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Lapland Wonderland: Exploring Levi & Ylläs

February 28, 2021 0 comment

The Corona Bubble in Finland and Dealing with Being Homesick

September 2, 2020 8 comments

My Favorite Restaurants in Helsinki

March 22, 2020 6 comments

What I Miss about Los Angeles

January 13, 2020 11 comments

Is Santa from Finland?

November 29, 2019 0 comment

Cost of Living in Helsinki vs Los Angeles

November 23, 2019 4 comments
FinlandTravel

Lapland Wonderland: Exploring Levi & Ylläs

by Audrey February 28, 2021
written by Audrey

Even though 2020 felt like we all hit the pause button on life, it allowed me to slow down, reflect, and find beauty in my new-ish home, Finland. Although, I’m not so sure I can call it new anymore since it will be almost 2 years since I’ve moved here.

While it was really difficult not being able to travel back to LA this year (or anywhere else for that matter), it did allow me to explore Finland much more. And so far my favorite part of Finland to explore is Lapland. With over 100,000 km2 (38,000 sq mi) of area to cover, I’ve still barely scratched the surface, even after visiting there three times now.

I think when most people think about traveling to Finland, they picture glass igloos, fluffy snow, and reindeer. Well, what they’re picturing is Lapland! That or people confuse Finland with Norway or Sweden, like in the latest GM Superbowl commercial with Will Ferrell 😆

I first went to Lapland 2 years ago, before I actually moved to Helsinki. For my first trip, I adventured to the iconic region of Rovaniemi. Since I already wrote about visiting Santa in Rovaniemi, I won’t write about that area in this post, but in case you are interested in visiting Rovaniemi, check out my previous post for some tips. For this post, I’m sharing my experiences and tips visiting the Levi and Ylläs areas.

A little geography lesson on Lapland

In case you’re not familiar with Lapland, it is the largest and northernmost region of Finland and its’ borders touch Norway, Sweden, and Russia. From Helsinki, it’s about a 9-hour train ride. The Arctic Circle crosses Lapland, which means if you go during the right times, you can catch polar phenomena such as the Midnight Sun and Polar Night. Whenever my friends send me a breathtaking Instagram photo or video of Finland, it’s usually from Lapland.

Because of its location, Lapland is sometimes considered as the interface between Russian and Nordic cultures. The indigenous people of Lapland are called the Sami, and they have inhabited the region for several thousand years.

Lapland Map | Lapland Holidays | Iglu Ski
Source: Iglu Ski

Levi, Lapland

I think everyone has missed traveling, but I’ve especially missed my girls’ trips with my besties back in LA. In fact, some of them had tickets to visit me in Helsinki this year, but COVID put a halt to that. So, for my 2nd trip to Lapland, I decided to rally a couple of the wonderful girlfriends I’ve made in Finland, and plan a girls’ trip to Levi.

We chose the Levi area for several reasons, but mainly:

  • Nearby airport that we could fly into
  • Well-known ski resort area
  • Close proximity to Ylläs National Park for hiking

We went to Levi in late September, which is not a really popular time to go because it was right after the leaves were turning, and too late for summer activities, but too early for skiing and other winter activities that Levi is known for. But, it was a good time to go during Covid times since it was practically empty everywhere, and also the rental prices were way cheaper than normal. We rented a 3 bedroom chalet, and only paid about €40 each for all 3 nights!

So what do you do in Levi during this time of year?

