Top 5 bars in… Reykjavik

As mixologists take inspiration from the plentiful native resources around them, Iceland’s cocktail scene is beginning to heat up.

On top of its incredible scenery, Reykjavic boasts some pioneering cocktail bars

In the last few years someone, somewhere, has pressed an almighty fast-forward button in Reykjavik, and now an intelligent bar culture is flourishing – particularly when it comes to cocktails. That’s not to say local trends are catching up with the progressive infusions or craft cocktail hybrids available in some of the more daringly innovative cocktail scenes across the globe – but nevertheless, a spirits revival has taken the city by storm.

Gunnar Lar Gunnarsson, former brand manager for Icelandic vodka brand Reyka, has observed the continuous development of the mixed drinks sector during this short period. He says: “The cocktail scene has been developing over the last four or five years, and has completely transformed in that time. London has been making mixed drinks for over 100 years; here we’ve only been experimenting for around four or five years. There are some amazing drinks, and it’s certainly maturing, but there is still some way to go.”

This maturation, however small, has inspired a whole new generation of native mixologists to explore the natural habitat in which they thrive, and experiment with unique Icelandic ingredients – a theme born in Icelandair Hotel’s lounge bar, Slippbarinn, where Iceland’s craft cocktail movement first took off, with infusions and shrubs aplenty.

Gunnarsson explains: “Before it was more just about creating Mojitos and simple cocktails, however now it’s about infusing, foraging, and experimenting with local Icelandic ingredients. Bartenders are using local spirits, like Reyka vodka, and adding something else to the mix, like herbs, crowberries, rhubarb, blueberries, and other things of that nature.”

Despite the acceleration in Iceland’s drinking culture – a country where consuming beer over 2.25% abv was illegal before 1989 – there are still no dedicated cocktail bars to be found anywhere. If you’re after a quality mixed drink, the only options are one of the various restaurant or hotel bars dotted around Reykjavik, which is unsurprising given the frequent use of local and seasonal ingredients used in Icelandic dishes. “It’s generally lounges in restaurants like Apotek that are serving the innovative, new and really complex cocktails,” Gunnarsson adds. “Mainstream bars tend to just stick to beers and simple spirit serves, but this looks set to change in the next few years.”

Since Iceland’s banking structure toppled back in 2008, the country has worked hard to recover from the recession, and as a result now boasts an impressively stable economy. However, we’re far from things being all peachy – the cost of living is high, and many Icelanders work several jobs to support their families. But determined locals love nothing more than to head out and enjoy a drink (or five) when it comes to the weekend.

“Alcohol is quite expensive in Iceland, so it tends to be that if people are going out to party they do it in full-force,” Gunnarsson explains.“It’s common that people go out later – around maybe midnight, or 1am, so bars here are generally open until 5am.”

Flick through the next few pages to discover the best bars in Reykjavik.

Slippbarinn

Mýrargata 2; slippbarinn.is

Pioneer of Reykjavik’s cocktail scene, Slippbarinn is the city’s first dedicated cocktail bar. It’s nestled in the foyer of the chic Icelandair Hotel Reykjavik Marina – if you’re lucky you might just sneak a peak of the northern lights while you sip the night away. The team use local ingredients to create their masterful menu, which rotates according to the season. The bar’s talented mixologists play with quirky flavours like bacon-infused brandy, as experimental as the bartenders in cocktail capitals of the world, such as London or San Francisco.

Apotek

Austurstræti 16; apotekrestaurant.is

A boutique hotel and restaurant set inside a listed, former apothecary whose name translates as “the pharmacy”. Apotek’s resident “pharmacists” will mix an artisan cocktail to suit your preference from their medicinal four-part menu: stimulants, painkillers, tranquilisers and placebos. Once you’ve chosen your peptic potion, kick back and let the healing begin.

Lebowski Bar

Designed, as you’d expect, according to the 1998 cult comedy film, with a dedicated burger menu and a retro jukebox playlist to match.

The bar explores four separate themes; a bowling alley, old-fashioned porch, fifties diner, and a playboy lounge bar upstairs, and is a lively hangout popular with locals and visitors alike.

A dedicated White Russian cocktail list is the main event, with enough variations of the creamy, smooth recipe to suit every palette – but well, that’s just, like… my opinion, man.

Kol

Skólavörðustígur 40; kolrestaurant.is

One of the most progressive bar-restaurant hybrids in Reykjavik’s ballooning bar scene, Kol wouldn’t be out of place if you stumbled across it in Soho. High-quality craft cocktails are king, with progressive ingredients like crowberry liqueur, olive oil-washed gin and birch sap. The interior is sophisticated with a raw, natural edge; all leather benches and mineral rock surfaces, epitomised with a huge Icelandic falcon painted on one of the walls by local artist Inga Maria.

The Grill Market

Lækjargata 2A; grillmarkadurinn.is

A bar-restaurant that perfectly merges Icelandic heritage with the avante garde, it is dimly lit and decorated with basalt, moss, and the skin of spotted wolf fish, giving it an authentic, intimate setting. The cocktail menu is composed of beloved favourites served with a culinary slant, so expect Marmalade Martinis and Rhubarb Mojitos. Come for the drinks, stay for the surroundings.