Rotten Shark in Reykjavik
 

We're read and heard so much about rotten shark in anticipation of our upcoming trip to Iceland that I have to ask....what do those of you who live there or who have traveled there think? My husband is dying to try it; me, not so much :). Should I be brave? Where's the best place to try it and what should we wash it down with? Looking forward to your advice!

I have to say it's one of the worst things I've ever put in my mouth. Unlike anything I've ever tasted before and hopefully unlike anything I'll taste in the future! You only live once though, so I'd say go for it.

It's definitely one of those experiences you'll remember for the rest of your life.

It's traditionally washed down with a shot of Brennivin (the local equivalent of an eau de vie or strong, homemade spirit) to help take the taste away/numb your tastebuds.

As for recommendations of where to try it, I'm only guessing, but I'd say it's going to taste pretty much the same anywhere, as there's only so much you can do with six-month old, fermented shark meat.

Be brave and give it a go. At the very least it'll be a great story to tell the grandkids. As my Grandfather used to say; "You shouldn't regret the things you have done, only the things you haven't".

I could not get past the very strong ammonia smell. There was no way I could put that in my mouth.
We stopped somewhere and bought a small container and when you took the lid off your sinuses would clear out 5 feet away.
But it was an interesting item and you should probably try it if you can.

we spent 10 days in Iceland a few years ago an thankfully managed to avoid it. we did eat puffin, guillimot, a lot of lamb, and some nice fish.

there are plenty of other things to eat in Iceland that are worth eating - I suggest you stic kto them!

Bizarrely MarthaT, the smell is actually worse than the taste.

However that's a bit like saying being burgled is better than being mugged...

Bizarrely MarthaT, the smell is actually worse than the taste.>>

bit like the durian, then, allegedly.

I love the comments: worst thing ever -- you should try it! :D

@annhig -- I was fortunate enough to stay in a Mandarin Oriental in Malaysia on business a few years back and one was required to check their durian at reception -- not allowed in the rooms!

As per the others, if you can get past the weird smell you'll be rewarded with yet more weird taste! Hákarl is one of those things that you just have to try, and it won't kill you, even though it may feel like it for a second. My theory is that's why Brennivin was developed - to burn the taste away. Not true, but you can understand if it was!

I tried it at Sjávarkjallarinn which is a seafood restaurant in the centre of Reykjavik. The rest of the menu is lovely and even the Hákarl was presented well. There's another place called Islenski Barinn (Iceland Bar) which also has Hákarl, but I didn't try it there - once was enough!

I can't say I'm surprised at these responses, but you guys aren't giving me a warm and fuzzy feeling about it! I'm actually leaning toward trying it, but I don't want to "regurgitate" it in public! I like Jay's grandfather's philosophy; you should regret only the things you haven't done.

Has anyone read "The Geography of Bliss" by Eric Weiner? He has a wonderful chapter about Iceland and his account of trying it is hilarious. (He wasn't a fan.)

You're right; it probably tastes the same just about anywhere. I have to go make dinner, so I'm going to stop thinking about it :).

More to come; I'll report back in February!

Ellen

Sir Thomas Beecham - try everything once except incest and morris dancing!

Tastes horrible! Smells horrible! For heaven's sake, no matter what Jay_G's grandfather says Don't Eat It!

I haven't had the shark, but I've had the Brennevin - smells and tastes like caraway seeds!

Sounds like Fear Factor to me.

I don't know why cultures feel the need to sensationalise their food.

Sardinia served this up.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CGseBM85gc

Vile.

Oh, that's such an awful video! Yes, vile; I would never eat anything containing things that move - especially maggots! :(

Nikki, good observation; it does sound like Fear Factor.

A colleague of mine ate the shark and said it's really not bad. I guess I'll make the decision when the moment arrives, but it's not looking hopeful at the moment!

It's not about cultures sensationalising their food, there's often an historic reason for it, usually born out of hardship, or the time before fool-proof methods of preservation.

Another example is Surströmming from Sweden, which I have to say beats the Icelandic shark for smell, as it's much, much worse. I think you're still aren't allowed to take it on some airlines as it's rated as an 'offensive weapon' and the smell has been likened to a gas leak mixed with a rotting corpse...

Here's a link to its suggested origins for you Dickie:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surströmming

Rotten shark is pretty nasty, but it's an experience. I don't drink alcohol and I made it through the dinner just fine. (It was one of those "Viking dinners", on my first trip to Iceland.)

Not something I'd want to have regularly...

You mentioning you don't drink alcohol Amy reminds me of possibly the worst thing I've ever drunk, which was some home-made spirit at a friend's house in Haute Savoie.

It had been flavoured with a viper, which was still sitting at the bottom of the bottle...

As you can imagine, the 'flavour' was along the lines of 'dead snake soaking in methylated spirit'. I would have been glad of some Icelandic shark to take the taste away.

