Review of Kol Restaurant: Expect an Experience

I went with a group of friends to have dinner at the acclaimed Kol Restaurant in downtown Reykjavik. It is located a short walk (just 1-2 minutes) away from the most iconic building in the city, Hallgrimskirkja church.

Kol (the Icelandic word for coal) has been around for over ten years at this point, a huge accomplishment within the restaurant scape in Reykjavik, where it's hard to stay on top because of the never-ending influx of new places entering the scene. Reliability is the key to success, and we found out Kol knows how to deliver.

I had been to Kol before, so I knew what to expect, but I was excited to try out their seasonal menu and as many cocktails as I could put my hands on.

The reason why Kol has been able to flourish for a decade is because they get the basics right: Great food. Good atmosphere. What more do you need?

An elegant mood for food

The mood at Kol is sophisticated with a modern Scandinavian vibe.

The first thing you notice when you step into Kol Restaurant is that the lighting is very moody. There are stylish hanging lamps over the tables, designed by revered British designer Tom Dixon, and light also comes from underneath the wooden boards mounted on the wall.

It's a little bit dark, giving it a perfect atmosphere for a date night. It's not quite ideal for photography, though, so they seated us right by the window at the brightest table so I could take pictures of all the delicious food we subsequently devoured.

All of Kol's interior is characterized by three elements: concrete, wood and leather. This gives the whole place a consistent ambiance, which is reflected in their approach to cuisine: Consistency.

The bartender at Kol made us some great cocktails throughout the evening. He was so fast I only caught a couple of photos where he wasn't blurry!

We started off the evening with cocktails. While there are about 20 cocktails to choose from, Kol makes sure you're not overwhelmed by the selection, as they group them into four categories: Accessible, Professional, Dessert, and Seasonal cocktails (they also have non-alcoholic cocktails... but I'll skip right over that).

As a professional cocktail drinker (technically correct, since I was on the clock), I ordered their "Laugh and Grow Fat" cocktail from the Professional menu, Kol's unique take on an Old Fashioned. It has a hedonistic combination of bacon-washed bourbon, date syrup, and chocolate bitters, with a smooth and easy taste. It comes garnished with a huge dried date. It definitely made me laugh, we'll see about the latter.

Our first round of cocktails. Top: Penicillin. Left: Old Mexican Sour. Right: Laugh and Grow Fat.

Others around the table ordered an "Old Mexican Sour" (Kol's version of Whiskey Sour) and "Penicillin." I tried both of them, and they both tasted very refreshing for different reasons. "Old Mexican Sour" has mezcal rather than whiskey, giving it a Meso-American tinge. "Penicillin" includes Scotch whiskey as the main alcohol and has a medicinal-like bitter flavor from its lemon and ginger, which is balanced well with a dash of honey.

All three cocktails we had are quite advanced, but there are certainly simpler and more straightforward cocktails to choose from if you're not the adventurous (drinking) type.

Crispy, crackly & crumbly

These buddies greet you at the bathrooms in Kol. They are beautifully handpainted onto the walls.

After we had savored our cocktails and engaged in some Well-Mannered Banter™, it was time to order. We all ordered a different set menu for the evening. I had the seasonal set menu for October; two of us tried the Icelandic set menu, while one of us had the vegan set menu. There is also a French set menu, which will have to wait another day.

My first course was their birch-smoked salmon. Being Icelandic, I eat smoked salmon regularly, most often on rye bread with Scandinavian gravlax sauce. Kol's version was refreshingly sweet and crispy. It had sweet almond praline and cranberry purée with cashews, served with crackly Parmesan crisps and saffron shallots.

A fresh, sweet, and crispy take on an Icelandic staple, the birch-smoked salmon.

I was pleasantly surprised with the sweet flavors blending well with the smoky salmon. The crunchy texture of the crisps took this first course to new heights, and the satisfying crunchiness became a theme as the evening went on.

Next up was the tiger prawn taco. It's served with pickled chili, lime aioli, and a colorful cashew purée. It was delightful, and the taco shell reminded me more of a traditional Icelandic laufabrauð than a typical corn taco. It felt like it was fried in tallow rather than oil. Maybe I'm wrong... I just know it was delightfully crackly!

