Flights to Iceland | Hotels in Iceland

Icelandic cuisine is big on locally-sourced meat and fish, with the country as a whole very much in favour of organic farming. Iceland’s seas are an abundant source of food, and tough import laws designed to protect her own in-land mammals from foreign diseases mean there’s a good chance the food on your plate has not travelled far to get there.

Never afraid to move with the times, Iceland has embraced ethnic dishes from around the globe, and combined with more traditional restaurants you’ll have plenty to choose from, especially in the major cities. Service in Iceland’s restaurants is first-rate and traditional fare deserving of its fine reputation. Fresh fish, shellfish and Icelandic lamb rank among the best you’ll ever taste, and vegetarians are largely well-catered for. There are also many dishes important to Iceland’s heritage and history, some harking back to the Vikings – many of these are treated with a nostalgic affection by the locals and eaten mainly on special occasions, rather than being a food staple.

Thorramatur, a platter comprising of a selection of cured meat and fish, served with rúgbrauð, a rye-based bread, is seen in abundance at festival time. Hákarl, fermented shark meat, is perhaps the most famous example of traditional cuisine, usually washed down by Brennivín, a native caraway schnapps.

Whilst Hákarl tastes better than it smells, it’s not for the faint-hearted, and many Icelanders would secretly agree!

Amongst Iceland’s traditional cuisine, Hangikjöt (smoked leg of lamb or mutton) is well worth trying if you’re lucky enough to time your trip with the holiday season. Skyr, a soft cheese closer in appearance to yoghurt, is widespread and often mixed with fruit, and snúður, a Danish-style cinnamon roll topped with chocolate, is an excellent snack at any time of day, and the perfect accompaniment to coffee.

Alcoholic drinks are very expensive compared with European prices, but it’s worth pushing the boat out to sample what’s on offer. Maltöl, a dark beer, is excellent, and Reyka, a vodka made with glacier water is a superb accompaniment to seafood as is Eldris Citus Vodka. Alongside the sweet yet bitter Brennivín, mountain moss-flavoured schnapps is an excellent digestif to round off a meal.

Appelsin, an orange-flavoured lemonade, is a refreshing non-alcohol thirst-quencher, and it goes without saying that Iceland’s water ranks amongst the purest on Earth.