Best Restaurants for Family-Friendly in Reykjavik (2026)
Family-friendly · Reykjavik · 6 rooms ranked · Updated June 2026
Compiled by the Restaurants for Kings editorial team · Published April 16, 2026 · Updated June 9, 2026
Reykjavik feeds a family fast, cheap and well, which is exactly what a cold, hungry child wants. The best room here is rarely a room at all. It is a hot dog window that has run since 1937, a harbour shack ladling lobster soup, a food hall where everyone picks their own counter. These six are ranked for how easily they feed a family, how quickly the food arrives, and how little anyone has to sit still.
1.Baejarins Beztu Pylsur
Hot dog stand · downtown harbour · budget
Baejarins Beztu Pylsur on Tryggvagata near the harbour has run since 1937 and is Reykjavik's most famous quick eat, a hot dog window beloved by locals and visitors that even Bill Clinton stopped at. The move is to order eina med ollu, one with everything: ketchup, sweet mustard, remoulade, and raw and crispy fried onions. It is fast, cheap and exactly what a hungry, cold child wants.
There is no booking and no seating to speak of, just a walk-up window with late hours into the night. Queue at the window, order a round with everything, and eat standing up by the harbour; there is a mall outlet at Smaralind if downtown is packed.
Walk up for a fast, cheap hot dog by the harbour | Skip it if you want a sit-down meal; this is a stand-and-eat window.
2.Saegreifinn
Harbour seafood shack · Old Harbour · mid-range
Saegreifinn, the Sea Baron, on Geirsgata at the Old Harbour was founded by a former fisherman, and its draw for a family is the simplest one: a famous creamy langoustine soup that warms a cold child instantly, and grilled fish skewers of salmon and wolffish picked from a fridge case. The converted harbour shack has communal benches, so the room is relaxed and informal rather than fussy.
There is no booking; walk in and order at the counter. Open through the day and into the evening, it is the easy harbour lunch after whale-watching or a walk; get a round of lobster soup and a skewer each and grab a bench.
Walk in for lobster soup and a fish skewer by the harbour | Skip it if you want a quiet table; the benches are shared and busy.
3.Hlemmur Math_oll
Food hall · Laugavegur · budget to mid-range
Hlemmur Matholl on Laugavegur opened in 2017 as Iceland's first food hall, filling the old Hlemmur bus terminal with vendors that run from Neapolitan pizza and tacos to Vietnamese street food, Icelandic lamb and Italian gelato. The format is the perfect family fix: everyone picks their own counter, and a picky child and a curious parent both leave fed without anyone compromising.
Walk in; there is no booking, and the open, casual seating is easy with children and a stroller. Open daily into the evening, it is the answer when a family cannot agree; let each person order from a different stall and meet back at a shared table.
Walk in so everyone picks their own counter | Skip it if you want table service; this is order-at-the-stall.
4.Hamborgarabulla Tomasar
Burger joint · Old Harbour · budget to mid-range
Hamborgarabulla Tomasar, known as Tommi's Burger Joint or simply Bullan, was founded by Tomas Tomasson and is Iceland's best-known burger brand, with its flagship on Geirsgata by the Old Harbour near the whale-watching docks. Classic smashed-style burgers and the offer-of-the-century combo of burger, fries and a drink make it a reliable, fuss-free family win, with a retro diner feel kids enjoy.
It is cashless and walk-in, open daily into the evening. Pull up at the harbour flagship or the Laugavegur branch, order the combo all round, and let the simple menu do the deciding; it is the foolproof burger stop on this list.
Walk in for the burger-and-fries combo by the docks | Skip it if you need a varied menu; this is burgers, simply done.
5.Svarta Kaffid
Soup in a bread bowl · Laugavegur · budget to mid-range
Svarta Kaffid on Laugavegur, the main shopping street, is the family-owned soup spot, and its signature is a hearty soup served inside a hollowed, freshly baked round loaf that you eat once the soup is gone. Two soups run daily, one meat such as lamb or beef and one vegetarian, which covers a mixed family table, and the edible-bowl novelty is exactly the kind of thing children remember.
There is no booking; it is walk-in only and cosy, so it suits a small family or an off-peak sitting better than a big group at the rush. Go in from the cold, order a bowl each, and let the kids work their way down to the bread.