  • Downtown Levi – The downtown area is pretty small. There’s about a block of businesses, but you can get your karaoke, reindeer tacos, and bowling on.
  • Hike – The nearest trail to the downtown area is the Jääkausipolku “Ice Age Trail.” There are several other trails further out, but we didn’t have a car so we stuck to what was walkable.
  • Levi Ski Resort – Unfortunately because we were there during that in between time, the ski resort was closed so there was no skiing to be had, or my favorite part, the après-ski (“after ski” you know the after-party, drinks at the lodge)
  • Levi Spa – You can’t go anywhere in Finland without doing a proper sauna. The Levi Spa has that, plus an indoor water wonderland, water slide included.
  • Try traditional Lappish Food – We wanted to try traditional Lappish food and I can highly recommend the restaurant Saamen Kammi. The Sámi restaurant is in a Finnish kammi (hut covered with peat) and inside is an open fire where they cook up Finnish delicacies such as fish soup, salmon, and reindeer cooked in several ways. We definitely felt the Sámi hospitality and the best part of the experience was when the owner performed yoik (a Sámi form of singing).
  • Northern Lights hunting – There are tons of northern light tour options such as exploring via snowmobile, snowshoes, sled, cruise, canoe, or snowcat, but we decided to forego the tour and just try to chase them on foot (well with the help of a cab) — more about that below.
  • On top of the Levi Ski Resort hill
  • Making breakfast in our chalet
  • Saamen Kammi open-fire grill
  • Levi Spa

Northern lights in Lapland

The first time I went to Rovaniemi, Lapland, I just assumed I’d be able to see the Northern Lights on one of the three nights I was there. I downloaded the Aurora app to try and track them and the first 2 nights it said we had a “0% chance” of seeing them. The last night there was a 1% chance (so you’re saying there’s a chance 🤣), but alas no dice.

So when I went to Levi with the girls, I didn’t want to get my hopes up about catching the magical lights. We didn’t see anything on our first night because it was too cloudy, but the 2nd night, there was about a 20% chance. We went to a karaoke bar that night, and still no signs in the sky. But around 1 am, one of my friends was outside smoking and chatting with some Finns and they pointed out some hazy green lights in the sky. They told her it was the Northern Lights but that if we wanted to see it, we probably needed to drive out of the Levi center a bit where there was no light pollution.

So, she yanked us from the bar and we hopped in a cab and drove out into the middle of the forest, and BAM! There it was. We didn’t see a rainbow of hues, but we saw beautiful streaks of bright green lights dancing in the sky. It was more breathtaking and magical than I imagined it would be. These pictures don’t quite do them justice, but they still give you a glimpse into what we witnessed. This was definitely the highlight of our trip!

☀️ Levi summer & autumn activities

The best part about summer and early fall in Lapland is the “midnight sun.” If you’ve never experienced this, add it to your bucket list! Summer solstice (or Midsummer as it’s called in Finland) falls around the end of June. This is the longest day of the year when the sun never sets. Anyway, if you’re visiting Lapland around this time, here are a few ideas that we didn’t get to try:

  • Canoeing safari
  • Mountain and fat biking
  • Horseback riding
  • Camping
  • Smoke sauna
  • Visit reindeer and husky farms
  • White river rafting

❄️ Levi winter activities

While the days are endless in summer, the winters are the opposite. The sun pretty much disappears for a few months but in its place is an abundance of fluffy snow. And that snow brings light and makes the landscape much brighter. For me, this is the best reason to come to Lapland and try things like:

  • Cross-country skiing
  • Snowmobiling
  • Ice fishing
  • Ice hole swimming
  • Husky or reindeer sled safari
  • Snowshoeing
  • Arctic Adventure Park
  • Ice Karting

Ylläs, Lapland

Ylläs National Park in the fall

Pallas-Yllästunturi National Park (Ylläs for short) is Finland’s third-largest National Park. It’s about a 45-minute drive from Levi, so the girls and I took a day trip there to do some hiking. A fun fact about the park is that recent studies have shown that the air at Pallas is the cleanest in Europe!

There are tons of trails ranging from very easy to very difficult, so you can pick your poison. I loved the park so much that I went during my girls’ trip, and then again when I came back in the winter. We came about a week after the leaves started turning, but we were able to catch a glimpse of those beautiful fall colors or “ruska” in Finnish.

Ylläs National Park in the winter

And if the beautifully painted fall landscapes of Ylläs National Park were not beautiful enough, the dream-like snow made it look like an entirely new wonderland. For my 3rd trip to Lapland, Kimmo and I did a home exchange and worked remotely from a cottage in Ylläs for a week. I just had to take him back here.

