I have been doing some traveling. It is one of those weeks that has involved planes, ships and three different countries. But first there was Turku and a visit to one of my favorite cafés, Cafe Art or Art Cafe along the Aura River.
Free wifi, good coffee, lots of space. A wonderful place to work. I had an entire room to myself with a view of the river and cyclists zooming by…
There only fault is parsimonious hours.
A visiting friend invited me to Juuri for the first time last fall and it was fun. The food is presented well, but I think they make a wee bit too much of a fuss over their unique concept of Finnish tapas. This time, a group of us were coming in for a late afternoon drink and snack after a tour of galleries nearby. It was four in the afternoon, but the waitress still seemed to be pushing a bit for people to order a main course, or more tapas. That aside, it is a nice place and a favourite of visitors, since they have a lot of traditional flavours on the menu. One of the plates I ordered– the special of the day– was not too special, but the fish was delicious.
Lunch at Hoku
The other day I got to have lunch at Hoku , a little restaurant in Helsinki I had been wanting to go to for a very long time. It was so good that even though I was having lunch with someone I had just met and felt a little ridiculous I had to take a photo of the furikake encrusted siika over udon noodles. Siika is sometimes translated just as common whitefish. It is a medium sized lake fish with delicate white flesh well-loved in Finland.
Very nice people, too! Lunch was wonderful.
Shadows of the light sculpture inside the Musikki Talo
Musiikkitalo (literally: music building or music house) is one of my favorite places in Helsinki. Not only does it have a wonderful, innovative, and ambitious calendar of events, it has wonderful leadership. Recently I had the opportunity to hear the director Katja Leppäkoski speak and she talked about how they were seeking to make the Musiikkitalo inclusive and open to many sorts of people and interests. I love that it is open to everyone, with free wifi and more generous hours than most Helsinki cafes. It is a beautiful space in which to work. Many of the performances also have discounted tickets for students and people without work (about EUR 7.50– cheaper than a trip to the cinema). And the acoustics, even behind the orchestra, are magnificent; they were designed by Yasuhisa Toyota.
They also get amazing artists in, like Julia Lezhneva who is performing this coming Sunday. I would go if I could! Worth a try, even if baroque isn’t your thing. And if you’re not broke– these tickets are pricier.
Shadows of the light sculpture inside the Musikki Talo
Musiikkitalo (literally: music building or music house) is one of my favorite places in Helsinki. Not only does it have a wonderful, innovative, and ambitious calendar of events, it has wonderful leadership. Recently I had the opportunity to hear the director Katja Leppäkoski speak and she talked about how they were seeking to make the Musiikkitalo inclusive and open to many sorts of people and interests. I love that it is open to everyone, with free wifi and more generous hours than most Helsinki cafes. It is a beautiful space in which to work. Many of the performances also have discounted tickets for students and people without work (about EUR 7.50– cheaper than a trip to the cinema). And the acoustics, even behind the orchestra, are magnificent; they were designed by Yasuhisa Toyota.
They also get amazing artists in, like Julia Lezhneva who is performing this coming Sunday. I would go if I could! Worth a try, even if baroque isn’t your thing. And if you’re not broke– these tickets are pricier.
My most magical food truck experience happened in Los Angeles c. Spring 2003. Two friends and I were spoiled by all-you-can-eat fresh, Californian college food plans that appeared magically as part of our exorbitant tuition. We barely remembered how to feed ourselves, cook, or use cash to buy food. It was only because of impending war that we were in town out of term time to protest the impending war. It was rainy and cold– at least from our perspective. We were hungry and broke, and in the middle of nowhere LA in the wake of the protest march. A taco truck appeared out of the mist. I remember it zooming to a halt right in front of us, like a knight on a rearing white stead come to save us. We had to be able to speak Spanish to get our fish tacos, which were delicious and cheap.
Fast forward to Helsinki c. 2014. Suddenly, street food and food trucks have become a must-have for aspiring hipster cities. I can’t help but feel this is a bit derivative of and yet a strangely establishment version of, i.e., the PDX food truck trend, missing the shoestring origins of ye olde moveable restaurant enterprise. . . you know what I mean?
Maybe this is just another artisanal toast phenomenon.
Anyway, I went to the event, fought through crowds to meet my friend, was groped by a late middle aged/old well-dressed Finnish man in the midst of the crush, which was worse than New Year’s Eve at Senate Square, waited in line a looooong time for a beef sandwich from the Street Gastro food truck… which WAS GREAT. At 5 EUR, also a wonderful price. But… Come on! Oh well.
That being said, I am a big fan of Ravintola Päivää.
A transcendent lamb “Vorshmack Burger” with fish roe from Tehtaankadun Marsalkka during February 2014 Restaurant Day. This was amazing. And unique. This beauty was lowered down by rope to the street level. I had to go back to get my man a second one– they were that good. The talented kids behind it are definitely ones to watch.
Cold Song 