Places to eat and drink in East Iceland, from the harbour in Seyðisfjörður to the inland valleys.
Restaurant and bar of Hótel Aldan, in the hotel's reception building in the old town centre, open to non-guests for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Nordic and European-influenced cooking built on local produce and fish from the fjord, plus cocktails.
Restaurant in a 32-room family-run country hotel by the fjord, with mountain and sea views. Serves breakfast buffets and dinners of local fish from the harbour and lamb from nearby farms.
Restaurant and bar in a former bait shed on the waterfront, a Norwegian-built house from the 1890s, with a large deck over the fjord. Serves pizzas, burgers, fish and chips and fish tacos, and hosts concerts and other events most weekends.
Small summer restaurant at the Berunes farm hostel on the north shore of Berufjörður, with views across the fjord. It serves a daily changing four-course set menu based on local ingredients, with East Iceland craft beer and European wines.
Restaurant of Hótel Breiðdalsvík, open to walk-in guests as well as hotel guests. It serves East Iceland fish, local lamb and seasonal dishes, and Beljandi beer from the brewery in the village.
Photo: Christian Bickel (fingalo), CC BY-SA 2.0 DE
Small family-run café-restaurant by the small-boat harbour, open since 2006 and run by the founders' daughter since late 2024. The menu includes pizza, seafood and Icelandic lamb.
Restaurant at Gistihúsið – Lake Hotel Egilsstaðir, a farm guesthouse founded in 1903 on the bank of Lagarfljót. Serves Icelandic and international dishes from mostly local produce, including a three-course 'Beint frá býli' (farm-to-table) dinner.
Café and restaurant at Fjalladýrð in Möðrudalur, Iceland's highest farm, in a turf-fronted building. By day it serves lamb soup with meat from the farm, vegetable and moss soup, and pastries such as kleinur and ástarpungar; from 18:00 an à la carte dinner featuring Arctic char from highland lakes, farm lamb and seasonal reindeer.
Restaurant in Nielsenshús, the oldest house in Egilsstaðir (built 1944), serving light, fresh food such as poke bowls, salads, sandwiches, tacos, juices, smoothies and açaí bowls, with an outdoor terrace.
Restaurant and bar at Blábjörg Resort in the old freezing plant by the harbour in Bakkagerði. Homemade Icelandic and international dishes such as plokkfiskur (fish stew) with local fish and homemade rye bread, cod with miso glaze, burgers from local beef, a pulled-lamb sandwich and vegan options.
Restaurant at Hótel Valaskjálf serving pasta, fish and meat dishes and Italian-style pizzas from a traditional pizza oven. The hotel bar is in the same building.
Restaurant at Síreksstaðir, a working sheep and cattle farm with a guesthouse in Sunnudalur off Hofsárdalur. Serves dinners made mostly from the farm's own and local produce; groups of up to 30 by advance order.
Summer restaurant in a renovated barn and sheep house at Bragðavellir in Hamarsfjörður, about 10 minutes' drive south of Djúpivogur, with views over the fjord. The menu includes soup, burgers, cod cheeks, cod and lamb chops, with homemade cakes and pancakes.
Summer hotel in the dormitory of the Egilsstaðir upper secondary school. Dinner is a soup buffet with focaccia, and the hotel bar has views over the river.
Hotel in woodland less than 3 km from central Egilsstaðir, just off road 94, with a restaurant, bar, lounge and outdoor terrace. The restaurant is open to non-guests, though dinner may be limited outside the main season.
Hotel restaurant and bar in the original Framtíð building from 1904, overlooking the harbour. The menu includes local blue mussels, catch of the day from local fishermen, lamb, langoustine and pizzas, with a lighter menu in the afternoon.
Country hotel in a former schoolhouse in Breiðdalur valley, about 5 km from Breiðdalsvík. Its restaurant serves breakfast, lunch, dinner and an à la carte menu, with coffee and cakes through the day.
Bistro and grill on the ground floor of Hildibrand Hotel, in the 1940s building of the former Kaupfélagið Fram co-operative store, with old shop signs inside. The menu has pizzas, burgers, fish and chips, crêpes and grilled skewers, using local fish and lamb where possible.
Restaurant on the ground floor of Gunnarshús, the writer Gunnar Gunnarsson's house at Skriðuklaustur. Serves a lunch buffet and a coffee/cake buffet in summer, using local produce such as lamb, reindeer, crowberries, larch mushrooms and fish from the fjords; seating for about 50 plus a south-facing terrace.
À la carte bistro and bar on the upper floor of Hótel Hallormsstaður, with views over the forest and Lagarfljót lake. The menu includes pasta, risotto, grilled beef, lamb and slow-cooked pork belly.
French-inspired restaurant on the ground floor of Fosshotel Eastfjords, in the restored French hospital buildings by the harbour, with views over the fjord. The kitchen uses fish and meat from local fishermen and farmers; the hotel also houses a museum on the French fishermen.
The main restaurant of Hótel Hallormsstaður, serving an Icelandic evening buffet in summer; it also serves the hotel's breakfast buffet (07:00-10:00).
Restaurant and bar at Berjaya Hérað Hotel serving lunch, dinner and takeaway skyr bowls, with a focus on fresh local ingredients.
Summer-only sushi restaurant and cocktail bar run by Hótel Aldan. It serves maki rolls, nigiri and Japanese small plates, using fish caught in the fjord and nearby waters, and is listed in The White Guide Nordic.
Restaurant at the Wilderness Center, a restored farm at the end of Norðurdalur with a museum, accommodation and tours. Serves homemade food from local ingredients: breakfast buffet, lamb soup with homemade bread at lunch, a cake buffet at coffee time and a course of the day at dinner.
Family-friendly café-bistro in the town centre, opened in 2013, serving pizzas, burgers and a varied menu of other dishes, plus coffee and cake.
Bistro on the ground floor of Skaftfell, the Centre for Visual Art. It serves modern takes on Icelandic dishes made with produce from local farmers and fishermen. Part of the room displays works by Dieter Roth and contemporary East Iceland artists.
