This modesty makes light of the enormous impact the restaurant has exercised but is also deeply reflective of chef Gísli Matthías Auðunsson’s personality. The ever-smiling chef and owner of family-owned restaurant Slippurinn, in his hometown of Heimaey, is celebrating 13 years of the summer-season-only dining destination with a season finale of spectacular dining. Which also meant that for 13 years now, Slippurinn was a brand-new restaurant each year. If I had to do it over, I’d invest earlier in continuity — keeping a core team across years, not just seasons. I think Icelandic food is finally being seen as something with depth and identity, not just clichés like preserved hákarl and lamb soup.