneq 77

The last time Metallica was in town, they ate at Austur Indía Fjelagid every
day. The Pixies dined here while in town. Harrison Ford told The Sunday
Times it was the best Indian food he’d ever had. And the list goes on. Word
of mouth has traveled fast about Reykjavík’s oldest Indian restaurant, from
its loyal core of regulars in the city to the international celebrities who
come to town.
It didn’t happen overnight. Chandrika Gunnarsson, who owns the
restaurant with her husband Gunnar Gunnarsson, said when she moved
to Iceland in the early 1990s, the international food scene was thin. There
were a few Thai and Chinese restaurants and one Indian restaurant that had
gone under. She couldn’t buy the spices she needed in the supermarket.
It took a year for the restaurant to get a review in the local papers, but
when they got everyone’s attention, they got it good. Not only did they
become local go-tos for all questions India, their reputation for serving up
consistently exquisite dinners stuck.
“For us it’s been more than serving food. It’s really presenting the culture
of a billion people,” says Chandrika.
Today, Austur Indía Fjelagid imports spices directly from India – including
peppers and cardamom from Chandrika’s family’s coffee plantation in
southern India – but not because they have to. As Reykjavík’s appetite for
global cuisine has been whet, Chandrika and Gunnar have remained faithful
to offering authentic and made-to-order dishes. They hire chefs directly
from India who have not been influenced by Western styles of cooking, and
carefully train their staff to walk customers through the unconventional,
creative menu. “There are no shortcuts here,” Chandrika says.
With the current minimalist aesthetic in vogue today in Reykjavík, Austur
Indía Fjelagid offers a rich sensory experience in both its food and its
environment. Everything about the place is stylish – their logo, their menu,
the carefully chosen antiques and art on display from around India.
Business became so big that Austur Indía opened a take-away
restaurant a few doors down, pulling standard favorites off the menu so
their customers could bring their food home, uncork a bottle of wine and
relax with high-quality take-away. They’re expanding to a second location
in June near Smáralind mall.
When you do treat yourself to dinner at the more seasoned menu of
Austur Indía itself, do it right. Experiment a little. Try the Kashmiri naan,
topped with sweet dried fruit. Order the tamarind and coconut basmati,
typical in southern India. And it would be a terrible, terrible shame not to
order one of Austur Indía’s tandoori meat dishes. The marinated lamb and
chicken, cooked in the kitchen’s traditional clay tandoori ovens imported
from London, are genius. The meat is so tender and flavorful it makes you
wonder how you’ve been eating meat any other way all your life.
hverfisgata 56, 101 reykjavík. +354 552 1630. www.austurindia.is
When in Reykjavik be sure to include in your schedule a visit
to Austur India Fjelagið, the norhernmost Indian restaurant in the world.
Enjoy the exotic flavours and subtle tastes of our authentic Indian
dishes which are all served at affordable prices.
„The best Indian restaurant in Europe“
Quoted by the EU Ambassador to Iceland in the LONELY PLANET
„This award-winning upmarket Indian restaurant is not only the northernmost
in the world, it is also one of the best in Europe. . . Mughalai, Tandoori, North
and South Indian dishes all feature on the menu, and the food looks, tastes and
smells very authentic indeed. Excellent value for money.“
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