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Helsinki - OlO Plus

gfron1

By gfron1
in Elsewhere in Europe: Dining

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gfron1

gfron1

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I bought my tickets today to eat at OlO in Helsinki.  This all started when I realized how isolated I was getting in my rural little town, and constantly having the voice of Jiro in my head saying, "to make great food you need to eat great food."  So after hearing a trusted source say "its a game changer" I bought my tickets.  Now I want to round out my experience.  We're looking at a jaunt over to St. Petersburg and I've already started a topic about that, but I'm curious about other adventures in Finland itself.  Not interested in other countries since I've only got 5 days, but inland and northward are interesting to me, and I'm particularly interested in products/ingredients/experiences.  But all info is useful because I don't know jack about Finland-I'm only going to have dinner.

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Chef, Bulrush & Squatters in St. Louis, MO

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CatPoet

CatPoet

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You have to find  mesimarja, either   as jam or a liqueur, it arctic raspberries and  so lovely!  Other berries that makes lovely liqueur  and jam are   Lakka  ( cloudberry),Puolukka ( Lingonberry) and  Mustikka ( billberry).    I also have  fond spot for  Finnish candy  terva leijona, try it and see if you like it.   I love karjalanpiirakka  which is  a pirogi  with potatoes and  there blood sausage. too.

 

Oh and where to find booze go to Alko.

 

I will ponder some more and ask my parents , I havent been  over to Finland for a while, I live closer to Denmark and my parent's to Finland,  You are welcomed for fika and dinner. ;)

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Cheese is you friend, Cheese will take care of you, Cheese will never betray you, But blue mold will kill me.

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CatPoet

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I see if I can find Mrs S later on today and  see what she can recommend in  Åbo/Turku  and  Helsingfors/Helsinki, she goes there a lot  these day since she has family there.

 

I love Finnish food, it hearty and yummy.   They do have great pastry too  like   Korvapuusti and  grisar  ( only know the Swedish word for this), it is square doughnut filled with jam. 

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Cheese is you friend, Cheese will take care of you, Cheese will never betray you, But blue mold will kill me.

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CatPoet

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My friend would look into it more when her family has gone home again but this she said was a must.

 

Finnish licorice, you need to try it. Joulutorttuja, is apparently something you have to try, it is small  short crust pastries  with plum filling, how ever the word means Christmas torte. Look for restaurants that serves Christmas food, it most often a buffet of different dishes.

 
And if you can afford , there is a  Russian restaurants in Helsinki that serves bear, she couldnt remember the name.  
 
Also have far will you travel in 5 days, where will you be staying?    

Cheese is you friend, Cheese will take care of you, Cheese will never betray you, But blue mold will kill me.

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CatPoet

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Ah, just remember the  you still might need a visa for that day in Russia, due the Ukraine crisis , everything is getting weirder.  honestly I wouldnt go there.  Tallin is nicer and less crime and less hateful and better food and atmosphere.

 In Finland why not go to Rovaniemi, the home of  Santa Claus, you have chance of enjoying Samphi  food  and trust me, that is yummy.    I grew with that kind of food.  Yum. Reindeer should be in a stew not as decoration. ;)

Cheese is you friend, Cheese will take care of you, Cheese will never betray you, But blue mold will kill me.

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gfron1

gfron1

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I'm all about food.  So your suggestions have been spot on.  We are hoping to go up north early in the week.  Our reservation at OlO is on Saturday night and we arrive the prior Monday so we have plenty of time to explore.  

Chef, Bulrush & Squatters in St. Louis, MO

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Smithsonian magazine story

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gfron1

gfron1

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Our trip is just days away. 

 

Tuesday, December 9th

No plans, maybe Soul Kitchen for dinner

 

Wednesday, December 10th

Ferry to Estonia

Tallinn Christmas Market 10am-6pm

Dinner at Neh

 

We'll miss this, but In Helsinki – Terra Madre Day at Mariankatu 15

 

Thursday, December 11th

Back to Helsinki, nothing planned - probably the Christmas Market

 

Friday, December 12th

Vanha Kauppahalli market stalls for food

Ravintolo Perho catering school restaurant

Alko booze store

Dinner at Restaurant Ask

 

Saturday, December 13th

St. Lucia Day (festival of lights, parade; Swedish-speaking areas) - one of our dog's name is Lucia, so we'll be going

Dinner  at OlO

 

Sunday, December 14th

No plans

 

Tyler's to-do list:

Temppeliaukio Chapel in the Rock

National Museum of Finland

Temppeliaukio Church Awe-inspiring, copper-topped 1969 "Church in the Rock."

Uspenski Orthodox Cathedral Orthodoxy's most prodigious display outside of Eastern Europe.