Things to do in Ylläs

We recently discovered a home exchange service, so we were able to swap homes with someone in Ylläs, Lapland, which made the trip extra affordable. It was a beautiful cottage, and the perfect opportunity to take advantage of working remotely. Since I had to work during the day, we didn’t get to do too many activities, but honestly, I was perfectly happy just hanging out in the cozy cottage and a change of scenery from working fully remote.

Here are some things to do in Ylläs. Admittedly we didn’t get to do some of these since the ski resorts were not open for the season yet, but we did manage to try a few.

  • Lake Äkäaslompolo – Great spot for spotting the Northern Lights
  • Snowboarding or skiing at one of the Ylläs ski resorts
  • Cross country skiing at Ihmisen Rinki
  • Ride the Gondola lifts
  • Taiga for some after-ski drinks
  • Enjoy a spa day at the Lapland Hotel Saaga
  • Pakasaivo and the Kirkkopahta Seida Rock – the holy place of worship for the Sámi people
  • Konijänkkä animal farm – If you want to see reindeer up close and personal, this was a fantastic place. But you will see them roaming all around, so beware, reindeer crossing is a real thing here!
  • Our cottage for the week
  • My remote workstation
  • Hiking
  • Rambo loved the snow, too!
  • At the Hotel Saaga spa resort
  • Warming up in a tipi
  • Konijänkkä animal farm

Being from LA, there’s an entire world of winter sports that I’ve never experienced or even heard of. Things like snowshoeing, long-distance ice skating, skinning, ice karting, and the craziest one of all, biathlon (look it up!). I mean I’ve heard of cross-country skiing, but I didn’t know it differed from downhill skiing and that there are loads of different types of skis.

In any case I had a bunch of winter firsts this trip:

  • Sledding
  • Making snow angels
  • Snowball fights
  • Clearing snow off of a car 🤪

I still haven’t stayed in one of those dreamy glass igloos or snow castle hotels, but I guess that means I’ll just have to take another trip to Lapland. This time even further north! Stay tuned!

February 28, 2021 0 comment
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Helsinki

The Corona Bubble in Finland and Dealing with Being Homesick

by Audrey September 2, 2020
written by Audrey

If you’re like me, you probably have reader’s fatigue when it comes to articles and blog posts about COVID-19. I also write marketing content for a living, and every one of my clients has requested me to write about the topic for them as well. But, no matter how many articles I read (or write), I can only truly know what it’s like in my own city. Since Finland is a pretty small and obscure country in comparison to the rest of the world, I wanted to share what corona in Finland has been like. I’ve had a lot of friends and family comment on how “lucky I am to be in Finland.” And they’re absolutely right. While I’m super grateful to be here, it has also been difficult watching the situation back home in LA from afar. It has stirred up all kinds of emotions on top of being homesick.

Coronavirus in Finland vs California

First, let’s get the factual stuff out of the way. Here’s a comparison of the cases in Finland vs. California. Just keep in mind that the population of California (41 million) is much larger than Finland (5.5 million).

Source: Google

As you can see, there are much fewer cases here, even relative to the population size. The cases have been steadily declining and when the government granted the re-opening of restaurants and businesses back in June, there weren’t any major surges. In fact, there was a day in July when there were 0 new cases reported.

In comparison to the rest of the world, Finland is considered one of the few “safe” countries to travel to. Here’s a map from the Finnish Department of Health and Welfare which depicts a traffic light model that helps to assess the risk of corona infection associated with traveling abroad. Apologies it’s only available in Finnish, but here’s what the colors mean:

  • Green: The incidence of COVID-19 is below the government-set threshold, less than 8-10 cases per 100,000 people per 14 days. Finland falls into this category.
  • Orange: The incidence of COVID-19 exceeds the limit set by the government. The incidence is 10-25 cases per 100,000 inhabitants per 14 days.
  • Red: The incidence of COVID-19 is very high, with more than 25 cases per 100,000 population per 14 days.
Source: Finland Department of Health and Welfare

COVID-19 government actions in Finland

Quarantining in Helsinki started in March. The government made an official announcement on TV recommending that everyone stay home and only leave when necessary. I can’t say for sure, but whenever there was a televised government announcement, it seemed like most people tune in and listen to any instructions. I really get the sense that the citizens here trust in their government and follow the rules. It’s also pretty rad that our Prime Minister is a 34-year-old woman, the youngest PM in the world. Not to mention her coalition government was formed with all five party leaders being women – the majority being under 40-years of age.

