Reykjavik Roasters

Reykjavik Roasters carries a different name than the one it opened under. Founded in 2008 as Kaffismiðja Íslands — the Icelandic Coffee Workshop — the company rebranded to Reykjavik Roasters in 2013, a name change that tracked its growth from a single workshop into three cafes around the capital, on Karastigur, Brautarholt and Freyjugata. The roasting philosophy has stayed close to its workshop roots: each batch of beans is examined closely and roasted with a different approach until the team finds the one that fits, rather than running every origin through the same fixed profile.

That batch-by-batch attention shows up in what is actually in the roaster at any given time — recent lots have included Sertao and Da Lagoa, both from Brazil, sourced from farms the company says it hand-picks abroad while trying to keep its own footprint as light as possible. The stated goal is not to produce and sell as much coffee as it can, but to keep the balance between staff, ownership and customers demanding without losing the enjoyment — a small, explicit stance in a specialty coffee industry not always known for saying so out loud.

Beans are sold to take home from all three locations, alongside the cafes' daily pours, for visitors who want to bring lidt Reykjavik back with them.