iceland – Vine & Swine

November 13, 2018November 13, 2018

Iceland: Blue Lagoon & Golden Circle

FIRST, THE BASICS

How long did we go for? Matt and I are big on making sure we utilize a long weekend. People can really underestimate the power of a long weekend! We left on the Wednesday night before Labor Day weekend (and so arrived on Thursday morning) and we left on Tuesday morning post-Labor Day.

Could we have stayed longer? Definitely! Iceland has so many landscapes–geysers. volcanos, waterfalls–and we were right outside of Reykjavik. And on top of all that this is just a very small part of the country. Unless you are *very* outdoorsy, more than a week might be a lot, but with five to seven days you will definitely not get bored.

What’s the weather like? Cold, windy, rainy. Definitely rainy. One second the sun was out and the next it was pouring. Definitely pack a raincoat and boots. Even though it was the end of August winter gloves and hats came in handy.

Language? Icelandic and English – Since there are only 350,000 people in the world that speak Icelandic, everyone is required to learn English in school. So, you are in luck, everyone speaks English, which in this case is good because even though we always try to speak the language when traveling, Iceland even telling people which sites we traveled to, we were nowhere close to pronouncing anything correctly.

Currency? The Icelandic currency is called the krona. The krona trumps the good ‘ol dollar these days, so just be conscious of what you’re buying especially while shopping. Most places take credit card and lucky for us most even took AMEX (woohoo!).

Car Rental? we rented a car from Blue Car Rental at the airport. We waited for the shuttle to take us there, but it’s really a stones throw away. We got opted to get the Wi-Fi for the car for an additional $14/day which I think was well worth it.

THE SCOOP ON THE BLUE LAGOON!

Make sure to book it in advance since they can’t guarantee you a spot without advanced booking. We booked the comfort package which includes a towel, a face mask, and drink. They had lots of drink options from prosecco to beer and smoothies -fruit juices. We got ginger mango smoothies, which were delicious. The premium package also includes a robe, which we would have sprung for had it been any colder (it’s an extra $20/person).

Our flight was delayed 4 hours getting out of JFK due to some mechanical problems, so I was in panic mode about missing the Blue Lagoon. When you book your ticket, they give you an hour window to get checked in. We were scheduled for the Blue Lagoon at 10 am and we didn’t arrive until noon. Luckily they were able to squeeze us in. Whew!

Biggest tip for the Blue Lagoon? – conditioner is your best friend! They have free conditioner so don’t be afraid to use it! Lather your hair before and after the lagoon and try to avoid getting your hair wet at all costs unless you like the scarecrow look!

Where can I store my luggage? – we drove directly to the blue lagoon from the airport, however they do have buses that will bring you from the airport to the blue lagoon and they have a luggage storage center right up front.

Where can I put my stuff while I swim?– the blue lagoon does a great job of providing locks that are connected to wristbands you can wear in the water. You can go back there as many times as you need to get things out of your locker worry free.

IPhones in the water? lots of people had water free cases or pouches and had their phones in the water. I was afraid my phone would get messed up, so I made Matt run through the cold to his locker to get a few water shots.

Cafe Bryggjan (Lunch) After the Blue Lagoon, we were hungry and a little jet lagged and drove about 10 minutes to Cafe Bryggjan for their famous soup. In Iceland, especially out in the countryside they are big on refillable soup bowls and bread that you serve yourself. We both got the lobster soup, which was creamy, peppery, and delicious and served with fresh bread. It was delicious, but in retrospect, since it was refillable, maybe only one of us had to get it and we could have shared a grilled cheese too. FYI… in Iceland, what they call lobster are what we in the US would call langoustine (basically big shrimp). Still delicious though.

Btw, can I drink the water? Umm, not the blue lagoon water, no. But everywhere else in Iceland they have the purest water on earth, so you definitely don’t need to buy bottled water. At almost all of the restaurants we went to they had large glass bottles of water and glasses, so you didn’t need to worry about being thirsty.

