Plokkfiskur is Iceland's great comfort dish, a warm mash of flaked cod or haddock with potato, onion and a white bechamel sauce. It is traditionally served with dark rye bread and butter.
Plokkfiskur began as a thrifty way to use up leftover boiled fish and potatoes, a staple of Icelandic home kitchens for generations. The name comes from the verb to pluck or flake, describing how the fish is broken into the mash. Modern Reykjavik kitchens have dressed it up with bechamel and cheese, but the soul of the dish stays the same: cod, potato and rye bread on a cold day. Cafe Loki and harbour rooms keep the traditional version on the menu year-round.
3 editor picks for Plokkfiskur (fish stew) in Reykjavik, ranked by editorial score. All Reykjavik signature dishes · Plokkfiskur (fish stew) across every city.
Cafe Loki ★ 4.2
101 · Lokastigur 28, 101 Reykjavik
Cafe Loki faces Hallgrimskirkja from Lokastigur, a Reykjavik cafe built on traditional Icelandic plates of dark rye bread, mashed fish and rye ice cream.
Kaffivagninn ★ 4.2
101-grandi · Grandagardur 10, 101 Reykjavik
Kaffivagninn on Grandagardur has fed harbour workers since 1935, billed as Iceland's oldest restaurant, where the catch of the day is the meal in Reykjavik.
Hofnin ★ 4.1
101-grandi · Geirsgata 7c, 101 Reykjavik
Hofnin, The Harbour, fills a 1930s house on Geirsgata with family-run Icelandic seafood, a Reykjavik room for shellfish soup and plokkfiskur by the marina.