Isn’t it all about the food?  Well, maybe for some and others not so much.  Food definitely enhances my travel experience and this was no exception.  Even though my ‘foodie’ husband was not with me, he must be rubbing off.  Here’s a few highlights of our favorites from this trip.

A top-rated restaurant was Sudar Vik, described as restaurant, café and bar, with European cuisine.

After our zipline adventure this place was recommended for dinner and it was a winner.  It had a high rating on Trip-Advisor and we agreed.  We started with a delicious cream of asparagus soup, which in hindsight was really all I needed.  It was a bowl of soup, not a cup.  We added the bread service with butter and a tomato tapenade – not needed.  I added smoked salmon while Adrienne had arctic char finished with a dill sauce.

What took the meal over the top was the skyr cheesecake topped with berries and nut crumbles.  If you’re not familiar with skyr, its Iceland’s version of yogurt. The desert was so good, it gets a solo picture.  We shared this treat with coffee to finish our night.

Another top pick in Vik was Smidjan Brugghus.

A brewpub that opened April 2018, featuring burgers, BBQ ribs and hot wings.  Their website doesn’t talk about their pulled pork sandwich, but it was the bomb (along with their unique French fries)!  We had it our first night in Vik and went back our last night in Vik.  Yes, it was that good.  Later we talked  it was the only place that we saw pork offered on a menu while in Iceland.

We also tasted some of their brews as they have 10 Icelandic brews on top along with offering 40 craft beers from around the world.  Adrienne favored the Skyr Sour and myself their holiday craft beer – Cho Ho-Ho.

They had a dessert offering which didn’t sound like much on their chalkboard menu, but OMG (!)  it was excellent.

Something we learned quickly, very, very, very few places have offerings for breakfast and only in a few hotels which are pretty sparse in this region.  Trip Advisor listed Vikurskali as a good place for breakfast and that was our destination.

That is until we followed google maps, discovered it was a grill in a gas station and their website was not up-to-date for the winter.  They opened later than indicated (lunch not breakfast).  😦  For the next several days my breakfast  turned into a typical ‘french’ breakfast with coffee and a croissant.  I also included a shot of their pastries – self-serve.

The previous post talked about the glaciel lagoon and diamond beach and  I referenced it was a long drive.  That translates into minimal dining options.  Another gas station was recommended on trip advisor and for basically being our only choice, it was decent.  Adrienne got a lamb burger while I had a hamburger.  It was quite the spot (being the only around for miles………….).  When we left most of the tables were filled and a bus had stopped and there was a line to place their orders.

Driving back to Reykjavik late in the week, Adrienne found this brewery and wood-fired pizzeria.  Google maps were set.  Olverk turned into a great find!  Yep, at this low latitude, it was raining, but that definitely changed when we drove over the mountain pass – just saying.

Opening in 2017, their in-house brewing is powered by geothermal energy.  The owners passion is premium wood-fired pizza and fine Icelandic craft beer.  This is a local family business with the owners growing up in the town of Hveragerdi (it’s location).  All I can tell you is the pretzel & cheese and pizza were awesome.  It was the only place during my two Iceland trips that I bought an Icelandic t-shirt (and was wearing it when I finished this post!).

Once back in Reykjavik, we revisited the Public House Gastro Pub.  We had two repeats, but added a few more selections:  Wagyu dumplings and fried duck breast (clear winners).

We had to taste one of their desserts and settled on the passion fruit cheese cake.  It was excellent.  The waitress could not tell us what the fruit ‘garnish’ was but I tried it and it was sweet, but couldn’t define its origin – an (unsolved) mystery.

Our last night in town was a repeat from my visit in May:  Bryggjan Brugghus.

It was an easy walk from our Airbnb towards the harbor.  They were the first independent microbrewery in Iceland.  Their restaurant is retro, mixed with historical things from the Icelandic fisherman culture.  I also found out their building has a interesting history beginning as a fish processing & shipping company, then a freezer plant and a canning plant before becoming a microbrewery& restaurant.

Our meal started with more octopus, but this was my least favorite version on the trip.  I got the fish & chips while Adrienne ordered her last chance for a local favorite, arctic char.  You can hardly see it under all of the greens, but she was hankering for some veggies – she got them.

  

My previous visit we met a bartender from Alabama and he was still there.  We talked and got a photo as we were leaving.  He was a character and a real charmer.  🙂

We had an amazing last (full) day in Iceland and I’m saving those details for the next post.  It was an ‘interesting’ drive, an ‘interesting’ experience and an ‘interesting’ meal.

Ginny