Christmas food at Reykjavík Bistro

Unlike many other countries our Christmas starts on Christmas Eve and not on Christmas day. Christmas eve dinner is the most cherished meal that Icelanders have in the year. This is when the families bring out their finest china and open their wallets the widest to treat themselves to the best food they can think of.

Popular Christmas eve dinner appetizers include Lobster, langoustines, lobster soup, smoked salmon & cured salmon, while popular main courses include smoked ham, ptarmigan, reindeer, venison, duck or beef wellington.

Then on Christmas day and 2nd day of Christmas we indulge in our old world Christmas delicacies.

We wanted to offer a little bit of both worlds, so we devised three new dishes for the season. The ever traditional and iconic Hangikjöt with all the trimmings, cold meat platter including smoked beef tongue and double smoked cured lamb and then a venison fillet.

Smoked Meat at Christmas

In Iceland, smoked meats have long been at the heart of the Christmas table. Before modern preservation, smoking was essential for storing high-quality cuts through the dark winter months, and the festive season became the time to enjoy these prized foods.

Before Icelanders enjoyed modern refrigeration or frequent fresh meat,

the Christmas season was one of the few times when households treated

themselves to high-quality preserved meats.

Today, dishes like smoked lamb and smoked beef tongue carry the warmth of

tradition—rich, aromatic reminders of Iceland’s heritage.

Hangikjöt – Iceland’s Christmas Classic

Hangikjöt, meaning “hung meat,” is one of Iceland’s most iconic holiday dishes. Made from salted and traditionally smoked lamb, it earns its deep, distinctive flavor from being smoked over birch or even dried sheep dung—methods that trace back generations.

By the 19th and early 20th centuries, it had firmly become a jólamatur (Christmas food). For many Icelanders, the smell of hangikjöt cooking is synonymous with Christmas Day, just like the aroma of cookies or pine in other countries.

Today, hangikjöt is more than just food: it represents heritage, family gatherings, and Icelandic Christmas nostalgia. Even people who don’t eat it regularly throughout the year often insist on having it at Christmas because it’s considered part of the holiday identity—something that connects modern Icelanders to their rural past and long winter traditions.

Smoked Beef Tongue – A Rich Holiday Tradition

Smoked beef tongue (reykt nautatunga) is another old-world Icelandic delicacy deeply tied to the Christmas table. Tongue was a prized part of the animal: tender, richly flavored, and able to take on smoke exceptionally well. Smoking and curing preserved this valuable cut through the winter.

While not as universal today as hangikjöt, it remains a nostalgic favourite for many Icelanders—a smooth, smoky reminder of heritage, celebration, and resourceful Christmas cooking.