Dalir autumn feast expects 300 guests for sheep-head supper

A traditional sheep-head feast in Dalir is expected to draw about 300 people on Saturday, mbl.is reports. The annual event at Dalahótel, a hotel in Sælingsdalur, is part of the district’s autumn celebrations.

The menu includes smoked, salted and boiled sheep heads, served with sides such as mashed potatoes and mashed swedes. The hotel opens at 7 p.m., with dinner starting an hour later.

Preparations began in the middle of the week, with heads from about 300 sheep being cut in half and put in pots. They must be boiled for a long time to make the meat tender and easy to remove from the bone, said Karl B. Örvarsson of Dalahótel. He praised chef Guðmundur Óskarsson, a longtime banquet cook who has worked in the district and recently at the hotel.

About 300 people have said they will attend, including residents and former residents of Dalir and people from Reykhólasveit, Strandir and Hrútafjörður. Singers Regína Ósk and Svenni will host the feast, and the band Sunnan 6 will play for dancing.

The weekend programme also includes two ram shows and Iceland’s shearing championship at the sports hall in Búðardalur on Saturday, alongside a food and crafts market. The sheep-head feast had been suspended for a time before Karl and his wife, Halldóra Árnadóttir, revived it five years ago. Local farmer Steinþór Logi Arnarson said marking the first weekend of winter with festivities had become a strong tradition.