Luckily at my job, most people were already working remotely a few days a week, so we had the resources and infrastructure to start working fully remotely. I think the difficulties of working remotely transcends across the globe, so I won’t go into that. But let’s just say working on a laptop from a kitchen table caused a lot of stiff necks and unnecessary trips to the fridge. 🍩

Fun fact: Finland has had the biggest shift to telecommuting of any European Union country during the coronavirus pandemic with over 75% of the population working remotely.

The strict quarantining ended around May, but restaurants and bars didn’t really open back up until June. For the most part, people stayed at home, and there weren’t any protests about it. If you talk to people living here, I think we can all agree that the government has done a great job reacting quickly and Finns in turn have done their part to follow their recommendations. It seems as if we were able to suffocate the disease and contain it for now.

If you look back at the Google image of the cases in Finland, you can see that there was a slight increase in cases in August, but again the government reacted quickly and made a recommendation for people to start wearing masks on public transportation and in any crowded indoor places. While it’s not required, I noticed the day after this announcement, many people were wearing masks throughout the city. By the way, if you’re in Helsinki and need one, I got mine at 1981 Helsinki. They make custom ones that fit really well!

Just yesterday, the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) released a contact tracing app called Koronavilkku. The app utilizes Bluetooth in peoples’ cell phones to help you find out whether you may have been exposed to coronavirus. If you have a coronavirus test and are diagnosed as infected, you can use the app to share this anonymously with those you have been in close contact with. In just one day, the app was already downloaded 1.4 million times. That’s like 25% of Finland’s population! 😲

I’m continually impressed with the way things are handled here and for the most part, I feel safe.

Quarantining in Helsinki

Starting in March, I stayed home for about 2 months straight without really seeing anyone. I know this was tough for everyone around the world, but it did make for a lot of quality time with my 11 year old Frenchie and tons of interesting activities at home like:

  • airbnb online experiences ✨
  • indoor picnics + lots of wine 🥂
  • zoom dance parties, game nights, and drinks with friends 💃🏽
  • virtual live yoga 🧘🏽‍♀️
  • building indoor forts ⛺️
  • streaming operas and broadway shows 🎶
  • houseparty games with friends 🎮
  • more wine 🍷
  • online courses: my faves were the Yale Science of Wellbeing and Ahref’s Blogging for Business 👩🏽‍🏫
  • plus much more that I can’t remember

Oh, and how can I forget all the socially-distanced outdoor activities like daily walks, hikes, and summer cottage trips. I also decided to pick up rollerblading again, which I haven’t done since I was a teenager!

Quarantining also helped me to connect more with my family and friends back home. Going through the same thing across the globe is such a unique experience that really connected us and made us closer. And for that, I’m grateful because timezones and busy lives can really get in the way when you’re living abroad.

By about May, people were allowed to gather in groups of 10 or less, so I started to have some socially distanced outdoor picnics with a few friends here and there. It’s just a bit tough to have outdoor picnics in Finland during this time of year because it’s still pretty damn cold, like I’m talking below-freezing cold. I think the jackets say it all here…

The summer bubble in Helsinki

As I mentioned earlier, once the government felt like we had the situation in control, businesses started opening back up in early June. At first, restaurants were allowed (not bars) to be open until 10 pm. After a couple of weeks of observation, and no surges in cases, bars were then allowed to be open until midnight. After a couple of weeks of that, the opening hours limitations were lifted, but there were still restrictions on building capacities and keeping tables two meters apart.

