Fine dining in Reykjavik

I can now add visiting the most southerly capital city in the world (Wellington in New Zealand), and the most northerly to my list of experiences, because Reykjavik lays claim to the latter title. The bus from Keflavik airport dropped us off at our apartment - located just 15 minutes walk from the city centre - although in truth Reykjavik feels less like a city and more like a small harbour town. It was late afternoon and we were hungry so it was time to seek out one of the finest dining experiences on offer in the northern hemisphere.

Wellington offered some good restaurants - but it lacked a world famous hot dog stall. Tucked in a corner, near the harbour in central Reykjavik, is Baejarins Betzu Pylsu, a tiny stall that's been going since 1938, selling internationally renowned hot hogs. The former US President Bill Clinton dined here and its been visited by many stars including the heavy metal band Metallica. This was where I decided we should head to after arriving in Reykjavik after a trouble free flight from Manchester and bus transfer from the airport. I'm not sure Mrs B was too enamoured with my proposed 'fine dining' choice but one bite into her first hot dog, complete with crispy onions, tomato sauce and a lemon mayonnaise seemed to change her mind. With views of mountains across the harbour , still with snow patches, it made for a fantastic introduction to Reykjavik... and the hot dogs were tremendous.

Hot dog heaven!

In many ways this first taste of Reykjavik epitomised the quirky feel of the place. Modern contemporary architecture mingle with some traditional Scandinavian to convey a sense of a youthful arty city, confident about its identity and proud of its culture . There were striking similarities in this respect to Wellington in New Zealand and this impression was reinforced by the abundance of street art in evidence.

We only had a day to explore Reykjavik, so next morning despite persistent rain we headed out aiming for Hallgrímskirkja, Iceland's largest church and tallest building. Its a modern, striking, concrete building, completed in the 1970's that has columns that echo the basalt formations to be found across Iceland. 

View of Hallgrímskirkja

Sadly we couldn't go in to look around - there was a funeral taking place and the church was closed to visitors for the morning. I was disappointed that it appeared to be a traditional church funeral too, not a traditional viking one! 



We wandered through Reykjavik exploring the streets, shops and public art - admiring the viking boat sculpture called the 'Sun Voyager' on the waterside before arriving at Harpa, Reykjavik's version of the Sydney Opera House.

Harpa is a striking modern glass and steel concert hall overlooking the harbour. The colour scheme perfectly matched the Icelandic weather but inside the vast glass windows provided wonderful views of the harbour and distant mountains.

Harpa - in the rain

One of the characteristics of Reykjavik is a vibrant coffee and cafe bar culture. The main street is peppered with individual bars and coffee shops all different in character and appearance. We took refuge from the rain in 'Laundromat' a book filled cafe bar - a warm and welcome refuge from the weather.

After drying off we headed out towards the old harbour area - pleasant enough but mainly filled with companies offering whale watching tours. Mrs B was feeling peckish after all our walking and we'd spotted 'Icelandic Fish and Chips' near the harbour so decided on stopping for lunch. It was clearly a popular choice with tourists and locals alike and we both ordered 'battered cod' and chips - but with a twist. The batter was a deliciously light, made from spelt and the 'chips' were salt and herb coated oven baked potatoes. The cod was fresh and superb, up there amongst the best I've ever tasted and complimented by a refreshing light Icelandic beer.

Suitably fortified we carried on exploring on foot, passing the modern (and very ugly) City Hall and the 'Pond' an ornamental lake (by contrast very beautiful) before heading back uphill towards Hallgrímskirkja. An unplanned diversion to a sculpture garden containing some striking works by a notable Icelandic artist, Einar Jonsson, delayed our arrival back at the concrete church. By now the rain had disappeared, the funeral had finished and we were able to go inside. We bought tickets to take the elevator to the top of the tower - a bit of a queue as it only took 6 at a time, to get a fresh perspective on Iceland's capital city. 

Reykjavik from above

The late afternoon views from the tower were excellent. The inside of the church itself was light and airy but quite austere. An organist was giving it 'full throttle' filling the space with fabulous sound. It made for a good end to our meanders through this interesting city. After clocking up over 7 miles of walking we headed back to our apartment for food and sleep - although as it was midsummer, darkness didn't fall. It was still light at midnight. This would take some getting used to!

The next morning we'd embark on the next stage of our adventure. I'd booked a hire car and we were off to stay in a cabin in the 'Golden Circle' for a couple of nights, away from the bustle of city life. If the guidebooks were to be believed we are in for some spectacular views of the natural world and plenty of hot and cold water!