My preferred dinner time is late, 9PM, especially when travelling. One particular day, we got back from sightseeing around 5PM, and decided to walk around and grab a snack. We passed by a place called Sushi Social in Reykjavik. The advertised a happy hour and I was curious so we went in.
We sat at the sushi bar. The food could go either way.
Negatives were the “funny” fusion rolls on the menu, tiki themed dining room, and lack of anyone Japanese or Asian working or eating (not to mention we were in Iceland, not exactly a place known for sushi).
Positives were they were advertising Blue Fin tuna (o-toro and chu-toro) from Spain, they had REAL Icelandic wasabi, and we were in Iceland (a place, I figured, which should have at the very least, fresh fish).
I had a conversation with the Icelandic sushi chef, and he was very knowledgeable about sushi and the products on offer.
- he learned how to make sushi from another Icelandic guy who learned from a Japanese guy
- he also recommended the Arctic char and salmon, but recommended against the white fish
- he was quite knowledgeable about the rice, the most important part of a nigiri
First off, here is a picture of the Icelandic wasabi proudly on display. Before coming to this country, I never knew they produced the stuff also.
So how was it? First off, the fish to rice ratio was “correct”. They also pre-soy sauced the nigiri. I was worried coming into this place that we would get mushy, flavorless rice. The texture was actually good and well seasoned. The blue fin was very fresh, and tasty.
The Arctic char and salmon (which came with some mayo and seaweed, my feedback would be to get rid of these toppings). These were also quite good.
Considering where we were, I was thoroughly impressed with the sushi here. If I were in Iceland again, I would probably come back if I was craving sushi. The restaurant needs to offer all the other Westernized Japanese food obviously because how many people come to Reykjavik looking for “real” sushi? However, if you visit, and want the good stuff, sit at the bar, talk to the chef, you won’t likely be disappointed either. Note, like everywhere else in Iceland, the food was expensive. The above plus 2 drinks came to about $120.