I don't think anyone should be travelling all the way across the world to Iceland to try 'fermented' sharks. And I don't think anyone should have to freeze in confusion after spotting puffin on the menu either! After all, the old joke has been that Iceland's greatest ingredient was always ‘necessity’…
We can’t blame them at all here, Icelanders didn't have the luxury of importing ingredients from around the world for most of their history. They learnt to preserve, ferment, smoke, bake and make the absolute most of whatever the land, and more importantly, the sea, gave them.
However, modern Icelandic food has come a long way from its survival-first origins. Today, the country's cuisine is one of the freshest you'll find anywhere in Europe. So, if you're here looking for some must try food in Iceland, these are the 7 dishes and experiences I'd happily recommend to anyone visiting the country for the first time!
Tomato Soup at Friðheimar
You probably don't expect one of Iceland's most famous restaurants to sit inside a working tomato greenhouse?
Yet that's what Friðheimar is. Because Iceland has such a short growing season, farmers have cleverly turned to geothermal energy to heat enormous greenhouses where tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, herbs, strawberries and leafy greens flourish all year round.
At Friðheimar, you're quite literally dining among the tomato vines themselves, with plants climbing towards the glass ceiling while staff move through the rows harvesting fresh produce. Watch out, everything on the menu will have ‘tomatoes’. Tomato beer, tomato cocktails, tomato ice cream!
But the star of the show is the unlimited tomato soup you get here with the freshly baked bread buffet. The soup is slightly sweet, wonderfully creamy and made from tomatoes that were probably growing a few metres away earlier that day, making it one of the authentic foods to try in Iceland!
Fresh Fish and Chips in Iceland?
One of the best places to experience this is Reykjavík Fish Restaurant, a relaxed counter-service eatery with nautical décor scattered across Reykjavík. But, fish and chips probably doesn't sound like the sort of meal you'd travel across the world for.
But hold up, this is not the regular fish and chips you’ll find elsewhere. The cod here is incredibly fresh, which shouldn't come as a surprise in a country surrounded by some of the richest fishing waters in the North Atlantic! And also, for the same reason, the fish stays wonderfully flaky and moist, while the batter is light, crisp and never oily, letting the quality of the seafood do all the talking. Among all the best food to eat in Iceland, this one certainly deserves its place.
Planning your first Iceland holiday? Connect with our experts and let us recommend experiences that go beyond the guidebooks.
The Humble Hot Dog
Now before you knock it off with a "it's just a hot dog," hear the Icelanders out. The country's hot dog culture is almost legendary, and while you'll find excellent renditions of it all over Reykjavík, some food carts have elevated them into something much more fascinating!
The toppings are where things become properly Icelandic. One of the most popular combinations includes salsa, melted cheese and crushed Doritos! If your idea of discovering food in Iceland involves both fine dining and traditional street food, make room for one of these.
Cinnamon Rolls in the Morning
Reykjavík's Hygge Coffee & Micro Bakery is one of those places where you can smell the butter before you've even opened the door.
It’s extra buttery, generously coated with cinnamon, soft as a feather, and perhaps most impressively, every bite has that gooey, centre-of-the-roll texture that usually disappears after the first mouthful. Pair one with a good coffee, a good corner and you've got yourself a perfectly acceptable excuse to sit still for an hour with one of Iceland's must try food!
From geothermal greenhouse lunches to Reykjavík's best bakeries, our tailor-made holidays can be customised around the experiences that interest you most.
Lobster Pizza Anyone?
The waters surrounding the island produce some of the freshest shellfish you'll ever taste, which explains why Icelanders aren't shy about putting lobster on... well, almost everything, including pizza!
Instead of the usual tomato base, many restaurants prepare it with a creamy white sauce before topping it with chunks of sweet Icelandic lobster. Not the tiny bits you're forced to hunt for either, but proper pieces in your mouth with every bite. If you're wondering what must try food in Iceland deserves a place on your list beyond the classics, this is certainly one of them.
Happy Marriage Cake, That's Really Its Name
Iceland's Hjónabandssæla, affectionately translated as Happy Marriage Cake, is definitely one to try. You'll find Happy Marriage Cake in bakeries and cafés across Iceland, , but one of the nicest places to try it is the café inside Skógar Museum, an eclectic museum that brings you an open-air historic village, a folk museum, vintage technology and even an aircraft suspended from the ceiling!
The cake itself is beautifully understated. A layer of tangy rhubarb jam sits between buttery, crumbly oat pastry, and feels homemade in the very best sense of the word, exactly the sort of dessert you'd hope to find if you’re looking for the sweeter food to try in Iceland!
A Krauma Platter, All Of Iceland in One Meal
How many times did we not want to choose just one thing from the menu? Fortunately, Krauma, a geothermal spa and restaurant near Reykholt, has already solved that problem.
Its beautifully assembled sharing platter brings together some of Iceland's finest local ingredients in one spectacular spread. Lime-marinated goat, pine-smoked goat, coriander and basil-marinated salmon, birch-smoked salmon, fresh goat cheese, cucumber, mint skyr, horseradish cream, blueberry jam, baked blue cheese finished with honey, slices of sourdough and traditional rúgbrauð, Iceland's wonderfully dense rye bread!
If you're looking for the best food to eat in Iceland, few dishes introduce the country's produce, dairy, seafood and bread quite as elegantly as this one.
Vegetarian Food in Iceland
Although traditional food in Iceland has long revolved around seafood and lamb, Reykjavík and other larger towns still give an impressive selection of plant-based dishes. Reykjavík, in particular, has incorporated plant-based dining within cafés and restaurants giving you everything from hearty soups and sourdough sandwiches to creative seasonal dishes made using greenhouse-grown vegetables. Thanks to Iceland's geothermal farming, tomatoes, herbs, cucumbers and leafy greens are available throughout the year despite the country's famously unpredictable climate!
One Last Bite Before You Leave...
If there's one piece of advice I'd leave you with, it's this: don't spend your Iceland holiday searching for the nearest burger chain because it feels familiar. Order that soup served inside a greenhouse, stop for that cinnamon roll, definitely try the seafood everyone keeps talking about and while you’re at it, grab the hot dog the locals queue for.
Whether you're joining one of our expertly planned Iceland group tour packages from India or building a holiday entirely around your own interests, make sure Iceland's food is every bit as much a part of the journey as its waterfalls, glaciers and Northern Lights!
