Most Icelandic cuisine involves lamb or fish in some form or other, so a liking for one (or both) of these is an advantage. A vegetarian diet can be tricky to maintain and veganism will require you to self-cater (although there are two vegetarian restaurants in downtown Reykjavík).

Distinctively Icelandic foods include:

- smoked lamb sausage.
- hangikjöt, smoked lamb.
- skyr, a yoghurt-like dairy product available in flavoured and unflavoured varieties all over the country.
- hardfisk, dried fish pieces eaten as a snack with butter (also good with coleslaw).
- fish.
- hákarl, is the famous putrefied shark cubes alleged to be a delicacy.
- svið, singed sheep's head
- hrútspungar, pickled ram's testicles.

Food is no problem for Westerners in the cities; there is the usual complement of eateries and restaurants. Some of the hotel restaurants are very good indeed but if you're looking for a bite to eat on the move you can't really beat a 'Subway' or a very long bag of chips (fries) from the drive-through cafe near the airport in Akureyri. They are fabulous! Note that Icelanders usually don't use ketchup as a condiment with chips, but rather use an unholy cocktail of ketchup and mayonnaise that they call kokkteilsósa.

Any Icelanders' first choice of fast food is usually the pylsa or hot dog. It is usually served with a choice of fried onions, fresh onions, ketchup, mustard and remoulade. It is cheap compared with other fast food staples at around 200 kr, and is sold in every one of the small convenience stores/eateries/video rentals/sweet shops that litter Icelandic towns.

Alcoholic drinks are very expensive compared to the UK and USA. Liquor can be purchased at licenced bars, restaurants, or VinBud, the state monopoly.

The local beer brands are:

Egils: Lite, Gull, Pilsner, Premium, El Grillo

Vífillfell: Thule, Gull, Lite, Víking

Bruggsmiðjan: Kaldi

Visitors arriving by air should note that there is a duty free store for arriving passengers where they can buy cheap alcohol (at least cheap compared to Iceland). To find the duty free store just follow the Icelanders. No Icelander in their right mind will pass the duty free store upon arrival.

Because of the high cost of alcohol in bars and restaurants, you can save some money by purchasing alcohol at a Vínbuð or duty-free shop, and enjoying a few before going 'out on the town'.

- Also make sure you try a drink called "Ópal" (Tarantino spent his new years 2005-2006 there and tells all details about partying there! Very tempting and interesting.)

- Also taste Brennivín / Black death