Kaffivagninn in Reykjavík

For dinner at the old harbor

Kaffivagninn in Reykjavík's old harbor, in Grandi, has existed since 1935, making it the oldest still operating restaurant in Iceland. It has been in the current building since 1975. Breakfast is served here to hungry fishermen, workers, employees and tourists 7 days a week from 7:30 a.m. to 11 a.m., lunch is available from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. and the slightly larger evening menu is available from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.

After a long day, we were looking for dinner in March in the evening and ended up at Kaffivagninn. When we came here at the weekend it was packed, but during the week it looked completely different and we were able to choose our table.

We chose a table on the street side, from which we had a nice view of the restaurant and the water. And the waitress eagerly brought us the dinner menu because we wanted a real dinner. It was also happy hour, so my husband ordered another beer while I stuck to the water, which was available in large bottles on all the tables.

The menu was relatively clear, we then decided on fish & chips ("fiskur og franskar") with salad and three different sauces (mustard sauce, cocktail sauce and remoulade)…

...and char fried in butter ("smjörseikt bleikja") with potatoes, crabs, almonds and parsley.

The fish with fries cost 2,690 ISK (the equivalent of around €20 as of March 2019), but it was a decent portion that filled you up well. The fried char with crabs was definitely very tasty, although a bit more expensive at 2,990 ISK (the equivalent of a good €22) - and the portion with the fish and the five potatoes was relatively manageable. Since we both shared portions, we were both pleasantly full!

We then paid and went back to our apartment.

Good night, Reykjavik!

[Translated from here.]