Icelandic Tapas

Though I might be on a short sabbatical from running, our holiday in Iceland is presenting an opportunity to blog about both the food and the sights.
We landed in Reykjavik on Friday afternoon ahead of our friend's wedding on Saturday. Once checked in we were able to meet with a few of the guys for some drinks and to sample the culinary delights. A table at Tapas Barinn was booked for later in the evening. This gave us a chance to check out some bars and the local beers.
Offerings from Viking and Thule were both reasonable. The highlight was a pint of Ulf at The Laundromat Cafe. The concensus was this beer surpassed everything that had passed before it.

The Eat

Our reservation time was soon upon us so we made the short walk to Tapas Barinn. An intimate basement restaurant, offering an extensive (though light on vegetarian options) menu. Between us we opted for The Icelandic, Hunter & Traveller set menus. I'll focus on the Hunter menu as this was my personal choice.

Lobster tails baked in garlic

Three lobster tails placed back upon their shells and delicately cooked in garlic. A perfect start to the meal.

Smoked puffin with brennivins blueberry sauce

My first time trying Puffin. The meat was quite gamey, very similar to Duck. The blueberry sauce seemed to marry it perfectly, a good combination.

Smoked Salmon with horseradish sauce

For me, this was the highlight of the meal. Regular readers will have picked up that I'm a fan of smoked salmon, normally placed on a plate of Eggs Benedict. This salmon was simply perfect. The slices were about double the thickness of regular smoked salmon, the texture soft & the taste was sublime.
Add to it a dash of horseradish, absolutely amazing.

Grilled tuna with pickled ginger and teriyaki sauce

Whenever we cook tuna at home we always tend to opt for safety first and cook it to at least medium. This dish was served up rare, with the tuna seared on each side. It tasted great and the rareness meant the texture wasn't rubbery at all. Coupled perfectly with teriyaki and ginger.

Grilled icelandic lamb Samfaina with mint sauce

Another excellent dish, cooked to perfection. Sadly I don't have many more thoughts about it as the dish was overshadowed!

Grilled king prawns with oriental sauce

Exactly what you'd hope from shellfish. A decent crunch and well seasoned.

Chocolate cake with berry compote & whipped cream. Port & coffee.

As if we needed a desert! A small but rich slice of chocolate cake that was complimented with a berry based sauce. If you we're inclined, you could also have a coffee alongside your port. I've never been a coffee drinker so opted for just the port.

The meal was exceptional. At around £50 per head for the meal and a drink each it more than justified the cost. If you find yourself in Reykjavik and want to try something special, take a look at www.tapas.is.

After settling the bill we headed back towards our hotel and to Dillons Whiskey Bar (above the Chuck Norris grill (yes really)). In this cosy scout hut like two floored bar we sampled the local vodka & local gin. Having struggled for Icelandic gin at Duty Free I was eager to try the local option. The conclusion was that the alcohol content was high! A strong Caprinha style taste, unlike most gins I've tried!