Reykjavik

It felt a little surreal pulling into the parking spots outside FossHotel Reykjavik. In realizing we just completed driving the entire Ring Road, we high-fived and sat there for a minute. Huge moment. Big feelings. A lot of love for this country.

We had a blast in Reykjavik. It is expensive and colorful and welcoming and full of good European meets Viking energy. I was enamored with: the colorful street and sidewalk art, Hallgrímskirkja and the beautiful city views it affords, Langoustine soup, Lebowski Bar, and Harpa.

Here's a look at all my recommendations. 

Happy Hour Crawl / Drinks on Laugavegur: 

On and around the main strip of Laugavegur Street there's a ton of cool places to hang out. I highly recommend taking advantage of the various happy hours since drinks are $$$. The best happy hour was at Bravo, a chill space with comfy nooks and window seats, plus they had our favorite Einstock beers on draft! The divey cellar space at Koffin was also fun, it felt like a true local haunt. Kaffi Brennslan is where we had the grilled ham + cheese and waffle pictured, they also have a good selection of bottled beer and wine by the glass. Lebowski Bar at night is a must. Funky décor, good energy, a fantastic DJ, dancing, AND they have an entire menu dedicated to White Russians. I had the Pink Russian (2100 ISK) which adds strawberry liqueur and strawberry syrup to the classic vodka, Kahlua and cream. That plus a beer cost $30. Drink prices are no joke. Bar 11 had solid live music in the basement, and we noticed the entire space was dedicated to the only beer on draft: Tuborg. The owners must really love that beer! Finally, the Bjorgardurinn (Beer Garden) is a sleek industrial space located on the bottom floor of FossHotel Reykjavik (our lovely accommodations) and worth a trip off Laugavegur for the unique and worldly beer selection.

Lunch: I think lunch or afternoon snacking is best enjoyed at any of the following: Kaffi Brennslan, Cafe Babalu and others - the aforementioned cute and cozy coffee houses that serve soups, sandwiches, waffles, cakes, beer and wine. / Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur - the famous hot dog stand!! / Vöffluvagninn - the liege waffle food truck.

Dinner: The best meal of our entire trip was at Messinn. We strolled in early on a Friday evening with no reservation and they were fully booked. Luckily we were able to make one for late Saturday night. We had Cream of Lobster Soup (1.850 ISK) with cognac, and really fresh, beautiful pan-fried fish entrees: Ling (3.600 ISK) with chili, ginger, carrots, fennel, shrimp, brandy, arugula, lemon + butter and Fish Cheeks (3.400 ISK) with cherry tomatoes, lettuce, lemon + garlic butter. 

We had a light lunch at Rok on our last day. I wish we'd discovered this gem earlier! One of the more dynamic bar programs I came across in Reykjavik, I had the Hrutur (2.290 ISK) with Brennivin (Icelandic Schnapps), bjork liquor, pomme verde liquor, basil syrup and fresh basil. The cured salmon + avocado on brown bread and the sliced beef, caramelized onion + melted brie crostini were artfully composed and very, very good! Rok is open every day from 11:30 am - 11 pm. Whether brunch, lunch or dinner, it should be a definite on your list for a full meal.

Another favorite dinner was Lava at The Blue Lagoon. A few friends also recommended both Fiskmarkaðurinn and Grillmarkaðurinn - we didn't make it to either, they were expensive but looked like they might be worth a visit.