Our group today (3/6) returned to Reykjavik. We went to a very fancy restaurant called Sæta Svínið Gastropub for dinner to try an assortment of different Icelandic foods. So, these are the foods we tried, some background on them, and my opinion on them.
Smoked Puffin
- The puffin was just a few chunks of meat with these circular chips on top. It was sitting in crowberry liqeur sauce.
- Puffins are typically hunted with nets. They don’t fight too hard against being hunted. Usually the most challenging part is where they are being hunted: by cliffsides. As long as people don’t fall off the cliff trying to grab them, puffins are easy to catch in a net or simply pick up.
- I predicted that puffin would taste like chicken, but I couldn’t have been more wrong. It tasted more like cow. The consistency was also perfect. I’d rate it 8/10.
Icelandic Horse Tartare
- I hadn’t had tartare of any kind before. This horse meat came in a patty and seemed uncooked. It was served with cream cheese and crispy potatoes.
- The only knowledge relating to horse meat I had before trying this, was that it was banned for awhile due to the rise of Christianity in Iceland. The Roman Catholic Church had banned the consumption of horse meat. It was considered unholy. This is pretty unfortunate given that so many horse were transported by Nordic settlers. So I came in thinking it was obviously going to be delicious.
- And I was right! The texture was that of a hamburger patty, and so was the taste. A solid 9/10.
Lightly Cured Arctic Char
- This is served on flatkaka with cream cheese.
- For Icelanders, other than toursim, their biggest industry is fishing! There lots of differnt types of salmon in the local area, therefore it only makes sense that this dish has an intense cultural significance.
- The texture was soft the way fish is in sushi. I would give it a 10/10
Lamb Tataki
- This dish (unsurprisingly) was also served with cream cheese.
- I am also just discovering now that lamb tataki is slightly raw as well. However, it is worth trying because Icelandic lamb tastes different than normal lamb. This breed of sheep has been around since Viking times, and is unique to Iceland.
- The taste was chewier than expected, but still delicious. 7.5/10
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