What's funny, Jay_G, is that "snake wine" is the only kind I've ever had! I was on a Mekong River boat in Vietnam, and I didn't want to refuse the, um, kind offer. It tasted of absolute badness, I'll tell you that.

There's no way I'd drink snake wine. Sounds like tequila with the worm, although I've never tried that either (I tend to like my alcohol sans living - or dead - creatures).

I'm getting a lot of pressure from my husband who says "You gotta try it (the shark)!"

I agree, Jay, that it's not about sensationalizing it; I see it as cultural. One of the most interesting ways to learn about and understand a culture is through its food. It's all about what we're brought up with and therefore used to vs. what's not familiar. Sometimes the "not familiar" is edible, maybe even delicious...and sometimes not so much...

ELLEN75005,
i am one you can take the advice from. My wife and i traveled to Iceland in late July/early August of 2010. What an incredible trip!!!!! There were so many highlights we were looking forward to, however top on my list was visiting the shark farm where the meat is actually processed. The farm is located on a peninsula north of Reykjavik just east of the Snaefellsnes area. It is called Bjarnarhöfn Farm and is run by the Hildibrandur family. It is the norm to eat a little cube of the meat with a little cave bread and a chaser of brenavin. However when we got there, i was shooting my mouth off on how it was not going to be that bad, that our tour guide gunnar went right to the shed where the meat was hanging and took out his pocket knife and cut me off a HUGE slice and said, ok smart a@# go ahead and eat this. I was like WHOA hold on, however there was no going back. And boy did it ever live up to its reputation. it was horrible. Granted the smell was way worse than the actual taste, but that it not saying much. so i heard that the taste and smell were bad, but what got me was the texture. It was slimy and VERY chewy. So you find yourself having to chew a lot to get it down, which you didn’t want to do with something that tasted this bad. I did get it down and only gagged once, but WHAT an aftertaste!!! Now i know why the normal serving size is a small cube with a lot of brenavin!! When we got into the museum i tried it again the traditional way, still bad but definably more tolerable with the alcohol. My wife REFUSED to eat any of it. Before we were at the farm i had mentioned to people in Iceland that i was going to eat the dreaded shark. Most stated that they do not eat it and the only reason that it is still produced today is for stupid tourist like myself, if that is true i don’t know, but i was the stupid tourist that did eat it!!!


P.S. if you’re looking for 100% foolproof food in Iceland eat the hot dogs!!! I know it sounds weird but you won’t regret it, its Iceland’s “unofficial” food!! Have a great trip!!

Three weeks from today we'll be there and I'm getting a lot of pressure from my husband to eat it :). The texture sounds just awful; chewy's bad enough, but slimy too?

On another food note, a colleague who was there not long ago said that restaurants compete as to who can make the best lobster bisque. Anyone aware of that?

Three weeks from today we'll be there and I'm getting a lot of pressure from my husband to eat it >>

tell him he can eat your portion as well as his own.

we had a lot of soup [usually oxtail or lamb] but never lobster bisque. you'll have to report back on which you thought was the best!

"tell him he can eat your portion as well as his own." LOL! I have to admit that the story value of eating it is weighing on my mind pretty heavily. My one and only chance to say I've eaten rotten shark - how many people can say that (who lived to tell about it)?!

I'll definitely report.

What? You cannot find fresh fish in Iceland? :)

I had enough Mutton (old lamb) soup to last a lifetime while in iceland!

On the other hand Puffin is tasty. We had it as an appetizer -it was served in a (I'm not making this up) puff pastry.

The meat is purple, nearly black and tastes like a cross between dark meat chicken and fish. That sounds awful, but as it turned out it was not bad at all and certainly different.

travel - us too. i don't remember having puffin - but we did eat guillimot. strangely, i have no recollection of how it tasted.

on a more hopeful note, ellen, the coffee is very good, and usually free after the first cup. they just have pots on the side and you are often expected to help yourself.

one place we went [a pub near the very end of the western fjords] the coffee was actually free. however, the oxtail soup was about £10 each.

Hey, did anyone try whale and horse?? They were both on my taste list (puffin was the only thing i didnt get a chance to get.) The horse just kind of tasted like a gamey beef but dry. I thought the whale was nasty! I guess i had thought in my mind is was going to be like eating fish. It actaully looked like steak. However it tasted like kidney/liver, really mineraly!! Not as bad as the Hakarl(fermented shark)

I had whale once at Sloppy Louie's, a restaurant in NYC in the then Fulton Fish Market - a wonderful, one of a kind place before the yuppies found it. I thought the whale steak tasted like veal sauteed in a pan that was just used for a strong tasting fish and not cleaned.

Horse, I had a couple of years ago in Verona, together with pasta with a meat sauce made with donkey meat. I wouldn't order either again.

I think I've eaten horse in France, but wouldn't voluntarily do it again.

so far i've avoided whale.

Well, among other things, Iceland sounds like a culinary adventure! Horse will definitely not be an option for me, but the shark remains to be seen :)

just go for it!