Before leaving for Iceland I did a lot of research on multiple places to eat in each city we were staying at or passing through. I also searched for grocery stores, gluten free brands, and prepared Icelandic allergy cards. I was super nervous about starving or worse getting glutened during a very long road trip with few places to stop. However, I was pleasantly surprised with my eating experience Iceland!

Before we left we packed gluten free bread, and some small snacks to eat on the road. In Reykjavik before heading out we bought a good amount of food just in case we had trouble. I highly recommend shopping before leaving any major city, there are few places in between you’ll be able to stop at. And as far as grocery stores, the larger ones are in Reykjavik. For the most part the selection is decent, and most of the food is in english so it’s easy to figure out what’s safe. 

One of the BEST gluten free foods is Skyr (Icelandic yogurt). I survived our entire trip mainly because of Skyr and you can buy it basically everywhere (grocery stores, gas stations, restaurants). It’s delicious and one of the things I miss most from our trip!

Strawberry Skyr! It comes with a spoon and a lid so it’s super easy to eat on the go!

In Reykjavik we had an easier time and more variety of places to eat at. Each place we went to I never felt sick, and had almost no problem explaining my dietary restrictions. Almost every waiter knew and understood what a gluten allergy was and were very helpful in notifying me of dishes to avoid. Also, as a side note almost everyone speaks english! Here are a few places i’d recommend: 

a) Gló - A popular health food restaurant. Everything was gluten free, raw, or healthy and the menu changed. You pick a variety of sides for your meal, including a choice of meat. 

b) Reykjavik Fish and Chips - Not to be confused with Icelandic Fish and Chips right next door. This was one of the best meals I had on the trip. It’s mainly seafood, and there was a small list of gluten free items. Luckily the salmon meal I got was very filling and tasty! It came with a side salad and veggies. I don’t believe they have a website, and their menu was written on a giant chalkboard. It was still delicious though!

Harper’s non-GF fries: mayo sauce and onions.

c) Reykjavik Chips - This was a great place to get a snack. They serve french fries with a variety of toppings, and options. I stuck with plain because the waiters were unsure about cross-contamination in some of the sauces. My hubsand tried their mayo sauce with onions and loved it. However, we both got larges and easily could’ve stuck with small!

My GF Meal on the bottom, Harper’s on the top.

d) LAVA Restaurant - I’m going to include the Blue Lagoon’s restaurant in this list, since it isn’t far from Reykjavik. We made reservations beforehand, but the restaurant was pretty empty so I don’t know how long of a wait it usually is. Our meal was delicious, and one of the few places offering steak on the menu. We splurged because this was our last stop at the end of our trip and desperately needed a good meal! The wait staff was great and accommodating. I felt a little sick afterwards, but I think it was from eating too much. 

As for the rest of our trip check out the second part of this post recommending all the other places we ate at!