Slowly but surely, it started to feel “normal” in Helsinki. For a while, it almost felt like the disease didn’t exist here. Open-air parties started to become rampant along with restaurant and bar terraces popping up everywhere. The only issue is, summer is just about over here, and terrace season is only possible for a couple of months in Helsinki.

But I’m definitely not complaining, and can honestly say we had a beautiful summer here with a good amount of sunny, warm days. That’s a big deal around here because I’ve heard of frigid and rainy summers. It’s like the city becomes alive when it’s a sunny day, and everyone feels the need to be outside to savor any signs of warmth. Unlike in LA where you typically only see people tanning at beaches and pools, you can find Finns sunbathing in bikinis on a random patch of grass, as long as the sun is shining there. 👙

Since we couldn’t travel to other countries at the beginning of summer, many people took the opportunity to explore beyond Helsinki. My insta stories were filled with people camping and hiking all throughout Finland. It seemed as if people were falling in love with their own country. I felt like we were living in a bubble, able to see friends and go out to restaurants, bars, art museums, beer floats, and half-filled movie theaters.

There is speculation about a second wave hitting Finland, but now that the summer is over, and the hygge season is fast approaching, I think Finns will be naturally hibernating anyway 🥶. At least I spent a lot of time in my apartment last year during the cold and dark months, which means from about October through March!

Homesick

When I would share photos or stories of my summer whereabouts, I often got comments from friends and family in the U.S. about how lucky I am, and how horrid the situation is there. Sometimes it made me feel guilty about how good we have it in Finland. I think that from an outside perspective, it may look like I’m being irresponsible or perhaps throwing our situation in peoples’ faces but, I always followed the rules. For me, social media has become a way for me to keep up with the people I care about back home and stay in the know of what’s going on in LA. It’s also a way for me to share my life and provide a window into Helsinki.

When the world was quarantining and there were so many stories about people not being able to be with their loved ones during their last hours, it broke my heart. It also terrified me knowing that at any minute, it could be one of my loved ones, or even myself, and I wouldn’t be able to just rush back home. My youngest brother is a nurse, who lives with our parents, so you can imagine how frightening that is. It was and is still really tough, knowing I can’t easily be there.

I was supposed to go back home in May for my other brother’s wedding, but it got postponed because of corona. He has since rescheduled it to November, but it’s looking like that might not happen either. That means that I might not be able to go back home at all this year. Some of my best friends had also planned a big trip here in August to come to visit me, but that obviously needed to be canceled with the U.S. international travel restrictions. While I’m super grateful to be in Finland, I’m also really homesick. There’s nothing I’d like more than to be with my friends and family, especially when the holidays roll around.

The Black Lives Matter movement

On top of the pandemic and being homesick, everything going on with the BLM movement in the U.S. has been devastating to watch from afar. I’ve tried to get involved in ways that I can from Finland, but not being in the trenches and living in LA has made me feel detached. I can’t fully explain it, but I guess that’s why I’ve described it as living in a bubble. At first, I felt helpless, and that there wasn’t much I can do from here, but slowly I found ways to contribute.

The first thing was to get more educated about the movement in the U.S. and also learn about racism in Finland. On the surface level, Finland seems (and probably is) one of the most egalitarian countries, especially when you see a government filled with young, badass women. But, when you dig deeper and talk to black people in Finland, many can attest to the racism they’ve experienced here. One of my closest friends here is African-American and she has shared many stories of racism that she’s encountered.

According to the Being Black in the EU report, Finland is actually considered one of the most racist European countries. One thing to note though is that when it comes to trusting the police, Finland came on top. On a scale of 0 to 10, Finland trusted the police the most, rating their trust at 8.2 on the scale. The trust of law enforcement authorities was lowest in Austria, at 3.6 on the scale.

