Skogafoss Bistro Bar

Update: Lowering from 5 stars to 3 for a solid reason.

Our dining experience: The food was delicious. We had the lamb shank, lamb burger, and arctic char, all cooked beautifully and full of flavor. The view from the restaurant is amazing. You dine overlooking the waterfall, which makes the whole experience feel special!!!

Why we’re lowering the rating: Four days after our visit, we received a parking ticket for €46 (€16 for the parking fee and €30 for the admin fee). We were confused, frustrated, and honestly disappointed.

To be clear, we absolutely understand that as drivers, it’s our responsibility to pay for parking wherever we go. We’ve traveled around the world and always pay for parking without issue. But in this case, the hotel and restaurant provided no information whatsoever indicating that the parking lot right outside the hotel entry required manual payment. This is against the common sense.

A simple sign would’ve made all the difference. We drove all the way from Vik for this experience, enjoyed the food, paid several hundred euros happily, and would have gladly paid €15 for parking only if we had known.

Instead, we were left with a bitter aftertaste from what now feels like a tourist trap. A lovely evening turned into a disappointment, and that’s truly...

We are tourists and knew about the high prices, but the sticker shock was still real, paying about $50 USD for fish and soup and $30 USD for a pasta with meatballs. That said, it was absolutely delicious, served piping hot and fast. We heard the Icelandic lamb was the best in the world, and we have to agree... it was so lean and seemed to melt in our mouths! The Atlantic Charr was a lot like Salmon but with a milder taste and a nice crispy skin.

The staff spoke excellent English but were focused as they were certainly busy handling the many patrons. We called ahead and were able to sit our group of 8 right away in the early afternoon. The customer bathrooms in the adjoining hotel were plentiful, clean, and warm. But most importantly for us, the views of the valley and waterfall were absolutely spectacular. Wonderful choice for presumably authentic...

We had the pleasure of staying at the hotel for 5 days, using it as our “base camp” and ate at the restaurant a number of times…each meal was delicious! The service was friendly and attentive. I am gluten free and dairy free and they were knowledgeable about what I could eat and always checked with the chef to see about substitutes without making me feel like a problem. They carried a gluten free bread for burgers and breakfast that was the best I’d ever had! There is nothing like it in the US. The smoked salmon appetizer was my favorite, I had never had such a buttery textured fish like that and the cinnamon apples and citrus aioli made it more special. We had soups, burgers, main courses that were all fabulous. All of this amazing food, served with an awesome view of the Skogafoss and mountains…icing...