Must-see restaurants in Helsinki

  • 500px Photo ID: 131760517 - The OlO restaurant in Helsinki City Center beside main open market place

    Restaurant Olo

    Helsinki

    At the forefront of New Suomi cuisine, Michelin-starred Olo occupies a handsome, 19th-century harbourside mansion. Its memorable seasonal degustation…

  • Grön

    Helsinki

    Seasonal, often foraged ingredients are used in this exceptional bistro's plant, fish or meat starters and mains, and wild, plant or dairy desserts. From…

  • People at a market hall, Vanha Kauppahalli, Etelaranta, Helsinki, Finland

    Vanha Kauppahalli

    Punavuori & Ullanlinna

    Alongside the harbour, this is Helsinki's iconic market hall. Built in 1888, it’s still a traditional Finnish market, with wooden stalls selling local…

  • Demo

    Punavuori & Ullanlinna

    Book to get a table at this chic Michelin-starred spot, where young chefs wow with modern Finnish cuisine. Artfully presented, daily changing combinations…

  • Saaristo

    Helsinki

    Most renowned of Helsinki's island restaurants is the Saaristo, set in a spire-crowned art-nouveau villa on Luoto (Swedish: Klippan), and famous for…

  • Restaurant Eevert

    Punavuori & Ullanlinna

    This fabulous restaurant sits perfectly within Helsinki's Design District. The decor is asplash with pieces by famous Finnish designers such as Alvar…

  • Kuu

    Helsinki

    Traditional Finnish fare is given a sharp, contemporary twist at Kuu, which creates seasonal dishes from local ingredients that could include reindeer…

  • Cafe Regatta

    Helsinki

    In a marvellous waterside location, this historic rust-red wooden cottage is scarcely bigger than a sauna, but has great outdoor seating on the bay. You…

  • Savoy

    Punavuori & Ullanlinna

    Designed by Alvar and Aino Aalto in 1937, this is one of Helsinki's grandest dining rooms, with birch walls and ceilings and some of the city’s finest…

  • Suomenlinnan Panimo

    Helsinki

    By the main quay, this microbrewery is the best place to drink or dine on Suomenlinna. It brews three ciders and seven different beers, including a hefty…

  • Nude

    Punavuori & Ullanlinna

    Nude restaurateur Jussi believes it’s easier to tweak the food than the wine, so ingredients are selected to flawlessly match the accompanying wines…

  • Karl Fazer Café

    Helsinki

    Founded in 1891 and fronted by a striking art deco facade, this cavernous cafe is the flagship for Fazer's chocolate empire. The glass cupola reflects…

  • Yes Yes Yes exterior.

    Yes Yes Yes

    Punavuori & Ullanlinna

    A delicious veggie addition to Helsinki’s dining scene, Yes Yes Yes fulfils the simple ambition to open 'a bustling bar and restaurant where food just…

  • Story

    Punavuori & Ullanlinna

    At the heart of Helsinki's historic harbourside market hall Vanha Kauppahalli, this sparkling cafe sources its produce from the surrounding stalls…

  • Savu

    Helsinki

    Dating from 1805, a rust-red wooden warehouse that once stored tar on Tervasaari now contains this delightful beam-ceilinged summer restaurant, which…

  • Soppakeittiö

    Punavuori & Ullanlinna

    A great place to warm the cockles in winter, this soup stall inside the Vanha Kauppahalli is renowned for its bouillabaisse, which is almost always on the…

  • Saslik

    Punavuori & Ullanlinna

    Screened by tasselled curtains, Saslik's succession of aristocratic dining rooms have stained-glass windows, gilt-framed paintings of Russian hunting…

  • Ultima

    Helsinki

    The creators of famed restaurant Finnjävel, Henri Alén and Tommi Tuominen, are at it again, reopening the doors as Ultima. This time they've come up with…

  • Ask

    Helsinki

    Small organic or biodynamic Finnish farms and foraged game, fish, forest mushrooms, herbs and berries provide the ingredients for Michelin-starred Ask's…