I’ve also had a couple of racist encounters. Both times it was older men assuming I was from Thailand. One man even tried talking to me in Thai. It’s always the same type of experience though whether I’m in Finland or any other country. I say I’m American, then get the question, “yeah but where are you from?” My response: I’m from the United States. 🙃

Another way I was able to get involved from Finland, was by joining the BLM protest and march here in Helsinki. It was pretty moving to see how many people showed up. Peaceful protestors of all ages and backgrounds were present at the event, which included speakers from local activist groups, academics, entrepreneurs, and artists. I had heard there was a BLM protest a couple of years back that had less than a 100 people, but this protest gathered thousands of people at Senate square.

Another important way to get involved was to make sure I vote for the U.S. presidential election. Luckily I’m able to submit an absentee ballot online from abroad. If you’re trying to vote from abroad, make sure you know the absentee voting process. In order to get your absentee ballot online, you need to first send in a Federal Post Card Application, every year you’re voting, well in advance.

A quick funny story about that… the application itself was easy, but boy did I go through some hoops. I was able to print the application, but there were specific instructions to print the mailing details directly on an envelope. You aren’t allowed to have any stickers or tape on the envelope, which means you can’t use labels. No big deal right? Wrong! FedEx and Kinkos do not exist here. I couldn’t find any similar print shops, so I went to the post office. The post office didn’t do printing, and when I asked where I could do such a thing they recommended a photo printing shop or the library. Well I went to both of those places, and neither of them could print directly on envelopes. I spent an entire day running around trying to figure out how to print on an envelope, which by the way I could only buy in packs of five. Eventually, I found someone with a home printer, which I was able to print the damn thing from.

While I continue to try and educate myself, it can be overwhelming trying to keep up with the flood of news and social media posts. I want to stay connected with what’s happening back home and share that with people living in Finland. And vice versa, share my experiences in Finland with Americans and other outsiders. I can’t pretend to know what it’s like living in LA during these times. And with all the fake or unverified news circulating around, I sometimes find it hard to use my voice because then I feel the imposter syndrome coming on. But I guess for now my strategy is to practice gratitude, be open to continually learn, and hold the people I love close. If you’re an American living abroad, I’d love to hear about your experiences too. 💖

September 2, 2020 8 comments
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Helsinki

My Favorite Restaurants in Helsinki

by Audrey March 22, 2020
written by Audrey

This quarantine life has hit so many businesses in what seems like a blink of the eye. Restaurants have been hit especially hard, which is why I’m doing what I can to support local restaurants and businesses. It has actually been beautiful to see communities come together and support each other. No matter how small you think your part is, every little act of kindness make a difference. I’m truly hopeful that the entire world will come out of this as more social and compassionate human beings. 💖

For now, I thought I’d reminisce about my favorite food spots in Helsinki until we can meet again.

Lunch Culture 🍽

Before I dive into my favorite lunch spots in Helsinki, I thought I’d share a bit about the differences in lunch culture between here and LA.

  • People actually go to lunch – The lunch culture in Helsinki is big. I never see people skip lunch and in fact, most people take their full lunch break, even if they decide to bring their own lunch to work. Back in LA, I would often skip lunch, or eat my lunch at my desk while I was working.
  • Meet up friends for lunch – Since Helsinki is pretty small, if you work anywhere near the city center, then it’s doesn’t take long to meet up people for lunch. This makes it really easy to stay connected with friends or have business/networking lunch meetings. There have been weeks where I had lunch with a different person each day.
  • Lunch card – Many businesses offer a lunch card benefit, which further encourages people to go out for lunch, especially with other colleagues. Your company basically pays 25% of your lunch up to €10.70. So basically free moneyyyy, why wouldn’t I take advantage?
  • Buffets galore – Buffets and salad bars are really common during lunch. Tons of restaurants either have a limited lunch menu with an accompanying salad bar or a full on buffet. They’re usually around that €10.70 lunch card price point. This has been a tough thing for me to get used to, because I have such a hard time with portion control. 🤦🏽‍♀️I often joke that I’m a 300 lbs (90 kg) man living in a 115lbs (52 kg) woman.
  • People don’t share food – When I started going to lunch with colleagues, I would ask if anyone wanted to share or split different dishes, and I got some weird looks. It’s not common for people to share food here. In Asian cuisine, we often eat family style, where we order several dishes and everyone shares. That’s how I grew up eating. Even in LA with my non-asian colleagues or friends, we often ordered different things and shared so that we could try several dishes. I’m just a lover of food, and I enjoy being able to try different things. Why order two of the same dish, when you can order two different ones?

