Who said that bigger is better? Sometimes staying smaller is the way to go. Speaking of establishments like bars and restaurants, I often found that tiny or cozy places are better, at least for the overall quality of the experience, than the others. Of course this isn’t a 100% accurate rule, but it’s an acceptable guideline in many cases.
This said, if you are in Reykjavík and want a taste of good sushi, Sushi Barinn may be your ideal choice. Located in downtown, Sushi Barinn is a very small sushi place that, according to some of my Japanese friends that resided in Iceland’s capital for a long time, is able to convey a little of the taste of original Japanese cuisine.
When we arrived there, since it was a Friday – not the best time for finding a table in the downtown area – we were worried we would have to wait in line for a long time. Fortunately, and very surprisingly, around 9 of a Friday evening there was nobody inside the restaurant. I say fortunately because Sushi Barinn is truly very small. No more than two or three table are available to those willing to eat inside. Regarding the personnel, at the counter or in the kitchen there were no Japanese people to be seen, but the food we had was undoubtly good.
We had miso soup with tofu (550 ISK) for starter, together with seaweed salad (690 ISK). The seaweed salad was something I had never tried before, while miso soup is fairly common to find anywhere. Both were really nice. After that, we got a double sushi-sashimi combination, which amounted to 28 pieces of mixed sushi and sashimi (3950 ISK), a portion of spicy tuna inside-out rolls (5 pieces – 1190 ISK) and salmon nigiri (2 pieces – 475 ISK). We were three persons and we had our fill. For the price we paid, especially in Reykjavík, the portions were fair, in my opinion. With Sushismiðian, which we reviewed in the past, Sushi Barinn is probably as cheap as it can get in Reykjavík for a sushi restaurant. Sushismiðian wins when it comes to the ambience, Sushi Barinn is probably better for the food. Inside-out rolls and some fillings are not of course part of the more traditional Japan-style sushi, but they are quite popular these days, I assume even in Japan. I enjoyed more basic sushi and sashimi, but my fellow diners had the inside-out rolls and were happy with them. Anyway, the fish was excellent and very fresh; the cut was more consistent than the one of other sushi restaurants in town we tried on other occasions; the presentation was effectively simple, without being pretentiously minimal.
Not of lesser importance in my book, they had Asahi beer in menu, which is something I really go for at least when I eat at Japanese restaurants everywhere else and I bitterly miss here in Reykjavík. Other drinks and beverages included water – of course -, soda, tea and wine.
Sushi Barinn works also as take away, but differently from other sushi take away restaurants the food seems to be freshly prepared on the spot, which is definitely a point in their favor.
Sushi Barinn is located in Laugavegur 2 and it’s open every day till 22.