Hakarl is fermented Greenland shark, cured for weeks then hung to dry for months until safe to eat. It has a powerful ammonia smell and is eaten in small cubes, traditionally with a shot of brennivin.
Where to eat it: 2 restaurants across 1 city.
Greenland shark is poisonous when fresh, so Icelanders learned to bury and ferment it, then air-dry it into hakarl, an extreme example of the preserving that kept the nation fed. It is a centrepiece of the midwinter Thorrablot feast, eaten as a dare-and-tradition with the caraway schnapps brennivin to chase it. Most visitors try a cube at the Kolaportid flea market or Cafe Loki, where it is served as a rite of passage rather than an everyday food.
Common allergens: Fish
Tip from the editors. Hakarl cannot be made at home outside Iceland (Greenland shark is toxic to handle and ferment without industry licensing); buy it pre-cured and treat the recipe as a serving ritual.
Kolaportid fills the old customs house on Tryggvagata each weekend, Reykjavik's flea market where food stalls sell fermented shark, dried fish and rye bread.
Tip: This is the easiest place to try hakarl fermented shark and harkfiskur dried fish. Weekends only, cash helps.
Family-run Icelandic kitchen across from Hallgrimskirkja on Lokastigur serving meat soup, fermented shark and rye-bread ice cream from 8am to 10pm daily.
Why locals love it: Most visitors photograph Hallgrimskirkja and leave, missing the small cafe opposite that serves the city's most accessible traditional Icelandic plates.
Tip: The easiest place to try rye bread with mashed fish and rye-bread ice cream. Walk-in only.
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