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A new feast in the East Egilsstadir welcomes a new restaurant with a polished pedigree. TEXT: Carolyn Bain PHOTOS: Arni Saeberg and Nielsen restaurant
It’s been quite a year for Kari Thorsteinsson and Solveig Edda Bjarna dottir. Together they have welcomed their first child, relocated from Reykjavik to Solveig’s East Iceland hometown, and taken over the oldest house in Egilsstadir, a pretty cottage built in 1944 and known locally as Nielsenshus, after the first owner, Oswald Nielsen.
aware of the gem they now have on their doorstep. Kari’s kitchen pedigree is impressive: he has worked at Copenhagen’s acclaimed Noma, and in Reykjavik was head chef at DILL, the first Icelandic restaurant awarded a Michelin star.
Kari, in turn, is elated at his new neighbourhood and the fine produce grown, caught and farmed in the In May, after some renovations, the restaurant’s radius. “You can’t get pair opened the doors to their new- more face-to-face with farmers than est family addition, the restaurant here”, he says, while telling stories of they have christened Nielsen. Resi- locals dropping by with homegrown dents of the East are fast becoming mushrooms, strawberries and wild
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salmon for him to check out. Nielsen’s accomplished offerings stretch across weekday lunch (big portions for local workers) and weekend brunch, but it’s the dinner menu that’s the highlight, where the farm-to-table (or fjord-to-table) ethos shines loud and proud. On tap is a delicious spritz concoction of rhubarb, gin, elderflower and lemon – perfect for menu-reading and decision-making. The meal begins with a dish destined to be a Nielsen staple: reindeer tartare. It’s