Ok, but did someone lay a rotten egg? Yeah…that’s one thing no one told me about visiting Iceland; it can be a real stinker. Their sulfur levels are a lot higher than in other places and well the water and the air can sometimes be stinky. At least you don’t have to worry about what happens if your stomach doesn’t like something you ate!

THEN, THE GOLDEN CIRCLE

Frost & Fire Hotel, Hveragerdi – As a home base for the Golden Circle, we stayed in this hotel which overlooked hot springs and the river. It was lovely hearing the water run by us as we were laying in bed at night. The hotel offered a complimentary Icelandic-style continental breakfast that included smoked fish, veggies and the bread they make on site. They also offered skyr, Icelandic yogurt and flat Icelandic waffles you could make yourself. Every day they make their own rye bread in a hot spring in the ground.

Geysir – Golden Circle stop #1 for us. Although it’s pretty touristy, it’s still pretty cool! It’s pretty amazing to see what nature can do. It starts off just looking like a pool of water and then kaboom, the water shoots 150 feet in the air, only a few feet away from you. Plus it’s free and we didn’t even have to pay for parking at this stop.

Thingvellir National Park – Golden Circle stop #2 is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This is a gorgeous park that really shows off all that Iceland has to offer in one spot. There are plenty of hiking trails, waterfalls, it overlooks a picturesque church and cottages.

Gullfoss – We actually skipped Golden Circle stop #3 because it’s a good distance farther than the other two and frankly it’s just a big waterfall. Having already seen a few of those (Seljalandsfoss, Oxarafoss) we figured we wouldn’t die if we didn’t get to see it.

Restaurant Varma (Dinner) Is the restaurant at the Frost & Fire hotel. We enjoyed their tasting menu which really highlighted rustic, Icelandic cuisine. Matt had the lamb and licorice to start (they love anything and everything licorice in Iceland) this dish might sound strange, but it was delicious). It tasted almost like a lamb jerky with pickled fennel, onions, fresh blueberries, and croutons made out of the bread from the hot springs out front. I had the lobster soup, which was cooked in the hot spring, it was an amazing, perfectly seasoned soup, but I knew what I was getting into a little more than with Matt’s first course.

For the entree Matt had the lamb once again (lamby night!). His lamb was cooked for 12 hours in the hot spring and was served along with potatoes and a thyme sauce. While his was delicious, it was much heavier than my entree of lightly cured cod that was served with Jerusalem artichoke puree, picked Jerusalem artichokes, and a lemon dill sauce.

Lamb Shank
Cured Cod

WHAT ABOUT NOT-GOLDEN-CIRCLE STUFF?

Solhestar – One of the highlights of the trip for me was riding the Icelandic horses at Solhestar. Icelandic horses are adorable, they have shorter legs then regular horses and absolutely gorgeous manes. We took a two hour tour in the red lava fields on horseback which overlooked Reykjavik. We were paired up with a family with three little girls that actually live on the Upper East Side. We had two guides that were both personable and informative. Note there are 2 locations, one out in the Golden Circle and one fairly close to Reykjavik. I thought I had booked the one close to our hotel, but I actually booked the one that overlooks Reykjavik. Oops…that’s what happens when you can’t read or pronounce anything : )

The stupid-looking plastic suit came in handy when it started pouring rain…

Seljalandsfoss – Don’t Listen to TLC; chase those waterfalls! This one is particularly cool because you can walk behind it. Just to be clear you might get soaked. But the view is awesome. Make sure to check out a small path off of the right and apparently there are some hidden waterfalls. Unfortunately, we didn’t hear about this secret path until after we visited the site. There is a cute drink and snack cart near the parking lot in case your get hungry. Fyi, parking is a bit madness at peak times and you will have to pay for it. 750 ISK if I remember correctly.

