The Food of Iceland

On March 2, 2016 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Recipes22 Comments

We actually ate more on this trip than we usually do. Perhaps it was because we love seafood or just because every day was a long day of exploring the beautiful landscapes. We definitely wanted to try authentic Icelandic fare, but there were also a few things that we knew that we wouldn’t eat. When reading about the food of Iceland before we travelled, there was quite a bit out there about the restaurants serving whale and puffin. We’d also heard about the fermented shark, which was featured on a couple of shows, including Bizarre Foods. We mostly ate in Reykjavik, but we did enjoy a couple of meals while we were travelling around the countryside.

Seafood and lamb were on every menu in one shape or form and the most traditional dishes seemed to be the soups, fish soup, meat soup, and lamb soup, of which we tried each. We had fish soup several times and each time the broth was a little different, but they were all delicious. Langoustine, which are small lobsters, were also very common on most menus. Some of the best that we had were actually at the restaurant at the Settlement Center in Borganese. They had a wonderful buffet, but we chose to order a la carte, having lamb and fish soup and then entrees. In addition to the langoustine on tagliatelle, we also had Ling, which is a white fish in the cod family, but it was lighter than traditional cod and very delicious.

When we went out to the Snæfellsnes peninsula, the Hotel Búðir was highly recommended to us as the place to stop for lunch and we weren’t disappointed. They are a wonderful hotel and would probably be a great place to stay and get out of Reykjavik, but we had to settle for just having lunch there. Again, we had fish soup as well as a lamb sandwich, with the meat being very mild in flavor.

On one of our nights out, we decided to do the chef’s menu at the Seafood Grill, something also offered at many restaurants, where you get several courses all chosen by the chef to represent the food of Iceland. We told them that we did not want puffin or whale, ordered a couple of glasses of wine, and then the food started coming, all nine courses. Unfortunately they still brought us puffin, but we asked them to replace it with a second order of goose, but otherwise every course, all meat except for dessert, were delicious. We had goose, grouper, salmon, lobster, ocean pearch, and lamb. It was way more food than we could eat, but each course was incredible.

Cured Goose and Puffin (before we returned it)

In addition to the food, Iceland is quite proud of its beer. The most common is Gull beer, which is brewed in Reykjavik and can be found just about everywhere. We tried Boli Premium that is a premium lager that is also brewed in Reykjavik. There is no wine produced in Iceland, for obvious reasons, but we did hear that they were going to attempt it in the near future. The other thing that they produce in Iceland is vodka as well as Brennivín, which is an unsweetened schnapps that is the most popular distilled alcohol in Iceland and is usually taken as a shot.

We chose not to eat any puffin or whale during our trip because of the environmental impact. From what we heard, the puffin population has decreased by 38% since it became a popular dish on the island and some whales are still on the endangered species list. We don’t judge anyone else who chooses to eat puffin or whale, it is just something that we didn’t want have while we were there. Fermented shark is a shark head that has been left out for a month to rot and is then served. We didn’t see that on any menu, but it just sounds disgusting, so we were glad not to see it. The one other thing that we saw on a menu, but didn’t try, was reindeer. We probably would have tried that had we had the chance, but the restaurant that served it was so busy that we ended up walking out without eating there.

Overall, the food that we had was terrific, especially the seafood. Because we wanted to try as many different things as possible, we ended up eating way more than we usually would. Normally we split a meal or just eat small bites, but on this trip we ordered appetizers and full meals for each of us so that we could share and order different things. Reykjavik definitely has a wonderful variety of restaurants to choose from, both Icelandic as well as traditional restaurants such as Italian, Thai, American, etc. The food was definitely one of the highlights of our trip.

Shakespeare and Santa Claus

On December 14, 2015December 14, 2015 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn England7 Comments

We were fortunate enough that when we went to Stratford-upon-Avon, we joined the locals in celebrating the arrival of Santa Claus. It was truly a magical experience and the town of Stratford-upon-Avon was everything that we expected for a small English village. There is something special about walking the streets of a town so rich in history, thinking about all who have walked those same footsteps. The shops, pubs, and people were all extremely welcoming as the holiday spirit certainly filled the air.

The town of Stratford-upon-Avon is a tourist destination due to the fact that it is the birthplace of William Shakespeare, but we were surrounded more by locals than tourists while we were there. The Royal Shakespeare Theatre is located in Stratford where the plays of Shakespeare are still performed. The original charter for the town was granted in 1196, making it over 800 years old. Located in Warwickshire, England, nestled along the River Avon, it is truly a destination well worth visiting. Seeing the home where Shakespeare was born is a memory that will stay with you forever.

The most memorable part of the visit, however, was when everyone gathered in the center of town outside of the Town Hall on Sheep Street to wait for the arrival of Santa Claus. After it turned dark, the town officials came out onto the balcony to address the crowd. Then, to the excitement of the children and adults alike, Santa Claus appeared on the roof, waving to the crowd below. After seeing the arrival of Santa Claus, we went to one of the pubs where there were large punch dispensers with mulled wine to warm the belly as much as our hearts had been warmed.

The following day, we joined other holiday shoppers in the market that had been set up to sell a wide variety of crafts and products. We also visited the various shops that were all festively decorated for the holiday season. We purchased holiday decorations for family and friends as well as some for ourselves. We ended up buying another suitcase, just so we could bring home everything that we found while we were there. There were also plenty of restaurants with local fare to eat, such as the traditional fish and chips, bangers and mash, steak and ale pie, and bubble and squeak. Needless to say, besides the mulled wine, there were plenty of pints of ale to be found and we enjoyed several of them.

This was truly one of the highlights of our visit to England. We had been in London prior to heading to Stratford-upon-Avon and it was almost as if we’d travelled back in time. I’m sure that it is beautiful during the summer, but if you get the chance to visit during the holiday season, we’d highly recommend it. Stratford-upon-Avon will stay in our hearts for many years to come.

Spirit of the Season

On October 23, 2015 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Halloween1 Comment

To say that we’re into Halloween would be the understatement of a lifetime. We’ve been throwing Halloween parties for twenty years now and every year we add a few more decorations, so we’ve accumulated a lot of really cool things. For the ten years, the parties were for the kids, but now we’re all about the adult Halloween party. This year’s party is tomorrow, so we’re frantically getting ready since our remodeling work didn’t finish until two days ago. It normally takes us two weeks to decorate the entire house, so the pressure has been on to finish and get everything done in time.

We decorate both inside and outside and every year the theme for the outdoor decorations change. This year’s theme is spiders, so we had fun building a giant spider web that spanned the entire front porch. We even have a body wrapped in spider webs hanging from the top of the porch. We always do a small cemetery scene, so spiders are crawling throughout. We also match our costumes to the theme, so we’re dressing as Frodo (assuming you get the reference from the Lord of the Rings) and a Black Widow. Inside the house, we go as far as changing out our artwork and even change some of our curtains.

We’re making marinated mushrooms, antipasto spears (with olives, marinated peppers, prosciutto, pepperoni, and mozzarella cheese), tea sandwiches, pumpkin sage shrimp, and a variety of other snacks. Obviously we’ll have plenty wine and beer on hand as well. We wish you could all join us for the party, but we’ve added some pictures to help everyone get into the spirit of the party.