Best Restaurants Near Lake Mývatn: Where to Eat in North Iceland

The restaurant scene around Lake Mývatn is limited by design — this is a remote volcanic lake 100km from the nearest city, and the visitor infrastructure exists primarily to support day-trippers and overnight guests rather than to offer dining variety. What you get is a small cluster of reliable options in Reykjahlíð, the main settlement on the north shore, plus the café at Mývatn Nature Baths. For travellers based at the lake, the food is perfectly adequate; for serious diners, manage expectations and treat Akureyri as your proper restaurant night.

Gamli Bærinn — The Old Farmhouse

The most popular sit-down dinner option in the entire Mývatn area. Gamli Bærinn (‘The Old Farmhouse’) occupies a converted farmstead in Reykjahlíð and has been feeding travellers for years. The menu centres on Icelandic comfort food: lamb soup, grilled local trout caught from Mývatn itself, fish and chips, and lamb main courses. The trout is the standout — farm-reared in the clean geothermal waters of the lake and cooked simply so the quality of the fish leads.

Mains approximately ISK 3,500–6,500 as of 2026. The dining room is small and fills quickly in summer — book ahead for any evening in July or early August. Service is efficient without being formal. Opening hours in peak season approximately 12:00–22:00; shorter hours in shoulder months.

Vogafjós Farm Resort Restaurant

Vogafjós is both a guesthouse and a working dairy farm, and the restaurant reflects that dual identity. The dining room overlooks the cowshed through a glass partition, which is either charming or peculiar depending on your temperament. The menu emphasises farm produce: Icelandic beef, smoked lamb, skyr-based desserts, and house-made ice cream from the farm’s own herd.

The Cowshed Café section serves lighter meals — sandwiches, soups, and coffee — throughout the day. The restaurant proper operates for dinner with a more composed menu. Mains approximately ISK 4,000–7,500 as of 2026. The quality is a step above Gamli Bærinn for mains, with correspondingly higher prices. Worth the premium if you want a proper meal rather than a reliable standby. Vogafjós is signposted from Route 1 on the lake’s east shore, a short drive from Reykjahlíð.

Daddi’s Pizza

The only pizza option in the Mývatn area, operating from a modest premises in Reykjahlíð. The pizzas are straightforward and satisfying rather than anything ambitious — standard toppings, reliable crusts, and a welcome change from lamb soup if you’ve been eating the same Icelandic menu for several days. Takeaway and eat-in. Prices approximately ISK 2,500–3,800 per pizza as of 2026. Popular with families and self-catering travellers who want an easy evening meal without committing to a formal restaurant.

Mývatn Nature Baths Café

The café attached to the Nature Baths bathing complex serves soups, sandwiches, waffles, and hot drinks. It functions well as a pre-bath lunch or a post-bath warm-up snack, but the menu is limited and the prices are high relative to portion size. Coffee approximately ISK 600–800, soup and bread approximately ISK 2,200 as of 2026. The location is spectacular — the café overlooks the bathing pools with the surrounding volcanic landscape beyond — which offsets the modest menu.

The Nature Baths café is genuinely useful if you are spending a full morning at the baths and don’t want to drive back to Reykjahlíð for lunch. For dinner, go elsewhere.

Mývatn Service Centre (Mývatnsstofa)

Not a restaurant but worth noting: the service centre at Reykjahlíð sells hot dogs, sandwiches, and snacks from a small counter, alongside fuel and basic groceries. The Iceland hot dog (pylsur) is a reliable budget option at approximately ISK 600 as of 2026 — the same quality standard as the famous Bæjarins Beztu stall in Reykjavík. If you’re filling up the car and need something quick to eat before heading to Dimmuborgir or the crater trail, the service centre counter is the fastest option in the area.

Eating on a Budget at Mývatn

Self-catering significantly reduces daily costs. The lakeside guesthouses and farms that accommodate visitors — including Vogafjós, Sel-Hótel, and several smaller properties — typically have guest kitchens or kitchenette facilities. Buying groceries in Akureyri before arrival (Bónus on Route 821 is the cheapest option) and supplementing with fresh trout or lamb from a local farm cuts food spending considerably compared to eating all meals in the restaurants.

The lake’s trout fishing is managed under permit — permits available from the service centre or local guesthouses at approximately ISK 3,000 per day as of 2026 — and if you catch something, most accommodation will let you cook it in the guest kitchen.

Practical Notes

Dining hours are earlier at Mývatn than in Reykjavík. Most restaurants close their kitchens by 21:00 even in peak season. Plan dinner for 18:00–19:30 rather than arriving at 21:00 expecting a full menu. In shoulder season (May, September), it’s worth calling ahead to confirm opening before making a specific trip.

For the wider Mývatn area and day trip planning, see our things to do at Lake Mývatn and where to stay near Mývatn guides.

Book Iceland attraction tickets — skip-the-queue entry for geothermal baths, cave tours, and top attractions.

Browse Lake Mývatn tours — guided tours covering the geothermal area, Dimmuborgir, and Grjótagjá cave.

Get travel insurance for Iceland — policies covering glacier hikes, F-road driving, and volcanic disruption.

See Also

• Lake Mývatn city guide — Full area overview with transport, geology, and visitor essentials
• Things to Do at Lake Mývatn — Nature Baths, Dimmuborgir, Krafla, and birdwatching
• Icelandic food guide — The dishes and food culture you’ll encounter throughout Iceland