Despite Iceland’s sheep and fish heritage, the country is vegan and vegetarian-friendly. There might not be many exclusively vegan restaurants, but you will find vegan and vegetarian dishes on most menus.
Some say that Iceland is even one of the more vegan and vegetarian-friendly countries you will find. So we decided to make a list of the best vegan places in Reykjavik. This is not a list of all vegan and vegetarian places in Reykjavik, just the ones we like the most and highly recommend!
Junkyard
The vegan fast-food place Junkyard has the best junk in town. Their main goals are: Sustainability, equality, creating a loving, kind world, affordability and convenience. You can get pitas, burgers, sandwiches, and more in their fast-food cart.
You will also be able to find their sandwiches and pitas in Hagkaup and Olís in Álfheimar, Norðlingaholt, Mossfellsbær and Sundagarðar. Sauces and Neat-Loaf is available in Veganbúðin.
Junkyard
The Petrol Station on the corner of Kleppsvegur and Langholtsvegur
108 Reykjavik
Opening hours: Every day 17:00 – 20:00
Junyard’s Facebook Page
Mama Reykjavík
At the corner of Laugavegur and Skólavörðustígur, you will find one of the older buildings of Reykjavík. Mama Reykjavík is on the top floor. The owners say they have been exploring life in different ways, finding out what works for them to maintain a state of well-being. They realized they wanted to give back and continue their growth, and thus they decided to open Mama Reykjavík.
The restaurant is based on wholeness, aliveness, health, community, compassion and passion.
We recommend their dahl dish “Dahl ala Mama”, a Lentil dish that tickles your taste buds. Ingredients include lentils (of course), carrots, ginger, garlic, lime leaf, chilli and lemon.
They also have dishes of the week and delicious desserts. Mama Reykjavik is definitely one of the best vegan places in Reykjavik.
If delicious food wasn’t enough, they also have a selection of teas and hold regular events advertised on their Facebook page.
Mama Reykjavík
Laugavegur 2
101 Reykjavik
Opening Hours: Monday – Thursday 9:00 – 21:00, Friday 9:00 – 20:00, Saturday – Sunday 11:00 – 21:00
Mama Reykjavík’s Facebook Page
Kaffihúsið Garðurinn – Ecstasy’s Heart-Garden
This vegan and vegetarian restaurant is located at the top of Klapparstígur, not far from Skólavörðustígur.
You will find homemade vegan and vegetarian dishes, soups and cakes at Garðurinn but their menu changes weekly. The staff members have all learnt to meditate from the meditation instructor Sri Chinmoy. They try to create a comfortable and peaceful atmosphere for their customers.
If you want to know more about Sri Chinmoy’s meditation methods, you can access a few meditation courses here.
Klapparstígur 37
101 Reykjavik
Opening Hours: Monday to Friday 11:00 – 18:30, Wednesday 11:00 – 17:00 and Saturday 12:00 – 17:00
Garðurinn’s Facebook Page
Loving Hut
Loving Hut is a chain of vegan restaurants, where each restaurant is owned and operated independently and sets its own menu. The headquarters are in Taiwan and operate under a standards guide.
Loving Hut opened recently in Reykjavík and focused on vegan and vegetarian Asian dishes. However, there are a few dishes you can add meat to as well. You will be able to get everything from spring rolls, pho, vegan Peking special and more.
You can find their menu here.
Loving Hut
Laugavegur 164
105 Reykjavik
Opening Hours: Monday to Saturday 11:00 – 22:00, Sunday 16:00 – 22:00
Loving Hut in Iceland’s Facebook Page
Krúska
The restaurant Krúska on Suðurlandsbraut, close to Laugardalur Valley, offers healthy food cooked with love and passion. It’s clean food cooked on-site from premium ingredients without additives. You can find vegetarian and chicken dishes and salads on their menu, which changes daily. They also have desserts and coffee.
Krúska
Suðurlandsbraut 12
108 Reykjavik
Opening Hours: Monday to Saturday 11:00 – 21:00
Krúska’s Facebook Page
Kattakaffihúsið – The Cat Café
No list would be complete without mentioning the Cat Café in downtown Reykjavik. It’s the first café (and so far, only) of its kind in Iceland. It is 100% vegetarian and mostly vegan.
The goal is to create a warm and cozy atmosphere where people can come in and relax, have something good to eat and drink and meet the cats. All the cats at the café are looking for their forever homes, so you might not meet the cat you saw in a photo from the café. It is important that the cats feel safe at the café, and their well-being is important.
However, you do not have to be a cat lover to go to the café, but we don’t recommend going if you dislike them. The Cat Café is one of the stops on our brand-new tour, the Reykjavik CatWalk!
There are a few rules to have in mind at the café. The owners ask you to not hold the cats, don’t feed them, don’t chase them, and don’t wake them up. Also, if there’s a cat in a chair, don’t move it. It came there first!
Kattakaffihúsið
Bergstaðastræti 10a
101 Reykjavik
Opening hours: Every day 11:00 – 17:30
Kattakaffihúsið’s Facebook Page
Valdís
Icelanders are coo-coo for ice cream, and we eat it all year round. We don’t care if it is -10°c outside, with a 10-degree wind chill, or raining cats and dogs. We will eat our ice cream in all kinds of weather.
The Italian ice cream shop opened in 2013, and initially, there were only supposed to be typically Italian variations. However, the owners soon realized that Icelanders have a different ice cream taste than Italians and started working with the customer at making new variations. The two most popular ones, Tyrkis peber and salted nuts and caramel, were suggested by customers.
Since opening, they have made over 400 variations of ice cream, and they are still making new ones. Some of the stranger ones were beer ice cream, lavender ice cream, and curry ice cream with coconut and chilli.
There is usually always a great selection of vegan sorbets on offer. It is usually fruit sorbets because that’s what their customers have most wanted. But occasionally, you will find ice cream made with coconut or almond milk.
Valdís
Grandagarður 21 and Laugavegur 42
101 Reykjavik
Opening Hours: Mondays – Fridays 11:30 – 23:00, Saturdays – Sundays 12:00 – 23:00
Valdís’s Facebook Page
What are your favourite vegan or vegetarian places in Reykjavik?
Please signup HERE for our newsletter for more fun facts and information about Iceland!
[…] is definitely one of the best vegan places in Reykjavik. If you want recommendations for other vegan or vegetarian dishes, check out our blog on the best such places in […]