Reykjavik Restaurants

The center of Reykjavík, especially in the heart of the city and the famous 101 district, is packed with some incredible restaurants for all tastes and budgets.

For additional information about the capital, check out our guide to Reykjavík. Here are our top 5 restaurants in Reykjavík.

• Eating out in Reykjavík
• The Fish Market ★★★★
• The Perlan ★★★★
• The glò ★★★★
• The Loki Cafe ★★★★
• Saegreifinn - The Sea Baron ★★★★★

Eating out in Reykjavík

Iceland is an expensive country, in fact very expensive, so if you plan to eat out every night, you need to budget accordingly. Of course, it all depends on what you are looking for and where you go. There are cheap snacks and street food sold at “Pylsur” stalls all over Reykjavík, and for a few hundred crowns you can sample a typical Icelandic mutton hotdog for example.

The most famous stand is Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur, a small kiosk on Tryggvagata, close to the harbor, which has been open since 1937. The sausage is made mainly from lamb (mixed with a little pork and beef, depending on the source). To get it with raw and fried onions, ketchup, sweet mustard and remoulade, just ask for “ein með öllu” (“one with everything”). Expect to pay about 880 ISK, so less than 1000 ISK.

There are no “McDonald's” in Iceland, but there are a few equivalent fast food chains like “Aktu Taktu” near the Sun Voyager in central Reykjavík, with prices in line with the fast food prices around Europe (about 2600 to 2850 ISK per menu).

For a restaurant meal, you'll be looking at 4000 to 6000 ISK for a main course dish. A more upscale mutton or fish dish usually costs around 4000 ISK, and a good pizza around 3000 ISK.

Prices change quickly: recent guides (2026) suggest more like 3000 to 5000 ISK for a main course in a sit-down restaurant. It's worth checking the restaurant's website for current prices before you book.

Two pieces of good news for your budget: service is included and tipping is not expected in Iceland (some people round up the bill for exceptional service), and the excellent tap water is served free of charge in restaurants, so there's no need to order bottled water.

We have selected a few choice restaurants for tourists looking for a good deal in the capital. Most restaurants in the city center are located in the 101 district, around Laugavegur. All offer package menus with starters and main courses for example, or you can just pick à la carte.

What to try in Reykjavík

• Kjötsúpa: a lamb soup with root vegetables, a traditional dish you can find at the Loki Cafe, for example.
• Fish: cod, Arctic char (bleikja) or langoustine, often simply pan-fried. Plokkfiskur, a fish and potato stew, is a classic of Icelandic home cooking.
• Skyr: see our article on this Icelandic specialty.
• Rúgbrauð: a dense, slightly sweet rye bread, traditionally baked with geothermal steam and served with butter or fish.
• Hangikjöt (smoked lamb) and harðfiskur (dried fish, eaten as a snack with butter).

Note that whale and puffin, offered in some tourist restaurants, are not part of everyday Icelandic cooking today, and local guides advise against ordering them. See also our article on puffins in Iceland.

The Fish Market ★★★★

• website: http://fiskmarkadurinn.is/

Located in the center of the capital, very close to the famous Lake Tjornin, the Fish Market (Fiskmarkadurinn) is, as its name suggests, a restaurant that's all about fish. The cooking style is quite modern, the fish is fresh and local, and customers leaving the Fish Market rarely have anything bad to say about it.

As a historic fish market, the restaurant sources directly from local fishermen to ensure only the best quality. The lobster soup is truly delicious...

The open kitchen is a lovely touch, allowing customers to see the cooks at their stations working their magic. It is probably one of the best restaurants in Reykjavík, so the prices are quite steep (3000 to 6800 ISK for a starter, most of them around 5000 ISK, and 4000 to 6000 ISK for a main course).

The Perlan ★★★★

• website: http://www.perlan.is

The Perlan is probably the most famous restaurant in the capital and for good reason.

You'll have to venture outside the down-town area to eat here, but it's worth it. The restaurant is perched on a hill such that it overlooks the capital, offering customers a breathtaking view of the city center. And the panorama literally goes 360°! The restaurant itself rotates so that every customer can enjoy the view from every angle.

Keep in mind the restaurant is no longer a gourmet one: the menu is now simple (fish & chips, bowls, pizzas). It is open daily from 11:30 am to 6:00 pm, with no reservations, but access to Perlan, restaurant included, requires a museum admission ticket. The desserts are particularly delicious, and we recommend the Skyr and its chocolate mousse in particular.

The glò ★★★★

• website: http://www.glo.is

Glò was a vegetarian restaurant located in the heart of Laugavegur (in fact it was a chain with 3 locations in the capital). Please note: Glò closed permanently in 2024 after 17 years in business; the brand lives on and its most popular bowls are now served at Saffran. But this is not just any vegetarian restaurant but a multi award-winning one, and was recently elected by Grapevine as the best vegetarian restaurant in the country.

This is saying a lot, as veggie options are standard in Iceland, in fact the “health food” market is huge as in all Scandinavian countries, so the distinction is all the more important.

The prices are correct and you can even enjoy convenient take-out options as Glò offers “bags” with package menus for around 5,000 ISK.

Other top shelf vegetarian restaurants in the capital include http://www.kryddleginhjortu.is/ or http://www.graennkostur.is/

The Loki Cafe ★★★★

• website: http://www.loki.is

The Loki Café is just a stone's throw from Hallgrimskirkja Cathedral in the heart of Reykjavík, a delicious and inexpensive little restaurant where you can try all the local specialties without breaking the bank.

For around 5,100 to 5,550 ISK you can try an Icelandic plate with some very popular Scandinavian dishes. For example, the bravest among you can try Hákarl (fermented shark meat) or the rye toast topped with fish (much like Smørrebrød in Denmark). For under 1,300 ISK you can also try out soups and a few main courses. 

Saegreifinn - The Sea Baron ★★★★★

• website: http://www.saegreifinn.is/

A clear favorite! Located on the harbor, the Sea Baron is typical of the local restaurant culture, a charming place with delicious food and reasonable prices for Iceland.

For example, a delicious lobster soup with a huge salmon skewer will put you back 3200 ISK, while a single skewer costs about 1700 ISK, and both are top shelf. 

The restaurant has become quite famous, however, so we strongly recommend you book ahead of time in summer to be sure to get a table at this prized establishment.