Seljalandsfoss

Mt. Esja – Mt. Esja is the dark and brooding mountain that can be seen towering above Reykjavik. Awesomely, it is not only possible but surprisingly easy to take the bus out from Reykjavik to the Mt. Esja Hiking Center at the bottom of the mountain. From downtown Reykjavik you can take bus No. 5 (eastbound) to Ártún. At Ártún, take bus No. 57 (eastbound) which takes you straight to the mountain. Going by bus to Mt. Esja from downtown Reykjavík takes 45 minutes.

There are many different trails you can take and although Matt told me the trail we were doing was easy, ugh… not so much. Even though I work out 4-5 days/week I must be honest, i was huffing and puffing a lot on this vertical trek up mountain. We took a 3 1/2 hour hike straight up the mountain at the peak the mountain is 914m (2,999 ft). Even though it was a tough slog, the view from the top was breathtaking. On the way up we saw lambs climbing the mountain as well as little surprise waterfalls. I don’t think I have ever been surrounded by such lush greenery.

There is really no shortage of amazing things to do and see in just this one little corner of Iceland. Hopefully this article will give you a good head start on planning your own amazing outdoor adventure in Iceland!

November 4, 2018November 4, 2018

What did we drink in Iceland?

What beer didn’t we drink I guess is a better question! In a country where brewing didn’t become legal until 1989 …. These guys are all killing it! There are now 21 craft beer breweries/bars in Iceland.

The key to affordable drinking in Iceland is happy hour. Grapevine–a local Reykjavik magazine (think like Timeout NY) has a app called “Appy Hour”. Before you leave for your trip, download this friendly app that gives the low-down on happy hour specials in real time. Since beers in Iceland run about $ 15 a pop this will help you to save some scooties (*Hartzell-ism for money).

MUST GO

Ölverk Pizza & Brewery – Hveragerði – Good luck pronouncing that town’s name correctly, but the effort is worth it for this place. Three-and-a-half stars for the beer, plus one-and-a-half stars for the delicious food. Don’t miss the fantastic za’atar bread with beer cheese app (they should definitely make that combo into a pizza!) and the devils on horseback were excellent too. We also tried the pizza with pepperoni and bacon and hot chili sauce which was amazing. FYI – the pizzas are on the small side but two appetizers plus one pizza and a few beers was a perfect amount for two people. I would definitely come back next time I’m in or near Hveragerði.

Skúli Craft Bar – Reykjavik – Solid selection of craft beers, mostly Borg on the day we were there but that’s okay because Borg makes great beers. Best happy hour specials of the craft beer bars we visited. Borg has an amazing beer called Snorri Nr. 10 that has arctic thyme in it which was included in the happy hour special. This beer is awesome and can be found in the duty free store at the airport (we were super happy we were able to take this baby home with us)! The bartender in our case was very friendly and the place was relatively empty for a Saturday afternoon during happy hour. Bonus points for the card games inside and food trucks outside that are a pretty great combo with the beers.

Kex Hostel Reykjavik – Reykjavik – Didn’t stay here but did have happy hour drinks and dinner at the bar. A totally great atmosphere to meet other travelers plus a great food and drink menu. The beers are evenly split between guest taps and Kex’s own brews. I’m not normally a big IPA guy but the Kex Thunder Session IPA was my favorite; it is a great beer. I’d definitely be back for happy hour. Plus they had great chicken wings that were a happy hour special for $6.50.

KEX Hostel – Reykjavik

IF YOU HAVE TIME / MAYBE NOT FOR EVERYONE

RVK Brewing Company – Reykjavik – Sick beers. The Smoked Gose is perfectly balanced between sour and smokey and the stout is light-bodied and bitter enough to hide the alcohol but still roasty and delicious like a good stout should be. Balance is the name of the game here, super well-made beers. Minus one star for being pretty small, out-of-the way with weird hours and no great food options, but the beers by themselves are definitely worth the trip.