Lutheran Cathedral Green-domed, 19th-century Neoclassical masterpiece.

National Museum of Finland The scoop on Finland, featuring folk costumes, an armory, czars, and thrones; the prehistory exhibit is best.

Seurasaari Open-Air Folk Museum Island museum with 100 historic buildings from Finland's farthest corners.

Suomenlinna Fortress Helsinki's harbor island, sprinkled with picnic spots, museums, and military history.

Senate Square Consummate Neoclassical square, with Lutheran Cathedral.

Helsinki City Museum Tells the city's history well and in English.

Ateneum, The National Gallery of Finland Largest collection of art in Finland, including local favorites plus works by Cézanne, Chagall, Gauguin, and Van Gogh.

Sibelius Monument Stainless-steel sculptural tribute to Finland's greatest composer.

 

My to do list:

Herkkutalo – food gifts

Mariankatu 15 http://www.herkkutalo.fi/

 

Cheese shop: Hakaniemen Kauppahalli 95-97
00530 Helsinki

 

Hakaniemi Market Hall: 

Satumarja store for dried mushrooms and berries

Matti Kuusela’s stall – get the bread cheese

Lentävä lehmä – small producer cheeses

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Chef, Bulrush & Squatters in St. Louis, MO

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CatPoet

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Try to get hold of  Lussekatter,  they are S shaped saffron rolls.   Lovely stuff and perfect for Lucia.  It might be crowded at the  Alko if you go  later in the day, people tend to get drunk at  Friday and Saturdays, so when it opens is often the best times.

Edited by CatPoet (log)
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Cheese is you friend, Cheese will take care of you, Cheese will never betray you, But blue mold will kill me.

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CatPoet

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Oh and Karjalanpiirakka, you have to eat at least on, it is a savoury pastry  with  potato filling and it is so yummy.

Cheese is you friend, Cheese will take care of you, Cheese will never betray you, But blue mold will kill me.

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CatPoet

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I really hope you have a lovely time!   Oh I wish I could meet you  up but the  train to  the harbour  cost  10 times more then the boat trip...

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Cheese is you friend, Cheese will take care of you, Cheese will never betray you, But blue mold will kill me.

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gfron1

gfron1

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Miserable weather! But since we live in a place that gets sun 340 days a year, I'm not complaining. After 18 hours of travel we settled into our airbnb and found a little kabob place. Meh, it was ok. But I connected with the Olo staff who recommended Emo or Sea Horse - for a chef friendly restaurant. Now we'll debate the options for tomorrow night.

 

 

20141208_202957.jpg

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Chef, Bulrush & Squatters in St. Louis, MO

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CatPoet

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At least you didnt get yours in a   barley and meat filled pirogi as I did in Finland!   I hope you have better luck tomorrow.

Cheese is you friend, Cheese will take care of you, Cheese will never betray you, But blue mold will kill me.

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gfron1

gfron1

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The problem with waking up at noon in December is that now there are only 3 hours of daylight left! 

 

We went to the grocery last night and got some breakfast things. With all of my years of Spanish, its all useless here. I have no idea what anything is based on the language, so we just essentially shopped in the dark. We think we go some salted butter. We know we got eggs - not sure of anything special about them, typical bread with a hole in it, and some type of cheese. We're not picky. It'll work. We're off to walk to the docks.

20141209_121455.jpg

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Chef, Bulrush & Squatters in St. Louis, MO

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CatPoet

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You got my  childhood favourite chocolate, I used to love the pink box but the  orange is good too. When you  get finnish bread, try to find  dark rye, Finland is famous for it.

Good sausage that pre sliced is  Kotivara and  Atria  (  lauantaimakkara is a famous sausage) .

 

I think you got free range eggs.

Cheese is you friend, Cheese will take care of you, Cheese will never betray you, But blue mold will kill me.

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gfron1

gfron1

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Just back from Tallinn via Eckeros ferry. I'll upload more soon. I gotta say, while I haven't given Helsinki much time yet, I sure loved Tallinn. Had an amazing meal at Neh last night and spent some time talking to the chef. Tonight I ate on board at the ship's buffet - very average, but it gave me a real good sense of what regular locals eat - smoked fish, pickled fish, baked fish, broiled fish...and potatoes. Tomorrow night is Restaurant Demo then Olo on Saturday. I promise a full upload soon.

20141210_073952.jpg

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Chef, Bulrush & Squatters in St. Louis, MO

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CatPoet

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I'm happy you loved  Tallinn.

 

Yeah the buffets  average on those boats, sadly and it is the season for fish. I'm looking forward to seeing more pics and hearing more about your travels.

Cheese is you friend, Cheese will take care of you, Cheese will never betray you, But blue mold will kill me.

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