Gló

Iceland's go-to for vegan and vegetarian bowls: four locations, three around Reykjavík, each plate piled with rainbow vegetables and health food.

In a country where the next decent vegan meal can feel a long drive away, Gló solves the problem with sheer coverage. Four locations span Iceland, three of them around Reykjavík, which means a tasty plant-forward pit stop is rarely far off, a genuinely useful thing to know when you’re plotting a route around the island.

The signature, and the reason to seek it out, is the bowl. Gló understands that the bowl (Buddha, Mexican, poke) has quietly become the vegan’s favourite format, and the menu is engineered around that preference rather than treating it as a passing trend. Each one is built to be a complete, satisfying meal rather than a virtuous snack.

Both vegan and vegetarian diners are looked after here, and whatever you order tends to share a single quality: it overflows. Rainbow vegetables, soul-nourishing health foods, generous portions: the plates are colourful in a way that feels like nourishment rather than decoration.

There’s no ceremony to Gló, and that’s part of the appeal. It is fast, fresh, and unpretentious: the sort of place you fold into a day of sightseeing without a reservation or a second thought. After a morning out in the Icelandic cold, a bowl piled high with bright, warming food is exactly the correction the body asks for.

For plant-forward travellers building an Iceland itinerary, Gló is less a destination than a dependable constant, and on a long road trip, that’s worth a great deal.