Ölvisholt Brewery – Selfoss – It is located in a weird place and definitely has a feeling from the outside like you’re not supposed to be there, but inside the taproom couldn’t be more different. They have a warm space with books and games and picnic tables to enjoy the eight excellent beers on tap plus more by the bottle (if you like stouts, definitely don’t miss Lava, their Smoked Imperial Stout). The staff is also friendly and welcoming, especially Stein, and may even give you a tour of the brewery if you’re lucky : )

My only two complaints are the off hours (I get that it’s a working brewery and they are not trying to stay any later than they have to but midday only is kind of weird) and there is no food at all anywhere around. Those two are a bummer but the beers and people alone would make me come back any time I’m in the area (at the appropriate time of course ; )

Session Craft Bar – Reykjavik – Solid if expensive beer selection. Happy hour beers were ok but just kind of the most boring options they had available. Happy hour or not though, this is the place to taste Malbygg beers, which are some of the best in Reykjavik. I tried the Pale Ale which was very delicious and super drinkable and straddled the bitterness line between piney and tropical very well. Plus on a Saturday afternoon during happy hour when we were there the place was barely half full.
P.S. In case you are not a beer person, they have a couple actually decent wines on the happy hour specials as well.

Bjórgarðurinn – Reykjavik – Fairly big “beergarden” space inside the Fosshótel Reykjavík. Pretty good happy hour specials and a large, good selection of craft beers (mostly Borg, which is not a bad thing) plus Stella and Guinness for some reason. Friendly bartenders and on a Sunday afternoon during happy hour we basically had the entire place to ourselves. They have food too but we didn’t try any of it. Would definitely go back for a drink at happy hour.

DON’T BOTHER

Bryggjan Brugghús – Reykjavik – Didn’t try any of the food, but the beers brewed here were nothing special—the best choices on tap were all guest taps, especially the Mango Pale Ale and Icelandic Ale from Borg (which is pretty awesome). It was pretty crowded on a Saturday night and had much more of a club/bro bar feel than a brewpub feel, which is obviously a turn-off (for me). Minus one star for the creepy old guy at the bar who hit on my wife like basically the entire time.

SUPER BUMMED THAT WE DIDN’T GET TO GO

Mikkeller & Friends – Reykjavik – They share the same space as Hverfisgata 12, right around the corner from Dill Restuarant. Even though Mikkeller is Danish and there is one in NYC we heard really good things about the beer and the pizza and wanted to go. Unfortunately they were closed for a private event and since we saved this spot for our last night we were out of luck. I would definitely try to go back if I were in Reykjavik again.

WANT TO DRINK SOMETHING OTHER THAN BEER?

Port 9 – Reykjavik – This cozy spot had pops of a rich emerald green that was very relaxing and inviting! We had a great time talking to the owner of the bar. His passion for good wine and food really showed in the products he was serving. They had good wines by the glass for happy hour and he was happy to accommodate Matt’s finicky tastes in wine as well. The brie with mango chutney and cashews was the perfect balance of salty, smoky, and sweet. It’s going to be in my new dinner party rotation when we entertain!

As we mentioned at the beginning, drinking in Iceland is not cheap. It’s important to make sure you choose wisely and plan ahead. Hit up the happy hours, drink local beers as much as possible and enjoy yourself–after all it’s vacation, right?

October 8, 2018October 8, 2018

Reykjavik: Breakfast & Lunch Guide

Hot Diggity Dog

Matt went to Iceland by himself about 10 years ago before Iceland really became the “it” tourist destination. From that trip Matt (who normally picks up languages super quickly) only came back with one phrase…
eina með öllu… that means one with everything. Well, sorry babe, I really messed up your phrase since you don’t know how to say, “I’ll have 2 of everything”. Anyway I thought he was exaggerating when he told me that this lamb hot dog would change my world. He was right… that darn thing was so good we had 3 of them as a “snack” during our time in Reykjavik. What’s so good about it? Well… they put a combination of raw onion and crispy onions (like from thanksgiving green beans) on the bottom of the roll. Then on top of the lamb dog is a remoulade and a honey mustard. The best part is the place is open from 10am – 4:30am. This place is a small stand with no seating and usually a long line. Don’t worry though, the line goes by quickly since they only sell two things: hot dogs and sodas. Don’t miss this one!

