Olo
Considered Helsinki’s best restaurant, Michelin-starred Olo occupies a handsome 19th-century harbourside mansion. It’s at the forefront of modern Suomi cuisine, and its memorable dégustation menus incorporate both the forage ethos and molecular gastronomy, and feature culinary jewels such as herring with fermented cucumber, Åland lamb with blackcurrant leaves, juniper-marinated reindeer carpaccio, and Arctic crab with root celery. Book a few weeks ahead.
Kuu
Traditional Finnish fare is given a sharp, contemporary twist at Kuu, which creates dishes from local ingredients such as smoked reindeer heart with pickled forest mushrooms, poached pike-perch with Lappish fingerling potatoes, and liquorice ice cream with cloudberry soup. Wines are pricey, but there are some interesting choices. Its casual bistro sibling KuuKuu is located 800m south.
Demo
Book to get a table at this chic spot, where young chefs wow a designer-y crowd with modern Finnish cuisine. The quality is excellent, the combinations innovative, the presentation top notch and the slick contemporary decor appropriate. A place to be seen, not for quiet contemplation.
Savoy
Originally designed by Alvar and Aino Aalto, this is definitely a standout dining room, with some of the city’s best views. The food is a modern Nordic tour de force, with the ‘forage’ ethos strewing flowers and berries across plates that bear the finest Finnish game, fish and meat.
Yes Yes Yes
Yes Yes Yes is a brand new bustling bar & restaurant located in a former McDonald’s on a classic corner on the flourishing pedestrian street Iso Roobertinkatu. Recently Iso Roobertinkatu has become a hub for cool restaurants, bars, clubs, workspaces, galleries and stores. Yes Yes Yes is as much a bar as a charming restaurant, brimming with great energy. Come for a snack or the full experience. Expect a magical expression of colors, wild banana trees, splashes of marble combined with lots of art from the hottest local artists.
The specialty of the restaurant is the piping hot tandoor oven in the open kitchen and the focus on bar dining (and drinking). During Summer time Yes Yes Yes terrace is a perfect little oasis for spotting city life while enjoying a glass of ice cold pink wine with some munchies from Yes Yes Yes kitchen.
Date + Kale
Date + Kale is a fresh little deli restaurant at Kortteli on the 5th floor of the Kamppi shopping centre. Everything here is vegetarian, organic, healthy, gluten free, milk free and, above all, delicious and beautiful. Date & Kale serves all day long raw porridges and smoothie bowls, breakfast, lunch, dinner, salads and bowl foods.
Soi Soi
Soi Soi serves vegan fast food and has succeeded in attracted a broad fan base, and not just for its crispy sweet potato fries. People who love chips and beer love Soi Soi, and unlike many other vegetarian restaurants it is open late!
