Tales of the Table · Tales of the Table
Sigtún (1963–1986) – Lost Tables
Restaurateur Sigmar Pétursson, who had run Breiðfirðingabúð, took over the Independence Party's hall by Austurvöllur in 1963 and renamed it Sigtún; alongside Glaumbær it became one of the most popular places in the country for young people. Sigmar was on the floor most nights and even played the acc
Restaurateur Sigmar Pétursson, who had run Breiðfirðingabúð, took over the Independence Party's hall by Austurvöllur in 1963 and renamed it Sigtún; alongside Glaumbær it became one of the most popular places in the country for young people. Sigmar was on the floor most nights and even played the accordion for guests himself during a musicians' strike in 1965. Pónik og Einar, Haukur Morthens and his band, Roof Tops, Mánar, Haukar, Lónlí Blú Bojs, Galdrakarlar and Brimkló all played there, and bingo nights and card evenings were regular fixtures. When the party sold the old house, Sigmar built a new Sigtún at Suðurlandsbraut 26, opened in 1973, with one hall for about 1,000 guests – the largest in the country. As discos took over in the late seventies and eighties demand for big live-music halls faded, the Sigtún name was dropped in 1986, and the club Útópía ran in the building for a while.
The Austurvöllur hall is Sjálfstæðissalurinn today; Suðurlandsbraut 26 houses shops
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