STARTING THE DAY OFF RIGHT:

Reykjavik Roasters – Coffee – The secret about this place is out, it was packed! It has a very hipster cool vibe in here. They have small nooks and tables with antique chairs and tables and the key to any hipster coffee shop… a record player and avocado toast. With said record player, they encourage people to switch the records to whatever tunes you want to listen to. They made a good flat white and have a friendly staff.
We also went to their second location which had more of a Scandinavian vibe to it with a lot more seating. At both locations, they have a small assortment of pastries – Matt had one of the pastries, it was good, but wasn’t in the same league as Braud & Co. or Sandholt (see below).

Bismut – Coffee – Is a small coffee shop that overlooks Hverfisgata. It has a more modern flare to it with a long bar overlooking the street and there is a great view of the harbor. They display local art in the space and seem to have a following of regulars. It was a very friendly environment with great single origin pour overs and flat whites.

Braud & Co – Bakery – This tiny local spot has amazing pastries, one the weekends locals line up for this buttery goodness and I know why. I think that they used all of the butter in Iceland and I’m not complaining one bit. As the “salty” one is our relationship, I went with the ham and cheese croissant (watch out Paris you’ve got some competition). Matt the “sweet” member of our duo of course over ordered his pastries. He had one of the local favorites – the vínarbrauð a flat pastry with almonds and cream filling. Yummy. You know this place is good if I got Matt to leave the hotel at 6:15am in order to pick up pastries for the road before leaving for the airport. And they have pretty good drip coffee to boot. There isn’t any seating in this spot, but there’s nothing like walking down the street eating a warm pastry while exploring.

Sandholt – Bakery – This place has a very Parisian upscale patisserie feel to it. It has a beautiful glass pastry case lined with freshly based pastries beautifully displayed and warm bread straight from the oven behind the counter. You can take your pastries to go or they have a large seating area to have table service. On the weekends it gets really crowded, so be prepared to wait.

WHAT’S FOR LUNCH?

Flat White at Te & Kaffi in the Grandi Matholl Market

Grandi Matholl Market – Lunch/Dinner – While walking along the waterfront, we stumbled upon the Grandi Matholl Market. This place was adorable and had about 9 food booths overlooking the harbor. They have a Te & Kaffi (which is gasp, a chain) – but I must admit they had a good flat white. They also have a fish and chips spot, a Korean taco shop (KORE), and a local Icelandic food spot. We shared a lamb hot dog which was a more “foodie” version of the infamous Icelandic hot dog. It had a salad on top and was paired with potatoes and a garlic mayo. This place is a great spot to take some pictures, relax for a little and use a super clean bathroom.

Hlemmur Matholl – Food Hall – Lunch/Dinner Spot – This place used to be the old bus depot and now it’s a food hall. It has a ton of different options including a Vietnamese sandwich shop (which needed more pickled veggies and less mayo) and the bar Skal that had amazing buffalo cauliflower on top of goat cheese with picked veggies on top. It paired beautifully with the Borg Chocolate Porter that they have on tap. Skal!

Icelandic Street Food – Lunch – This place had heart. Matt and I were never backpackers, but this place had the fun student vibe where everyone was friendly and wanted to share their stories. The place was very crowded, but the staff continued to keep you engaged. For about $15 they have unlimited bowls of soup. They have both seafood and lamb soups and you can switch it up to try both. While you are waiting they give out free Icelandic waffles and chocolate coconut macaroons.

Flatey – Pizza – Lunch/Dinner – On our last night in Reykjavik, we had planned on going to Hverfisgata 12 and have beers at Mikkeller, but when they were closed unexpectedly for an employee training, and we were still jonesin’ for some pizza, we headed over to Flatey. The only thing on Flatey’s menu is thin artisanal pizza and it was delicious. Matt had the pizza of the day which had Korean short ribs from (a KORE, the Korean taco shop across the street at the Grandi Matholl) on it and mine had pepperoni, spicy peppers, and honey. This meal did not disappoint and bonus – was one of the most cost-effective meals of our trip.