Icelandic Popup Fimbul PDX

Icelandic Popup Fimbul PDX was on my Eater article of popups in Portland, and if you were wondering what an Icelandic dinner entails, here’s a look from their pop up dinner at the back of Old Salt Marketplace on June 4. Fimbul is run by Kachka co-workers in their dayjob Matthew + Aurora Wickstrom with sommelier Matthrew Hunt. Chef Matthew currently works as a sous at Kachka, and worked at Dill in Reykjavik. There were two seatings – 6 PM and 8 PM – and I attended the 8 PM seating. $65 netted me the dinner that included 2 snacks, 5 small courses, and dessert, and $45 7 wine pairings plus a couple extra surprises! Gratuity is additional.

I had already prepurchased on the website wine pairings to go with the dinner, but there were also a la carte options of additional beverages, you could order a glass of any of the wine pairings, and there was a Mocktail of blueberry shrub with thyme and soda.

Snacks

Harðfiskur (dried fish)
Cod cheek, black garlic, dulse

You can see the above served with their own house bread and butter on Pacific Northwest driftwood.

Dung-smoked trout, radish, hay butter
Paired with Johan Vineyards, Petillant Naturel, Rosé of Pinot Noir, 2015, Willamette Valley Oregon

Because I know it is inevitable that some of you readers are wondering- yes, it was trout really smoked with dung. This is because traditionally in Iceland there wasn’t a whole lot available to burn to smoke with – and even now some things are smoked with birch wood, but using sheep dung is still common by Icelandic farmers (talk about using everything from the animal). It’s not burying in a pit with dung here, just fueling the fire, so it’s not dung you taste but smoke.

Courses

scallop, green strawberries, elderflower, spruce
Paired with Domaine Vaquer, Escapade Blanc 2015, Côtes Catalanes France

This was really a unique combination with the pink scallop and the sweetness of the strawberry which included sipping it daintily from the shell with scallop roe, and that is all balanced with the herby watercress sauce. I appreciated that there were several pieces of that perfectly cooked meaty scallop.

salt cod, skyr, lovage
Paired with Granbazán, Etiqueta Verde, Albariño, 2015 from Rias Baixas, Spain

The salt cod was soft that could be scooped with a spoon almost like a fish cake, and by carefully composing your spoon to get a little tinge of salt with the fish egg and the creamy skyr and a bit of their chopped acidic pickle was an awesome combination of unique flavors – I loved it! This was my second favorite plate of the night, but of all of them I thought was just a memorable new palate experience.

burnt cabbage, barley, whey, seaberries
Paired with Shavnabada, Mtsvana, 2004, from Kakheti Georgia

My overall favorite course of the night. This is the best way to have cabbage – roasted and well caramelized, with a bit of smokiness, punctuated by the bright seaberries, and rounded out with creamy rich two kinds of barley fermented in whey. Barley and Whey are awesome.

lamb heart, sunchoke, rhubarb
Paired with R Lopez de Herdia Vina Tondonia Reserva 204 from Rioja, Spain

The lamb heart was cooked sous vide and served with a sunchoke puree and rhubarb jam with the bits of potato and crumb that made this dish totally approachable and not scary – it’s not a Game of Thrones Khaleesi thing

love ball (ástarpungar), dandelion, buttermilk
Paired with Johan Vineyards Noble Chardonnay 2013 from Willamette Valley OR

An icelandic donut!

Ostur

last summer’s blueberries, skyr, cream
This was paired with Hidden Legend Honey wine, Natural honey mead from Ravalli County, Montana

I love skyr – it is this perfect combination of being like a yogurt but thicker that it is starting to form into cheese.

At the end, we were presented each with this mini notecard that includes a total of any a la carte beverages you ordered. I had pre-purchased my wine pairing already so no total shown on mine. You can see that the check also comes along with a little chocolate candy and an option to leave gratuity.

I’ve never been to Iceland though it’s on my wishlist, and it was sorta funny as I’ve talked to many people who have been that they didn’t particular remark on any memorable food. However, I found all the food here at Fimbul PDX to be definitely memorable, if there’s food like that there then I will be satiated not just eating with my eyes all the spectacular nature but with all my meals too. I wanted to be taken even more on a journey to Iceland with them with more food, and definitely more stories please. I’ll look forward to a future return to another of their dinners. I also definitely recommend the excellent wine pairings with wine from all over the world by sommelier Matthew Hunt.

Is this what you thought Icelandic food would be? Which of these courses intrigues you?