Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur opened in Reykjavík 80 years ago. The humble hot dog kiosk has fed presidents, famous bands, and two-thirds of all Icelanders. In 2006, the Guardian went so far as to name it the best hot dog stand in Europe. (Ouch, Germany!) Nowadays there are six locations throughout Reykjavík, but Tryggvagata, near Kolaportið, is the one where natives usually bring their out-of-town guests. It’s open from 10 a.m. until 1 a.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 4:30 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. In other words: It’s perfectly acceptable here to eat hot dogs for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and/or as a post-clubbing snack.

If the tube meat strikes you as a bit funny at first, it’s because it’s Icelandic lamb blended with beef and pork and stuffed into a snappy natural casing. Ask for your dog with the works (“eina með öllu”) and it’ll come dressed in a sweet brown mustard called pylsusinnep, ketchup, tangy remoulade, diced raw onions, and crunchy deep-fried onions. If you dig the flavors as much as the locals do, you can buy a bottle of pylsusinnep and a pack of frozen Bæjarins’ pylsurs-to-go at one of the duty-free shops in the Keflavik Airport. Make sure the cashier gives you a veterinary certificate to present at customs upon your return, though—lest some evildoer in customs tries to seize your hot dogs for their own enjoyment.

Tryggvagata 1, Reykjaviík, Iceland; +354-511-1566.

Additional photos by Cartogramme