Helsinki - Authentic Finnish Restaurants

I'm in Helsinki now. I can't speak to sit-down restaurants for traditional food, as restaurant reservations for the May Day holiday are made very far in advance. (I did see a number of restaurants with menus featuring traditional dishes.) There are food stalls in the Market Square selling salmon soup and fillets and variety of reindeer dishes. Lots of locals were eating there. You might also check into the Market Hall, as I saw several places there selling traditional Finnish dishes.

I'm not saying you should avoid a restaurant that serves reindeer in the spring and summer. But, depending on what kind of dish it is, it can be a small red flag that makes me think it might be a bit too touristy. But you can have a look at resturant Finnjävel in the art hall, Kunsthalle Helsinki. Ainogatan 3, just behind the parliament. According to their website they have both nettle soup and Åland pancake on their lunch menu, a good thing in my opinion! Konstan Möljä on Sandviksgatan 14 also seem to get good reviews, they have both lunch and dinner buffets with a selection of finnish dishes if you want to try several. KarlJohan on Georgsgatan 21 can also be worth a closer look at.

Hi.

Thank you both for the reply.

I appreciate the restaurant recommendations.

Is reindeer out of season in summer ?

I see the old market hall is open until 6pm. Do the food courts stay open longer and are market hours ok get in summer ?

When travelling Nordic countries I prefer food halls, I find I can have just as good a meal at a better price.

Thanks for the replies. Amy