Best Lunch Restaurants in Helsinki 🌮

Ok now that you how we do lunch in Helsinki, here’s where to go…

  • Vibami – Favorite Vietnamese spot. My go to dish is the Bun Thit Nuong.
  • Lie Mie – Vietnamese & Korean fusion. Shanghai Tacos are bomb diggity. Also, their lunch salad bar is 🔥.
  • Taqueria Lopez y Lopez – Favorite Mexican spot. Al pastor tacos. Enough said.
  • Xiao Mei Lin – Juicy soup dumplings and pan fried dumplings.
  • Red Koi Thai – Where I get my Pad Thai, Pad See Ew, and Panang Curry on.
  • Fat Ramen – Best ramen in Helsinki. This is in the Hietalahti Market Hall, which by the way you can’t go wrong at any of the restaurants in here. I’ve tried them all, and they all get my stamp of approval.
  • Bali Brunch – Hip and delicious Indonesian spot. Rendang plate is my jam.
  • Hoku – Hawaiian Japanese fusion restaurant. Everything is delicious, especially the chicken katsu and salmon teriyaki.
  • Social Burger – My favorite burger joint in Helsinki.
  • Kabuki – The closest I can get to good sushi and Japanese food.
  • Sandro – Middle Eastern & African cuisine. This is one of the lunch buffet spots, but I’m into it. There’s always such a colorful spread with lots of great healthy options.
  • Cargo – Really good vegetarian option. Their menu changes daily. I don’t know what they put in this yellow spread they have for their bread, but I just want to drink it.
  • Sandro
  • Lie Mie
  • Vibami
  • Bali Brunch
  • Taqueria Lopez y Lopez
  • Fat Ramen

Best Dinner Restaurants in Helsinki 🍝

  • Farang – Asian fusion restaurant. A dinner spot to splurge and do the wine pairings. Everything was fantastic.
  • The Bull & The Firm – Tapas style dishes that change seasonally and according to local ingredients available. They also have really good cocktails and natural wines.
  • Pur Pur – My first time trying Georgian food, and it didn’t disappoint. Khachapuri, Pelmeni, beef shashlik, and some Georgian red wine, yes please!
  • Shelter – I’ve been here twice now, and their food is quality, but really I’d just go there for their Finnish malt bread. Seriously, the best bread I’ve ever had, hands down! 🤩
  • Juuri – So far my favorite Finnish restaurant.
  • Via Tribunali – THE spot for Neapolitan pizza.
  • Korea House – The closest I can get to some Korean BBQ.
  • The Bull & The Firm
  • That malt bread at Shelter
  • Korea House
  • Pur Pur
  • Farang

Filipino Restaurants in Helsinki 🇵🇭

I never would have guessed that Helsinki would have a Filipino food scene, let alone five Filipino restaurants! I’ve tried almost all of them now, and even though most of them are more fusion or inspired, they’re all actually masarap (delicious)!

  • Platito – This is a Spanish Filipino tapas restaurant. I recommend getting the Filipinas and España platters so you can try the best of both cuisines.
  • Sentro – I was finally able to find my favorite Filipino dish here, sisig! Ugh, so good.
  • Kamalig – The most authentic of all the Filipino restaurants I’ve tried. They’ve got the most traditional dishes like adobo and sinigang. Just like home.
  • Pobre – If you’ve never tried Filipino food, this is the perfect place to try it out. Filipino inspired dishes that are approachable, and more importantly delicious!
  • Paisano – From the same people who started Pobre. It’s Filipino food with a twist and tapas style so you can try a variety. I also have to mention that the cocktails are superb!
  • Kainan – Ok so this is the one I haven’t tried yet. Also, it’s in Espoo not Helsinki. When I’ve asked other Filipinos here what they’re favorite Filipino restaurant is, I’ve been told Kainan is the place to go. I definitely need to make my way out here.
  • Platito
  • Sentro

