Reykjavík Grapevine - jan. 2023, Blaðsíða 25

Reykjavík Grapevine - jan. 2023, Blaðsíða 25
— that’s one mathöll for every 35,555 Icelanders! Video stores met their demise pretty swiftly. Mathölls aren’t tracing a different trajectory either — Grandi has struggled but sluggishly chugs on thanks to the mercy of its inves- tors, as does Höfði. Vera Groska, not even a year old, consistently smells of a mystery spice and has none of the chutzpah of its interior design in its food offerings. Barring the novelty of the initial days of opening, every mathöll is a jigsaw puzzle of the usual suspects — both in ownership and restaurant choices. A smashed burger- pizza-some token Asian joint with an emphasis on deep fried food seems to be the magic mantra. And if you are worried that the cracks are showing, there is always mayo — so much mayo — to the rescue. Diners are repeatedly subjected to cut from the same cloth monotonicity — if they haven’t fled already thanks to beepers that vibrate on every tabletop. It's a free for all buffet of mediocrity marketed as a unique dining experi- ence, when in fact it is a cost cutting business model at the expense of qual- ity. One that poor planning by local authorities exacerbates (there are three food halls in a 600m radius). “In my mind, there is a lack of understanding and support from the government, investors in the business and often, restaurant owners them- selves,” chef Ólafur Águstsson is frank on the subject. “It adds to the lack of understanding of the opportunities that come with extremely high quality and diversity in the restaurant world,” he adds, thoroughly capturing the despair of what can only be described as mathöll madness. In 2023 please spare us more mind- less food halls. Let's work on a food market in one of the already existing ones. Grandi, I reckon, is ready for such a fitting overhaul. MS and its reign of mediocrity MS (Iceland’s dairy organisation) continues to contribute to the collec- tive dumbing down of culinary appre- ciation in the country by introducing brand new flavour fails practically every month. Cream cheese spread, that beloved lazy sauce shortcut is now available in a ‘camembert’ flavour, you know, for those I-don’t-want-camem- bert-just-its-flavour moments that so often confronts us. There is also a brand new ‘Italian’ flavour. To go with your ‘Mexican’ cheese. When they drop an Indian flavour, we riot. MS, you’ve literally got the country by its udders, don’t we deserve better? Romanticising colonialism The Gróðurhús Mathöll (yes, another one) and hotel combo in Hveragerði, backed by Kormakur og Skjaldur, is bookended by Sambó on shelves (amidst other curated gourmet good- ies, this addition stands out), and ‘Colonial Bar’ on the other; the other- wise beautiful space is marred by the insensitivity on display. While easy to dismiss this as lazy copywriting or lack thereof, the impact of language and how we engage with food is deeply intertwined. As policy analyst and inclusion advocate Achola Otiene stirringly asks, ‘’Can you really say you’re offering ‘Colonial Classics’ when there is no genocide, enslave- ment or plundering on the list?’’ Just a few years ago, it took Twitter outrage for a cocktail named Apartheid to be taken down. The only indication that Nýlendubar (“colonial bar”) are aware this is problematic is the tactic they have borrowed from Sambó — changing their Instagram handle to Nýlundubar while resolutely ignor- ing requests to engage since day one of their operations. Hiding behind an Icelandic word does not legiti- mise suffering, not when the stuffed peacock tells you otherwise. Alcohol taxes In somewhat of a small win earlier in the year, ATVR had to concede to Santé and Björland in their tussle for the legitimacy of online alcohol sales. But hopes for alcohol sales reform were short lived as the State yet again raised alcohol taxes by 7,7%. This time around, even the duty free hasn’t been spared and those taxes are now raised from 10% last year to an astronomical 25% hike. Despite repeated calls for revision by the industry, the State holds to its stead- fast belligerent belief that we simply cannot be trusted with liquor. Closures Family run business Coocoo’s Nest closed its doors on NYE after having served us the country’s best sour- dough, Cali-style pizzas and the most sought after brunches, for 10 long years. Makake too, another family run venture just down the street, shuttered after only a few years of operation. With covid relief measure paybacks now kicking in (interest rates went from 1 to 9%) this first quarter will be a long-drawn turning point until the summer tourists can bail out those still left standing. Iceland, a dining destination: an overlooked opportunity Research shows that 95% of global trav- ellers today consider themselves ‘food travellers,’ with 70% of them picking a destination based on food and drink choices. Interestingly, 59% believe that food choices are more important now than they were five years ago. The 2022 report by the Nordic Ministers under Icelandic presidency, ‘Nordic Food in Future Tourism,’ high- lights the intersection of restaurants, food producers, farmers and animal husbandry as essential to attaining its common goal of being an attractive destination where “eating and travel- ling in harmony with nature and local culture is a desirable lifestyle.” The same report outlines the chal- lenges they studied over a three-year period: an absence of strategic plan- ning for the role of food in tourism and glaringly limited food tourism services when compared to our Nordic neighbours. The report called out the government’s lack of flexibility and its reluctance to adapt to changing expec- tations of the industry. Simplifying licence applications for small produc- ers, making it easier for small boat fishermen to directly sell their catch to local communities, restaurants and shops would vastly change the culinary landscape for everyone. As chef Gísli Matthías puts it, “fish and lamb aren’t commodities, they are our culture.” Undeterred by shackling restric- tions the Icelandic restaurant industry is a tale of making the most out of very little. An impressive 100 billion ISK industry, it is also a sector riddled with labour challenges. For one, the indus- try is not recognised as a standalone player but is vaguely splintered across tourism and food production without a seat at the table to negotiate ably. When governments are invested, the results speak for themselves. In 2019, the Danish government launched a public-private partnership, Gastro 2025, an initiative to attract gastro- nomic tourists to raise the country’s status as a destination. At its launch, Denmark had 35 Michelin stars over 28 restaurants. In 2022, the country boasted 39 stars for 28 restaurants. Iceland, by comparison, has the least culinary recognition amongst Nordic countries. Five places are recom- mended here, compared to 48 in Norway, 73 in Sweden and 100 places in Denmark. And all these efforts don’t just cater to hungry, well heeled tour- ists. Planned frameworks like these improve the standard of life for local communities and businesses. The impact of lack of policies has been felt for a while in the form of shortened operating hours, dipping customer service, lack of competitive quality and variety and, more seriously, family run businesses being edged out by bottomline focussed investors. Food isn't just a physical necessity, it is also a psychological one. “Sure tourists may come here for the water- falls and the horses, but it is that hot chocolate later, that bowl of kjötsúpa after that they remember too,” says Erna Petúrsdóttir of Makake. “People may come for the scenery, but on each day of those visits, it is the restaurants big and small that make for memories.” A vibrant nation is not a happen- stance. Iceland holds promise as an attractive culinary destination but without sustained efforts to nurture our food culture, it may as well remain a pipedream. 25The Reykjavík Grapevine Issue 1— 2023 H ve rfisgata 12 Happy hour / 4–7pm Beer / Wine / Cocktails RÖNTGEN “There is also a brand new ‘Italian’ flavour. To go with your ‘Mexican’ cheese. When they drop an Indian flavour, we riot.”

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