Potatoes, meat, fish, milk, butter and rye bread are the traditional mainstays of the Finnish diet, but food in Finland has been greatly influenced both by Western (French and Swedish) and Eastern (Russian) cooking. Tourists can expect excellent fresh fish dishes such as pike, trout, perch, whitefish, salmon and Baltic herring. All are in abundance most of the year. Each region has its own traditional dishes. In restaurants (
ravintola), the menu is continental with several Finnish specialties. Inexpensive lunches are served at places called
kahvila and
baari (the latter is
not necessarily a licensed bar).
Things to know:
Restaurants are divided into two classes: those serving all kinds of alcohol and those serving only beers and wines. Waiter service is common although there are many self-service snack bars. Bars and cafes may have table and/or counter service and all internationally known beverages are available. In restaurants, beer is served from 0900 and other liquor from 1100. All alcohol is served until half an hour before the restaurant closes. Nightclubs are open to serve drinks until 0200 or 0400. Service begins at 1100 and continues until the restaurant closes. The age limit for drinking is 18 years, but consumers must be 20 before they can buy the stronger alcoholic beverages. There are strict laws against drinking and driving.
National specialties:
• The province of Åland has
Skärgårdssmak, or 'Island flavors', and features mainly local fish.
•
Karelia à la carte focuses on the Karelian buffet traditions and wholesome stews and casseroles.
•
Lapland à la carte features reindeer meat, smoked or in other forms, fish and Lapp
puikula potatoes, with
cloudberries for desert, often served with hot toffee sauce.
•
Kalakukko, a kind of fish and pork pie, baked in a rye flour crust, and
karjalan piirakat, a pastry of rye flour stuffed with rice pudding or potato and eaten with egg butter.
• Various kinds of thick soups are also popular.
• Crayfish is available from July to August.
National drinks:
•
Koskenkorva or Finlandia vodka schnapps, traditionally drunk with lamprey, Baltic herring or other cold fish.
• The Finnish berry liqueurs,
mesimarja (arctic bramble),
lakka (cloudberry) and
polar (cranberry).
• Finnish vodka, usually served ice-cold with meals.
• Finnish beer is of a high quality and mild beers are served in most coffee bars.
Tipping: Tipping, once non-existent in Finland, is becoming common. A 15 per cent service charge is included in the bill in hotels. Restaurants and bars have a 14 per cent service charge weekdays and 15 per cent on weekends and holidays. The obligatory cloakroom or doorman fee is usually clearly indicated. Taxi drivers are not normally tipped.
NotePrices for alcohol vary according to the restaurant’s classification.
E: Elite price category.
G: General price category.
S: Self-service price category.
A: Fully licensed.
B: Licensed for beer and wine.
Next Page »
