Fjallkonan — Restaurant in Reykjavik

Fjallkonan by Ingólfstorg gave me and my friends one of the best nights out we’ve had in downtown Reykjavík. From the moment we walked in, the atmosphere drew us in, a beautifully kept interior that manages to feel both stylish and authentic, with the original timber structure tastefully preserved to give the place real character. You can tell care has been taken to maintain its historic charm while still feeling fresh and inviting. Even the men’s bathroom matched the rest of the restaurant’s style, spacious, spotless, pleasantly scented, and clearly maintained with pride.

We all opted for the three-course meal and paired it with beers and cocktails, which set the tone for a fantastic evening. My own choices were outstanding, a delicate beef carpaccio to start, perfectly medium cooked beef tenderloin for the main, and a rich, decadent chocolate cake to finish. Every plate was beautifully presented and packed with flavor, showing clear skill and attention to detail in the kitchen.

The service, however, is where Fjallkonan truly shines. Our waitress, Brynja, went above and beyond,checking in regularly to ensure everything was perfect and doing it with a genuine warmth that made us feel looked after rather than “managed.” Her colleagues, Lilja and Júlí, were equally attentive, always on the lookout to make sure our table had everything we needed. They were not only professional but also friendly, engaging, and, I’ll say it, good-looking, which added to the charm of the night. I was especially impressed by how open they were in answering my more curious questions about the restaurant’s business, their typical customers, and even service challenges. By the end of the evening, it felt like I’d made a few new acquaintances rather than just met our servers.

We left feeling full, happy, and impressed, not just by the food and drinks, but by the whole experience. Fjallkonan has managed to create a dining atmosphere that is elegant yet personal, and it’s absolutely a place I’d recommend for anyone wanting a memorable night out...

I found Fjallkonan through a random blog that I can’t seem to find again when researching restaurants with vegan options (our party had one vegan, one seafood allergy, and two omnivores). The rest of the party swear by Trip Advisor ratings, and this wasn’t ranked high enough foe them to find it, so they were skeptical. The menu online looked good, so they acquiesced. Boy are we all glad we ate there; straight away the atmosphere was cozy and the service was great. Then the food came. We ordered the hummus tower to start and while every part was delicious, the flatbread stole the show. For entrees we ordered the vegan cauliflower “rib eye steak”, chicken salad, halibut, and grilled rib eye. The portions were generous and the flavors explosive. The vegetables were perfectly cooked (I prefer mine slightly soft with a slight crunch), but despite how amazing the other dishes were, the meat eaters couldn’t stop singing the praises of the grilled rib eye. They all tried it and declared the steak, mushrooms, and truffle fries the best any of them had had in years, maybe ever. The word “addictive” was used several times, and someone even said they would probably end up craving it once we’re back home and we’d have to come back to Iceland just for the steak (which would break none of our hearts). The only possible complaint was that we waited a VERY long time for the check, but in fairness we arrived shortly before the kitchen closed and the service had been impeccable up to that point. So the moral of this story? Don’t just pay attention to Trip Advisor and Google rankings. Find the random blog posts and try a place that maybe doesn’t come up when you search “best restaurants in Reykjavik” or some such phrase. My party definitely wants to go back, possibly even over trying other delicious sounding places. So we absolutely...

Went there daily for dinner trying the different dishes on the menu, everything was fantastic! Service can be slow at times getting to you and getting your drinks/food out, but it's a different expectation than in the US. Different people are bringing out your stuff vs a particular server being responsible and taking care of a particular section, so there is confusion as to who to get a hold of if you need something, we were told that if you need anything, just get a hold of staff passing by, they are all happy to help. Shout out to a server that mostly took care of our needs while there, Valla, she was fantastic! We recommended this place to everyone we met. If back in Iceland, i'll be going back! The only eye sore, if sitting out on the patio, (no fault of theirs) is the “homeless” man who comes by and hangs out in front of the patio, feeding food to the birds, which in turn makes the birds hanging out and circle this particular patio area. Farther down, is the biker group who hangs out at Ingolfur Square (Hjólabrettapallar skateboard park) and are allowed to park their motorcycles there. Their hangouts should have been on the outskirts of Reykjavik, not at its heart, where tourism is prevalent with shopping and dining. This, being another greenery park, would in turn change the atmosphere that partakes and is attracted there. Unfortunately, there is a stigma attached to bikers and skateboarders, associated with violence, unruliness, drugs, etc. due to experiences in other countries, in which people bring with them, which in turn can affect tourism in city areas, creating an avoidance of...