The tiger prawn taco at Kol with pickled chili and cashew purée. Delightfully crispy and delicious!

For my friends who had the Icelandic set menu, the saffron langoustine soup arrived at the table. The presentation is quite lovely, as the basil cream cheese, pickled mustard seeds, croutons, and shallots arrive in a bowl, and the server then pours the hot soup into it.

I enjoyed a couple of spoonfuls and was impressed with the light cocoa flavor of the soup stock, giving it a slightly sweet taste. The langoustine was, of course, caught in Icelandic waters and tasted fresh and good!

The pouring of the langoustine soup made for a great display. More importantly, it was yummy!

Before I move on to the main course, I should mention that we had great wine pairings accompanying all our courses. I'm more of a wine drinker than a wine thinker, so I can't go deep into how the tones and tannins and whatnot of the wine enhanced the taste of the food.

All I can tell you is that the wine we had tasted great. We had white wine with the first course and then two glasses of red wine after that. That's my insightful analysis of the wine selection, and I didn't even use the word mouthfeel!

A satisfying end to the evening

The atmosphere at Kol was great during this cold and crisp autumn night in Reykjavik.

Now then, onto the main course of the night: The miso beef tenderloin! I was not asked how I liked my steak before it was presented, but the chef's telepathy knew I liked it rare, and it was perfectly presented with pickled pearl onions and a Madagascar pepper sauce.

What elevated it to another level was the texture-rich hazelnut and celeriac crumble, along with the crackly kataifi (a crispy Greek pastry dough) ticking all the boxes I wanted ticked, texture-wise.

Alongside the steak, I also got creamy wild mushroom risotto on a separate plate. It was dusted with parmesan cheese and strewn with sunchokes, creating a great combination of flavors. Adding to the texture were the crispy oyster mushrooms, keeping up the crackly theme of this set menu.

The beef tenderloin was the highlight of the evening for me. The wild mushroom risotto it came with supplemented its flavors perfectly.

The risotto was great, though I treated it more as a side with my steak. I had some mouthfuls where I managed to perfectly balance each element of both dishes on my fork like a circus acrobat for a few heavenly bites. Success!

After my friends finished their Icelandic lamb fillet, the main course of the Icelandic menu, we had some more cocktails! I went for "Donkey" from their Accessible cocktails menu, and my buddy had an espresso martini (how original...), but the showstopper was the "Papaya on Fire" cocktail, a rum/cinnamon/pepper/cocoa concoction which, as the name indicates, was served on fire!

The "Papaya on Fire" cocktail was literally on fire! I give the bartender credit for managing to keep the fire separated from the paper straw.

Moving on to the desserts, mine was served in an elegant martini glass containing a crumbly basil-pistachio tiramisu garnished with a violet pansy. It was delicious and refreshingly modest in its sweetness.

I feel like some restaurants go too hard when making desserts, with sweetness overwhelming the tastebuds after a multi-course meal, but this beautiful mix of brownie bites, toffee gelato, and raspberry combined with the great brittle of the pistachio and biscuit crumble made for a pleasing end of the night for both eyes and palate.

Left: Basil-pistachio tiramisu with brownie bites and toffee gelato. Right: Golden banana split with coconut ice cream and berries.

The lone vegan in the group got a decadent golden banana split for dessert with coconut ice cream, chantilly cream, candied almonds, and a caramelized banana. All topped off with berries and a chocolate glaze! I just had a couple of spoons for taste, and it was really good.

The size of it was a bit intimidating for me, so I was happy I only had to finish my little martini glass of goodies compared to that mountain of golden sweetness.

All of us were very happy at the end of the night, as you can see in the video below. We had a great time chatting and having fun, enjoying the mood and, of course, the epic gastronomical journey we underwent.

The service was all around very attentive and friendly. They gave us a good rundown of everything we ate and drank, and they were always on call when we needed something.

When we left around 10, there was still plenty of life at the restaurant as people made the most of that cold and dark autumn night at Kol, much like we did.

Conclusion: Kol is an elegant restaurant with a moody atmosphere that's perfect for date night or an evening with friends. The food is great and manages to introduce sweet flavors where you don't expect them, with a great emphasis on texture, as all my courses featured a crunchy element that took the food experience to another level.