Walk in for warming soup in a bread bowl you can eat | Skip it if you have a big group at peak; the room is small and walk-in.
6.Eldsmidjan
Wood-fired pizza · central · mid-range
Eldsmidjan on Bragagata, near Laugavegur, has been a Reykjavik pizza institution for more than twenty years, baking its pizzas over burning Icelandic birch for a distinctive char that sets it apart from the chains. Crowd-pleasing pizzas are an easy family win, and the room is casual and warm against the weather outside.
It does not take reservations and runs first-come, first-served, so it can queue at peak; arrive before six to beat the rush, and note the main location closes on Mondays. Order a couple of pizzas for the table and let the children pick the toppings.
Arrive before the rush for birch-fired family pizza | Skip it if it is Monday or peak dinner; the main spot closes Mondays and queues.
Avoid for families
Skip Dill with children. Iceland's only Michelin-starred room runs a long New Nordic tasting menu of many courses built on fermentation and foraging; it is a refined, expensive evening designed for grown-ups, not a meal a child will sit through.
And skip OX for a family dinner. The hidden speakeasy chef's counter seats only a handful for a twenty-course tasting menu at a steep per-person price, booked far ahead; it is the opposite of the fast, casual meal children want, and a table of one or two adults is the point.
Eating out with kids in Reykjavik
Reykjavik makes family dining easy because so much of it is fast and walk-in. Baejarins Beztu Pylsur, Saegreifinn and Tommi's are quick harbour stops that warm and feed a child in minutes, while Hlemmur Matholl lets everyone pick a different counter and meet at one table. For a sit-down meal, Svarta Kaffid's bread-bowl soup and Eldsmidjan's birch-fired pizza are the crowd-pleasers, both best off-peak. Browse the full Reykjavik dining guide, see the best brunch in Reykjavik, or open the full RFK rankings index. The citywide rule: go casual, go fast, and Reykjavik feeds the whole family without a fuss.
Frequently asked
Which Reykjavik restaurant is best for families with young kids?
Baejarins Beztu Pylsur, the famous 1937 hot dog window by the harbour, for a fast, cheap meal a cold and hungry child eats happily. Hlemmur Matholl is the runner-up, a food hall where pizza, tacos and gelato let every family member pick their own. Both are walk-in and quick, which is exactly what young children need.
Are family meals in Reykjavik expensive?
They do not have to be. The best family spots here are budget to mid-range: the hot dog window, the food hall, the burger joint and the bread-bowl soup all feed a family without a fine-dining bill, and Eldsmidjan's pizza and Saegreifinn's lobster soup are mid-range. The expensive rooms are the tasting menus like Dill, which we list above as the ones to skip with children.
Which Reykjavik spots are fast and walk-in for families?
Most of this list. Baejarins Beztu Pylsur and Tommi's are walk-up windows and counters, Saegreifinn and Hlemmur Matholl are order-at-the-counter, and Eldsmidjan and Svarta Kaffid are first-come, first-served. None of the six picks takes reservations, which is the point: fast, casual food that suits a family on the move in cold weather.
Is it normal to bring children to restaurants in Reykjavik?
Yes, especially to the hot dog window, food hall, burger joint and casual soup and pizza spots on this list, which are built for quick, all-ages meals. The rooms that feel wrong for kids are the fine-dining tasting counters like Dill and OX, which we list above as the ones to save for an adults-only night. For the casual Reykjavik table, a family is entirely expected.
Where can a family eat near the harbour in Reykjavik?
The Old Harbour area is the family heart. Saegreifinn ladles lobster soup from a converted shack, Tommi's flagship grills burgers near the whale-watching docks, and Baejarins Beztu Pylsur's hot dog window is a short walk away on Tryggvagata. Pair a harbour walk or a boat trip with one of these quick stops for an easy family lunch.
Keep planning: Reykjavik dining guide · brunch in Reykjavik · first-date restaurants in Reykjavik · solo dining in Reykjavik · the full RFK rankings index
Compiled by the Restaurants for Kings editorial team. Reader-supported: some reservation links are affiliate links with no cost to you, and a link never buys a place on a ranking. See our ranking methodology.