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Sjávarkjallarinn
Currently the best dining experience to be had in Reykjavík, this atmospheric subterranean restaurant serves up exotic dishes. Shimmering fish and succulent crustaceans are combined with the unexpected - pomegranate, coconut, litchi and chilli - and presented like miniature works of art. It's at the top end of the price scale but worth every króna - go on, treat yourselves.
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Skólabrú
The wonderfully cosy and romantic Skólabrú is in an old wood-and-tin house just off Austurvöllur. It specialises in Icelandic fare presented with nouvelle cuisine-style perfection - langoustines on puff pastry, glazed breast of duck with vanilla sauce, and various lamb and fish creations. If you just can't choose, go for the 'surprise' menu.
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Svarta Kaffið
Order thick homemade soup (one meat and one veg option daily at this quirky cavelike café - it's served piping hot in fantastic bread bowls. Other light lunches include nachos, burritos, toasted sarnies and lasagne. It's also a whimsical nightspot, with African masks and dim lighting adding a certain frisson.
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Sægreifinn
Eccentric Sægreifinn serves up fresh seafood in what looks almost like a 1950s English chip shop…except for the stuffed seal. The owner is a sprightly old gent who buys and cooks all the fish himself - lobster soup (around Ikr650 ) and fish kebabs (around Ikr600 ) are specialities. He only speaks Icelandic, so make sure you know what you're asking for! [Whale meat served.]
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Tapas Barinn
Indecisive types will have a tough time at this outstanding tapas bar, with over 50 different dishes on the menu - a thousand possible combinations! Alongside familiar Spanish nibbles such as mixed olives and patatas bravas, you'll find Icelandic ingredients turned into tasty titbits - puffin with blueberries, saltfish, and pan-fried lobster tails.
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Té og Kaffi
A Starbucks-style café, complete with barristas and a huge coffee menu (including Baileys and Swiss chocolate flavours). There are plenty of yummy cakes, quiches, salads and soups too. It's popular with families, footsore Saturday shoppers and LP readers.
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Tveir Fiskar
Right on the harbour, with a great view of the boats, this is one of Reykjavík's most famous fish restaurants. It's an upmarket place serving everything from langoustine and caviar to bacalao (salt cod). Its chef has won prizes for his delectable seafood, as fresh as it comes and highly recommended. The speciality here is bouillabaisse. [Dolphin and whale meat served.]
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Vín og Skel
Tucked inside a courtyard off Laugavegur, this simple restaurant (which feels like a French seaside eatery) devotes itself wholeheartedly to perfect seafood. Bouillabaisse soup, scallops, langoustines, cod and mussels all feature on its menu, chalked up on a big Gallic-looking blackboard. [Whale meat served.]
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Við Tjörnina
People return again and again to this famed seafood establishment, tucked away near Tjörnin. It serves up beautifully presented Icelandic feasts such as guillemot with port, garlic langoustine, or the house speciality marinated cod chins (far more delicious than they sound!). The restaurant itself is wonderfully distinctive - it feels like a quirky upperclass 1950s drawing room.
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Vox
The head chef at the Hótel Nordica's five-star restaurant serves up superb seasonal dishes - think pink-footed goose with caramelised apples - and there's usually a veggie option. The waiters sometimes bring out extra little treats for you to try - for example their amazing 'invisible gazpacho'! The daytime bistro puts on a recommended Sunday-brunch hot buffet - gorge on fruit, bread, shrimps, bacon, eggs, sausage and pancakes until you burst.
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Þrír Frakkar
Owner-chef Úlfar Eysteinsson has built up an excellent reputation at this snug little restaurant - apparently a favourite of Jamie Oliver's. Specialities include salt cod, anglerfish and plokkfiskur (fish stew) with black bread. You can also sample nonfish items, such as seal, puffin…and lovingly prepared whale steaks. [Whale meat served.]
