Bara Borgarnes — Restaurant in undefined

I absolutely LOVED this restaurant! Borgarnes is a sleepy, quiet town and I only stayed over a night (part of my 7 Day Complete Iceland Tour). We only had time to go to the local supermarket and then headed straight for dinner.

It's located right smacked in the middle of town.. Opposite our hotel (Borgarnes Hotel). Very convenient.

With such high rating, of course we had to try it.

Service was warm and friendly. The moment we stepped in, we noticed the restaurant was already 3/4 full. I liked the bohemian, cosy setting inside.

My best friend and I both went for the grilled lamb chops and I was stunned when it arrived. The portions looked absolutely humongous - although, let me just say, it's the way it was plated. They serve it in a long chopping board, creating the illusion of quantity. That's not to say portions were small. They're typical Icelandic portions, like any other restaurant. But the salad and fries were generous (and absolutely delicious!).

The 2 pieces of lamb chops were grilled to perfection... Beautiful balance of chargrilled flavours and tenderness. It was the best lamb meal we had in our entire stay in Iceland, and I confess... It was my best meal in Iceland! Absolutely loved the grilled lamb and the salad... And... I'm ashamed to confess... I wiped up ALL the fries. Yes. Carb-phobic me. It was THAT GOOD.

After finishing our meal, 2 of our other tourmates came to join us for drinks (I'd sent the secret alert out about the amazing food).

We went up to the bar counter and spoke with the quirky waitress (who'd have thought... a happy goth!). I asked for recommendations and told her I don't normally drink alcohol, and didn't like anything too strong. Sweet, preferably.

She immediately offered to make me something special that was off the menu... Challenge Accepted.

She whipped up something with frozen mixed berries, lime and mint.. And of course, whatever alcohol tossed in. It didn't taste overly strong and tasted like a refreshing mohito, except this was lighter, more colourful (pretty!) and I liked it.

When I asked for the name of this cocktail... She said it didn't have a name. And I gave it a name on the spot - Isfold (pronounced Ees-fold). So, if you ever fancy a light and refreshing cocktail... Saunter up to the bar and ask for Isfold and mention you read it in a Google review by Rosalind from Singapore. You get a 10% discount (just kidding! 😂😂😜). But the Isfold is now the new cocktail in town. That, I kid you not!

In the end, my tourmate ordered the same thing after trying mine and my bestie ordered a Pina Colada (ask for less alcohol if you want something less sweet and strong).

I love this restaurant for the friendly warm vibes which really accentuated our dining experience. Food was lovely (my best meal in Iceland, and I'd been to many fancy places!) and I love that they don't just whip up a normal salad. They added toppings to a generous salad and the dressing was tangy and vibrant.

I'm just sorry this dinner isn't right next door to where I live, coz I would happy pop in for food and a chat...

Owner is probably racist, sexist (definitely acted like one) and not considerate for vegetarians/vegans; despite a great atmosphere and kitchen. This is why 1 star.

The food served was good, live music was awesome. Why 1 star? My German friend and I (Indian) who are vegetarian arrived to be told that they only had fish and chips. He repeatedly said they were out of anything else. The owner then makes a joke saying that they have a second option ‘meat’. Thanks to the south asian woman at the kitchen taking pity at us, she whipped up the veg plate; we had an awesome vegetarian meal and felt very happy. Then comes the bill where I am charged 8900 ISK ($72) for vegetarian food that was marked 3600 ISK on the menu and a can of cherry beer of Icelandic brand Skuis (8.5% alcohol). My friend’s meal was similar and she had a lager (4.5% alcohol), paying 6800 ISK in total ($17 less than me). I paid first, then asked for a receipt. He gave me credit card receipt that didn’t have itemisation and when I asked him how much the alcohol cost; the owner told me that I was questioning him despite him treating us as “royalties”. And then told us to get out of the bar. I quietly walked out; and my German friend who was trying to calm him ended up getting a free beer?! Wow. He even gave free beer to another white American customer at the bar.. when my friend paid her bill, she couldn’t touch-tap the card, and said she will have to insert the card and he said “inserting is better, right?”. She pretended to ignore and he repeated the joke for her to acknowledge..

So I don’t know what to make for this dining experience that went from being okay to great to no-words-left. I still don’t know what i did wrong by asking about the cost of my drink as a customer? Isn’t it my right? All he had to do was tell me how much I paid for the can in...

Thankfully we searched Google prior to making dinner plans and the insane reviews on this restaurant are no joke! It was a phenomenal experience, one of the best we have had since arriving in Iceland. As we entered, our host immediately recognized us as foreign and made jokes before inviting us to sit down. Once we settled in, he came back to tell us all about the Icelandic beer they offer. When I asked for a cocktail instead, he said he knew just the thing and told me if I don't like it, I don't pay. Well I loved it! After we ordered our meal, a local struck up some engaging conversation with us! After the host heard I worked with meat back home, he threw a lamb chop on the grill for me as a gift. Just because it's the best around and I needed to have it. The lamb chop, the lamb steak on sourdough and the lamb burger were all phenomenal!! This lamb really is in a league all of its own. They educated us on the farming practices of the sheep. It was really fascinating and gave us special insight into Icelandic life. After our meal, we were invited to stay and hear local choirs practice at the bar, which is so endearing to see a community so supportive of their brothers and sisters! We absolutely loved our experience tonight and would recommend it to anyone. If we have the chance to visit Iceland again, it may just be...