Reykjavík Grapevine - Dec 2023, Page 35

35 Food
TÓST FOR
BREAKFAST
Buy a bottle
of wine and get
two courses
for free!
BREAKFAST FROM 08-12
TÓST
By Vínstúkan
HAPPY HOUR
17:00 - 19:00
by night
prompting repeat orders through
the evening. It is also where Fanney
Dóra, when she was the head chef,
debuted her smoked carrot dish,
silken ribbons of carrots cured in
soy and söl, at once smoky, salty and
reminiscent of smoked fish, prompt-
ing fall-short copycats across town.
OF SESAME OIL COCKTAILS
AND SHRIMP HEADS
Skál! has always redefined trends.
Before anyone had heard about
natural wines, barring the handful
of Copenhagen transplants (who’d
proudly point out the lack of avail-
ability), Skál! introduced us to that
zippy, bubbly, sometimes fickle
world. They experimented with and
executed a cocktail with soy and
sesame oil (a damn good one at
that!) before craft cocktails became
commonplace. Small plates found
new meaning and expression here,
then with their cauliflower a la buf-
falo wings, with the nicest pickled
celery, and now with their deep-fried
spot prawn heads that are a crack-
ling delight of texture and heady
flavours, one whose return I fervently
await.
It has been heartening to see a
dedicated test kitchen at Skál! The
kitchen regularly posts its exploits
on Instagram, prompting loyal diners
to grab a bite of whatever it is the
kitchen is working out. Quite popular
in Europe, but rarely seen on men-
us here, a dish of retired dairy cow
was on a recent lunch menu, which
I regretfully missed. The skirt steak
(3550 ISK), despite its popularity,
has never been my favourite; the
meat is too often too stringy and re-
mains nondescript despite the tasty
accompaniments.
The lamb (2950 ISK) however,
consistently delivers big flavours
on what otherwise looks like a very
simple composition: here is a pink
roundel with a thin black ring around
(medium rare cooked lamb fillet
dusted in leek ash), one pristine-
ly creamy quenelle of sunchokes
spaced slightly apart from its darker
black garlic counterpart, the respite
of green in the pureed parsley. It is
a beautifully composed dish both
on the plate and the palate, proving
once again that small plates aren’t
simply code for lazy tapa portions.
BEYOND SEASONAL SUS-
TAINABILITY
Buying local (veljum íslenskt) has
been championed for so long in
Iceland that it is easy to forget that
quality often doesn’t configure in
that equation. Restaurants, however,
have long been the silent champi-
ons of local, seasonal, high quality
produce one doesn’t always see
on store shelves. Skál! has been
persistent in this regard. Be it the
goat meat “shepherd’s pie,” foraged
pineapple weed and angelica, or the
hand-dived scallops, dining here
has that rooted-in-Iceland feeling
to it. The menu rotates often and re-
flects the seasons in a thought-pro-
voking fashion, moving beyond fads.
Take those aforementioned scallops
for instance. Around their debut they
used to be Faroese, with little squirts
of rhubarb studded through. Then
Thomas’ duet with the Westfjörd
scallops, with slices of the meat,
layered between paper thin discs
of turnip, and a milky cucumber
sauce, served alongside an open
toast of smoked scallop roe is now
in its most pristine avatar — served
ice-cold, in the shell, with a tingling-
ly refreshing red currant granita and
hazelnut oil (2750 ISK). The horse-
radish provides the kick necessary
to jolt through the creamy bites and
all the temperatures and textures
elevate it to a memorable spoonful.
This dedication to work and rework
ingredients and dishes into versions
that keep getting better when you
thought they simply were perfect as
is, is really the reason many contin-
ue to return to Skál!
Vegetarians and vegans need not
fret. Sure the beet dish has been
struck off this new menu (gasp and
horror!), but I admire that Thomas
has eased us into the transition with
a smoky, charred zucchini (2150 ISK)
that really is a delight.
The beverage flight is as dedicat-
ed to its craft as the food. Natural
wines are plentiful by the glass,
and chances are they will have your
favourite open by the bottle, like the
very affordable and pleasing Succes
cuca de llum. Mæja Sif Danielsdót-
tir will happily walk you through this
exciting landscape if you are a new-
comer. I recently had a glass of ex-
pressive zippy, floral leaning Gruner
Veltliner from Claus Presinger that
made for a great night-cap.
Turning foraging for the masses
into a whole new experience are
the cocktails and drinks. Urban
and rural lines blur with ingredi-
ents like pineapple weed, angelica
and lovage central to the libations.
Helmed by acclaimed bartender
Keli Ingi, whose work I have been
earnestly following since his Nos-
tra days. Here he marries the Skál!
principle of local with his chef-like
approach to ingredients. He also
mixes mocktails with as much
care and complexity as he does
his cocktails. Instead of too-sweet
ginger beer tumblers, expect herby,
bitter, fruity and smoky. The three
citrus gimlet (2950 ISK) is seemingly
simple but, like many of his drinks,
hides a depth of technique and time
working with ingredients. The sea-
sonal lemonades are homages to
summers past with rhubarb beating
others in popularity.
What Skál! does with aplomb is de-
liver on that sweet spot of creative
fine dining that doesn’t break the
bank. It doesn’t preach its princi-
ples about food; instead, it is a lively,
joyous celebration of flavour. Their
continued ambition and dedication
to technique and quality puts Skál!
notches above stand-alone restau-
rants professing to do the same, but
delivering none of the chutzpah or
originality seen here. Whether it is
for a simple snack with wine, an inti-
mate dinner with a friend, or a ram-
bunctious group seeking something
electric, Skál! has you covered.
Restaurant
Review Sup, Sip and Skál!
From foraged craft cocktails to shrimp heads, this Icelandic gastro-pub exemplifies joy in brevity
Skál! has always redefined
trends. Before anyone had
heard about natural wines,
Skál! introduced us to that zip-
py, bubbly, sometimes fickle
world.