Coffee

Coffee is kaffi in Icelandic, and we use the word a lot. As I understand it, inviting someone over for coffee meant, in the old turf-house days, that you had some of the sacred stuff. And the stronger the brew, the more you obviously had, hence the wealthier you were. Nowadays, kaffi is everywhere, and there are literally hundreds of cafés and gourmet coffee houses all around the country. Our baristas place and show in world-class espresso-making competitions and macchiato has become a household word. Icelanders have gone from suffering brewed mud to sipping the extract of delicately roasted beans in fresh-steamed milk in fifteen short years, and done it with style.

My girlfriend Sonja runs Kaffitár (literally, coffee 'tear,' though 'drop' might fit well too) by far the best coffee house in Iceland. They have a great little shop on Bankastræti (which is just the main shopping street, Laugarvegur, with a different name) as well as one in Kringlann, the big indoor mall. They roast their own beans and just opened a new roasting facility last month. They have set the standard for excellence in gourmet coffee here, and Sonja is recognized internationally for her expertise in the field. She is invited all over the world to judge competitions and consult with new coffee ventures. She's young and fun, a little Bohemian and loves the world of coffee.

Kaffitár is a non-smoking café, which you will appreciate when you discover how many cafes you can smoke in here. I get the coffee/sig relationship--I've spent a good third of my adult waking hours in coffee houses here and in the states (both working and chilling) but the smell that lingers in my hair and on my clothes, even if I'm in the non-smoking section, isn't worth it anymore. There are more and more cafés following Kaffitár's example, so we do have a good choice these days.

A note on closing: Kaffitár opens early and closes early. It doesn't turn into a restaurant then bar like most of the cafés here. Also, you might have to wait a while for your drink, and you might need to take it to-go. It's small and gets crowded. Oh, and one more thing: try the Azteca coffee with orange and tabasco...Excellent!

Other Good Cafes: Té og Kaffi on Laugarvegur at Klapparstig, and Ömmukaffi across from the post office on Austurstræti (both also non-smoking); Kaffibrennslan and Cafe Paris both on Austurvöllur, which is a charming grassy park downtown (these places serve full meals and alcohol, are open late, and allow smoking); Solon on Laugarvegur at Ingólfstræti (full meals with International flavor, booze and smoking); and for a more Bohemian atmosphere Prikið across from Solon, and Kaffibarinn on Smiðjustígur off Laugarvegur (both turn into very popular bars at night.)