Reykjavik & Iceland Gluten Free Guide
Last updated: November 2021
Iceland is an absolutely stunning country. Think incredible landscapes with waterfalls, black beaches, snowy mountains and glaciers, whale watching and (if you’re lucky) the Northern lights. If you haven’t been, I would really recommend that you go as soon as possible. The landscape could be completely different in ten years’ time so it really is a once in a lifetime opportunity to see the amazing glaciers.
Some of the must-do activities in Iceland are:
Northern Lights tour - I’d recommend doing a small group minibus tour as the guide will be able to drive around to the best spot that night, rather than to the main coach spot, and might take some photos for you
Golden Circle - this includes the geothermal springs Geysir, the stunning Gulfoss waterfall and the Thingvellir national park with its crater between two tectonic plates
South Island - black volcanic beaches and beautiful waterfalls like Skogafoss
Whale watching - I’d recommend Elding whale watching, we saw a Minke whale and lots of dolphins
TOP tip: a glacier related activity such as “Into the Glacier” or snowmobiling on Langjokull glacier
Reykjavik is doable for gluten free provided that you do your research, so you’ve come to the right place! There is a good understanding of gluten free and not much of a language barrier as the locals speak great English. It is more tricky if, like me, you’re vegetarian too, as Icelandic food includes a lot of meat (in particular meat soup). It’s worth taking along some gluten free bread rolls just in case, or picking some up at a supermarket, so you can make emergency sandwiches.
In this guide I’ve included the restaurants I’ve visited that catered well for gluten free, and were clued up on cross contamination.
Note: lots of places have unfortunately closed since Covid 19, I’ve updated this guide to reflect that but if you’re looking at an earlier guide on someone else’s page be sure to check the restaurants are still open.
Reykjavik
Gló
If you search for gluten free restaurants in Reykjavik, Gló is always one of the first on the list. It’s a healthy eating restaurant with tons of gluten free options, and veggie/vegan options too. Even though it’s a canteen style restaurant, it’s actually a lovely place for a sit down meal. To top it off, Gló has raw, gluten free treats such as gf vegan snickers bars.
Note: the branch in the town centre has closed, but there is one still open a little further out (walking distance but a long-ish walk).
Coeliacs: gló does serve some non-gf items so make sure to let them know you’re coeliac and ask them to be careful of cross contamination.
Monkeys
Monkeys is probably my top recommendation in Reykjavik. We found it by complete chance when another restaurant was closed, and I was so glad we did. It’s an upmarket small plate restaurant with a gorgeous bar (including champagne train), and it does have a price tag to match. However, I would say you need fewer “small plates” than you might think as they’re quite large (two was fine for me). Everything gluten free is clearly marked on the menu and there’s tons of choice for meat eaters and veggies alike.
Coeliacs: the team here were very clued up. The waiter asked if I was gluten intolerant or coeliac, and fried the potatoes separately in a pan to avoid any cross contamination.
Reykjavik chips
For an easy on-the-go lunch or snack you can’t go wrong with Reykjavik chips. They used to only serve chips so there was no risk of cross contamination, but unfortunately for us they now serve burgers too so it’s not without risk. The chips are still gluten free and fried separately. All of the sauces are gluten free with the exception of the vegan satay sauce, and they are all kept in separate squeezy bottles. Plus, the chips are delicious.
Coeliacs: all of the chips are are gluten free and are the only thing fried so limited cross contamination risk, and all but one of the sauces are gf too.
Joylato (temporarily closed)
Joylato is an absolute must for anyone visiting Reykjavik because absolutely everything is gluten free! They don’t just have gelato, they also have savoury and sweet crepes, milkshakes and brownie ice cream sandwiches (picture below). There are tons of vegan options too so it’s perfect if you’re dairy free or vegan.
Coeliacs: everything is gluten free so no cross contamination in sight.
The Laundromat
The Laundromat is a quirky, American style cafe bar that offers some gluten free options including gf bread. This came up a couple of times when I was searching for gluten free restaurants, but I wasn’t particularly impressed with the allergen knowledge of the staff.
Coeliacs: perhaps one to avoid as the allergen knowledge of the staff was not great.
Himalayan Spice
Himalayan Spice is a restaurant on the harbour that serves delicious curries, I had the paneer tikka masala. Lots of naturally gluten free options.
Coeliacs: there was a bit of trust involved here as I was just told “yes yes it’s gluten free” as opposed to this being marked on the menu, so make sure the staff know that you are coeliac and that you are comfortable with their cross contamination processes.
Hlemmur Mathöll
A relatively recent addition to Reykjavik’s restaurant scene, Hlemmur Mathöll is a modern food market with a variety of restaurants to choose from. It’s a great place to shelter from the cold, and I managed to find gluten free veggie “al pastor” corn tacos at the stand called Fuego.
Tapas Barinn
Tapas Barinn came up a few times in my searches for gluten free restaurants in Reykjavik. Whilst the menu is not marked with gluten free items, the waiter could talk me through the menu and there was plenty of choice. It’s another expensive choice but, again, the small plates are larger than you’d expect in the UK.
Coeliacs: the staff here were very helpful and could tell me what was prepared and fried separately.
Outside Reykjavik
Golden Circle tour
If you’re vegetarian (or don’t like meat soup), I would highly recommend taking some food along with you for the Golden Circle tour, as there were no lunch options and the only crisps were Pringles. You can, however, find a couple of gluten free options along the way, including:
Geysir - gluten free brownie in the cafe
Gullfoss - the meat soup in the cafe is gluten and dairy free, and there’s a gluten and dairy free Skyr cheesecake too
Supermarkets
If you have a car or find yourself outside a big Netto on a day trip, make sure to pop in for tons of amazing gluten free finds that you can’t get in the UK. The smaller food shops in the town centre also have some gluten free options, I even spotted some Amy’s Kitchen meals.
Moe’s Food Truck - Akureyri
If you’re heading to North Iceland for a trip from Akureyri, you’ll want to make a stop at Moe’s Food Truck. Everything can be made gluten free, and the breaded fish and chicken come gluten free as standard.
Coeliacs: not everything is gluten free, but the fryer is only used for gluten free food so the risk of cross contamination is limited.
