Random Notes -- The Icelandic Diet

Generally, we were able to eat fairly well while we were in Iceland, although meals out tended to be a relatively pricey option. 


It was difficult to find restaurant meals that didn't set us back $70 or $80 or more, even without the addition of beer or wine or any other "extras". The most economical places tended to be vegetarian places (and, as it turned out, they also featured some of the best food). Beyond that, there were ubiquitous fast-food places, with pizza at the top of this section of the food chain and descending rapidly into places like Taco Bell or KFC (to their credit, though, they seemed to have been able to prevent McDonald's from gaining a foothold).


Besides fish, lamb was the big item on the Icelandic menu. Comfort food for them was a hearty soup made with lamb that was quite delicious. A hamburger was also a fairly common item on the menu. Here's a shot of burger and fries that we had at one restaurant, just like home except that 1) it's an open-face sandwich, 2) the meat is lamb shank and 3) the fries are root vegetables. It was excellent! 

As far as fish restaurants go, there were a number of higher-end restaurants available, but we were told we should pay a visit to the Saegreifinn ("Sea Baron"). A variety of fishes (and minke whale as well) is available as kebabs -- you indicate what you want from a cooler and they grill it on the spot. Drinks are available in another cooler and you sit at roughly hewn benches, sitting on barrels. It was simple to extreme and was worth the visit.

Inside of the Sea Baron

Seating fit for a Sea Baron

One thing we quickly got used to was the Icelandic propensity for sugary drinks and desserts. 


Iceland is apparently the world's largest per-capita consumer of Coca-Cola. Grocery stores devoted lots of shelf space to soft drinks and a plethora of chocolate bars and other candies.

In restaurants, desserts usually featured creamy cakes accessorized with mounds of whipped cream and chocolate sauce. We learned very quickly to add a request to pass on the cream and sauce. That way, madness and Type 2 diabetes lay. 


On the plus side, there were a number of excellent coffee places near the hotel. Prices were slightly higher than Toronto and the quality was consistently good. Coffee would be a fairly expensive habit in Reykjavik, though. I saw ground coffee in one shop for 1500 krona for 250g, or about $30 a pound.