Best Desserts in Helsinki 🍦

To be honest I haven’t explored the dessert scene in Helsinki that much yet, but here are a few must try places that I have ran across. I do have to mention that my favorite dessert is ice cream, and for some reason the artisan ice cream scene hasn’t landed here yet. That’s surprising because Finland is 4th in the world for countries that eat the most ice cream per capita. I haven’t ran into any good ice cream shops, just ice cream stands with basic ice cream flavors. There are a few specialty brands that you can find at the grocery stores, but no freshly made ice cream with intricate flavors like Salt & Straw and Ginger’s Ice Cream in LA.

  • Suklaakeisari – The best raw chocolate in all of Finland! Guilt-free and freaking delicious chocolate. They’re sold in several cafes around town, but you can order them directly online.
  • Kanniston Leipomo – Great coffee, and even better pastries! They also bake their own bread. You’ve got to try some traditional Finnish pulla.
  • Petiscaria – This is a Portuguese restaurant in the Hietalahti Market Hall, but I go there for their Pastel de Nata. My favorite pastry from Lisbon.
  • Brooklyn Cafe & Bakery – Best cupcakes in town from two sisters from Brooklyn. Red Velvet and Carrot Cake, need I say more?
  • Jätskiauto (Ice Cream Truck) – Yes, you’re reading that right. We have an ice cream truck that comes a couple times a month around our neighborhood, and they have these Toffeevene bars which are toffee flavored ice cream with a toffee sauce in a waffle boat. Bomb dot com.

Favorite Local Restaurants in Jätkäsaari 🏡

I live in the Jätkäsaari area of Helsinki, which is a pretty new area. There’s tons of construction going on, as it’s still being built out. Restaurants only started popping up in the last year or so. Since we’re in quarantine, and a lot of the restaurants in this area are quite new, I really want to do my part to help support the local restaurants and businesses. Since being in quarantine, I’ve been cooking dinners, but grabbing takeout or delivery lunches from the nearby restaurants. I’ve been trying a different one every day and so far these are my favorites.

  • Urbine – I really dig the living room vibe of this restaurant. Really cool decor and cafe-style food is good too. The menu changes daily, and right now they’re doing free deliveries when you order 2 or more items.
  • Malaga Bar – This was a great local bar that sometimes had live music. It’s also dog friendly, which is always a plus. Their pizettas are yummy!
  • Vacco – The Diavolo and Vacco pizzas were 👍🏽
  • Faro – I love going to this place during the summer because it’s along the canal and has a beautiful patio and view. Their portions are huge and the food is fresh. But, the real reason I go here is for Finnish pancakes on Thursdays. There’s a tradition in Finland that every Thursday, you have pea soup and pancakes. I’m not really a fan of the pea soup, but I can eat Finnish style pancakes all day. They’re much denser and sweeter than American pancakes, yum!
  • Vessel Burger – My local burger joint. My favorite is the Gorgeous Goat. They also have a Bistro restaurant next door, but I haven’t had the chance to try it yet.
  • Be My Guest – Cute little Vietnamese restaurant. The bread on their Banh Mi is legit.
  • Ismet – Kebab spot, which is my go-to for hangover or cheat days.

So those are my favorite restaurants in Helsinki that I’ve been able to try so far. There are so many more on my list to try, so look out for an updated list in the future. Until we can get back into the restaurants, let’s all try to support them however we can. Thanks for reading!

March 22, 2020 6 comments
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About Me

About Me

Meet Audrey

Hi there! I'm a native Angeleno and moved to Helsinki in April 2019. LAxHEL is a blog about my journey moving to Finland, the fascinating differences between living in LA and Helsinki, and life living abroad... featuring my French bulldog, Rambo.

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