Reykjavik: Guided Foodie Walking Tour with 6 Tastings
Learn about the culture of Reykjavik and Iceland through its tasty food on a guided walking tour. Visit 5 different Icelandic eateries as you explore the Icelandic cap...
Why locals love it: Easy to miss behind a plain Laugavegur door, this natural-wine bar pours funky bottles with serious small plates that locals guard as their after-work spot.
Tip: The kitchen punches above a wine bar's weight; the halibut and burnt broccoli are worth ordering.
Book food experiences in Reykjavik
Reykjavik: Icelandic Food Tour
Experience traditional Icelandic food, and learn about real-deal Icelandic cuisine on this exciting tour.
Reykjavik: Beer and Booze Tour
Join a beer walking tour to explore three of the finest bars in Reykjavik. Sample 10 of Iceland’s delicious craft beers, most of which you can only find in Iceland.
Reykjavik: Food Tour by locals
Savor the flavors of Reykjavik on a food tour of the city. Try traditional and modern Icelandic dishes, and see the Hallgrímskirkja Church.
Location
Address: Laugavegur 27, 101 Reykjavik
Also in 101
Ox ★ 4.7
Thrainn Freyr Vigfusson's 17-seat Michelin-starred counter behind a Laugavegur graffiti door, four-hour tasting at the kitchen with retro cocktail bar.
Why locals love it: Entry is through Sumac with no sign of its own, an eleven-seat Michelin-starred counter that the crowds streaming past on Laugavegur never realise is there.
Tip: You book weeks ahead and enter through the Sumac grill. Two seatings a night, eleven seats only.
Mikki Refur ★ 4.2
Natural-only wine bar on Hverfisgata across from the National Theatre, Ragnar Kjartansson mural; bistro plates, Icelandic beer on tap, micro-roast coffee.
Why locals love it: A quiet daytime cafe that flips at five into a natural-wine bar paired with oysters and charcuterie, often missed for the bigger-name wine rooms on the same street.
Tip: Tue-Sun from 17:00 for the wine-bar shift.
Froken Reykjavik Kitchen and Bar ★ 4.3
Froken Reykjavik Kitchen and Bar (Modern European) in Reykjavik: Dinner runs 18:00-22:00. Smart-casual room with a long bar; book for the winter-garden seats.
Why locals love it: Tucked into the ground floor of Hotel Reykjavik Saga, an art-deco room of open kitchen and winter garden that quietly turns out modern Northern European plates without the Laugavegur crowds.
Tip: Dinner runs 18:00-22:00. Smart-casual room with a long bar; book for the winter-garden seats.
Cafe Loki ★ 4.2
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.
More hidden gems in Reykjavik
Ox ★ 4.7
Thrainn Freyr Vigfusson's 17-seat Michelin-starred counter behind a Laugavegur graffiti door, four-hour tasting at the kitchen with retro cocktail bar.
Why locals love it: Entry is through Sumac with no sign of its own, an eleven-seat Michelin-starred counter that the crowds streaming past on Laugavegur never realise is there.
Tip: You book weeks ahead and enter through the Sumac grill. Two seatings a night, eleven seats only.
Saegreifinn ★ 4.3
Green fisherman's hut by the old harbour on Geirsgata since 1992, world-famous lobster soup plus grilled fish and lamb skewers; Sea Baron of Reykjavik.
Why locals love it: A green shack among the harbour sheds with barrels for seats, it looks like nothing, yet inside is the langoustine soup travellers cross the city to find.
Tip: Seating is communal on barrels and benches. The langoustine soup with bread is the only order you need.
Mikki Refur ★ 4.2
Natural-only wine bar on Hverfisgata across from the National Theatre, Ragnar Kjartansson mural; bistro plates, Icelandic beer on tap, micro-roast coffee.
Why locals love it: A quiet daytime cafe that flips at five into a natural-wine bar paired with oysters and charcuterie, often missed for the bigger-name wine rooms on the same street.
Tip: Tue-Sun from 17:00 for the wine-bar shift.
Froken Reykjavik Kitchen and Bar ★ 4.3
Froken Reykjavik Kitchen and Bar (Modern European) in Reykjavik: Dinner runs 18:00-22:00. Smart-casual room with a long bar; book for the winter-garden seats.
Why locals love it: Tucked into the ground floor of Hotel Reykjavik Saga, an art-deco room of open kitchen and winter garden that quietly turns out modern Northern European plates without the Laugavegur crowds.
Tip: Dinner runs 18:00-22:00. Smart-casual room with a long bar; book for the winter-garden seats.
Cafe Loki ★ 4.2
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.
Kaffivagninn ★ 4.1
Iceland's oldest restaurant, founded 1935 by the Grandi harbour; Axel Oskarsson now serves fish and chips, fish soup and breakfast in the green wooden hut.
Why locals love it: Billed as Iceland's oldest restaurant, this 1935 harbour canteen sits among working docks where fishermen, not tourists, fill the tables for the day's catch.
Tip: The catch of the day, eaten where the fishermen eat, is the order. Open from 08:00 by the water.