  • Saaga

    Punavuori & Ullanlinna

    Chandeliers made from reindeer antlers and split-log benches lined with reindeer furs adorn this rustic timber-lined Lappish restaurant. Specialities from…

  • Ravintola Aino

    Helsinki

    In a minimalist dining space in the heart of town, Aino is a popular choice for assured Finnish cooking that is faithful to local traditions, but with the…

  • Anton & Anton

    Helsinki

    For gourmet picnic ingredients, this light-filled deli with black-and-white chequerboard tiles is a must. Fresh food changes with the seasons – there's a…

  • KarlJohan

    Helsinki

    Welcoming service and an elegant but relaxed atmosphere in a herringbone-floored dining room provide a fitting backdrop for carefully prepared Finnish…

  • Kitch

    Helsinki

    With big picture windows, this laid-back space is great for watching the world go by. Furnished with recycled materials, it offers generous tapas portions…

  • Bastion Bistro interior.

    Bastion Bistro

    Helsinki

    Cosy and snug in winter and spilling onto a sunny terrace in summer, the Bastion is housed in a historic Russian military building a five-minute walk from…

  • Cafe Silo interior.

    Cafe Silo

    Helsinki

    The warm and welcoming aromas of hot soup, house-made bread and fresh cinnamon buns greet visitors to Cafe Silo. Open daily in a wooden house in the old…

  • Baltic Herring

    Sea Horse

    Punavuori & Ullanlinna

    A seahorse mural takes up an entire wall of this traditional Finnish restaurant dating from the 1930s. Locals gather in the gloriously unchanged interior…

  • Rupla

    Kallio

    Virtually everything, aside from the occasional fish dish, is vegetarian or vegan at this red-brick cafe, which has its own Helsinki-roasted coffee blends…

  • Gaijin

    Punavuori & Ullanlinna

    With toro lanterns and shoji screens, this sleek, dark timber-panelled restaurant combines elegant Japanese fare with other North Asian influences,…

  • B-Smokery

    Kallio

    B-Smokery pays homage to the Teurastamo former slaughterhouse with meats smoked in its Texan smoker using apple wood, and cooked in its stainless-steel…

  • Teurastamo

    Kallio

    The former abattoir area between Sörnäinen and Kalasatama metro stations is an in place these days, with a range of locally sourcing eateries opening up…

  • Café Ursula

    Punavuori & Ullanlinna

    Offering majestic views over the Helsinki archipelago, this upmarket cafe has marvellous outside summer seating. In winter you can sit in the modern…

  • Kuja

    Kallio

    An upbeat young team helms this hip little bistro across from the waterfront. Burgers are a highlight, with choices including pulled pork (with noodles…

  • Kanniston Leipomo

    Helsinki

    Spectacular breads such as sourdough and rye are the hallmark of this fabulous Helsinki bakery chain, with half-a-dozen outlets around town. Alternatively…

  • Strindberg

    Helsinki

    Strindberg has a casual ground-floor cafe and late-opening bar, but its finest dining is one flight up. In a light-filled room overlooking leafy…

  • Naughty Brgr

    Helsinki

    The open kitchen inside this cavernous space sizzles up monumental single-, double- and triple-patty burgers. Alongside meat options such as its signature…

  • Mumin Kaffe

    Helsinki

    A delight for families, this comic-adorned cafe is themed around the Moomins, the adorable creations of Helsinki-born author and illustrator Tove Jansson…

  • Konstan Möljä

    Helsinki

    The maritime interior of this old sailors' eatery – with fishing nets, hooks, brass clocks, lanterns, black-and-white photos and creaking timber floors –…

  • The Cock

    Punavuori & Ullanlinna

    The Cock combines a free-wheeling bar with ping-pong tables (hosting regular tournaments) and brilliant cocktails such as its house G&T (with pink…

  • Lappi Ravintola

    Helsinki

    Log-cabin interior cladding, a stone fireplace, hefty timber tables and staff in traditional Sámi dress create an atmospheric backdrop for dining on…

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