Five Places to Eat and Drink in Tampere, Finland

I was born in Tampere, this former Finnish industrial town, but now we live in London, I don't often spend more than a couple of days here.

Last week, however, my father was rushed into hospital, and the Englishman and I flew into town, having cancelled our skiing holiday in Lapland. My dad is now better, thank goodness, but the week spent here has allowed us to sample some of the eateries in town. Here's five of them (in no particular order):

1. Scandic Tampere Station
The first night we were here was Valentines Day, and having not thought to book, we found it difficult to get a table anywhere. Even the restaurant in our hotel, the new Sokos Solo Torni, a towering construction by the railway station, could only accommodate us at ten pm. So we decided to grab a quick beer by the Scandic hotel opposite. It was a bitterly cold night (for us soft southerners at least), so we ended up eating there too. I had a perfectly reasonable reindeer steak and the Englishman and Big Sis a sirloin, washed down with a bottle of Malbec. If in a hurry before grabbing a train, you could do worse than eat here.

2. Stockmann's Fazer Cafe 
I'm really not able to visit Tampere without having lunch or coffee at the top floor cafe at Stockmann's. This place brings so many memories of my childhood and since, and although the food doesn't exactly stand out here, it doesn't disappoint either. We had a very enjoyable salad followed by coffee - which to be fair wasn't so brilliant - and an excellent cinnamon bun.

3. 4 Vuodenaikaa Restaurant at Kauppahalli
Kauppahalli, the covered market at Hämeenkatu, has several good cafés and lunch places, but the best in our opinion is the 4 Vuodenaikaa (4 Seasons). It's a French style restaurant with a short, daily changing menu of fish and meat dishes, nestled at one end of the market. It gets very busy, with seating on first-come-first served basis, so there's often a queue at the till. It's worth the wait, however. We had fried pike-perch with carrot risotto and spinach sauce, a dish which would have been a star turn in any Parisian bistro. 

The restaurant is also right next to the best fish mongers in town, the Ahlströms. If you are able to buy and cook your own food while in Tampere, you must get the fish from here. They do fresh, smoked and pre-prepared dishes, and their version of the traditional Savo rye pastry pie of sprats and bacon, Kalakukko, is slightly lighter and can be bought by the slice. Perfect for a light supper.

4. Pikkubistro Kattila 
On Tuesday night we stumbled across this little new restaurant on Alexis Kiven katu, (just off the main street, Hämeenkatu which runs through Tampere centre) and were very pleasantly surprised about the quality of the food and the friendliness of the staff. We were not going to have a big meal, but as we sat down and saw the menu, we couldn't resist the starters. This was the right choice, as the Englishman's cold-smoked pike perch was absolutely delicious, as was my main of slow cooked beef. The Englishman had Moroccan lamb, which he reported was excellent. After such good two dishes, we couldn't resist pudding either. I had chocolate mousse to die for, and the Englishman had sea buckthorn pastry with vanilla yoghurt mousse. Kattila has a different menu every night of the week, and we'll definitely sample their cooking again.

5. Kaffila 
This small, cozy coffee place serves most delicious coffees, teas, cakes and pastries. This time of year in mid-February, they had the traditional cream buns, Laskiaspulla, eaten in Finland for Shrove Tuesday. We've had quite a few of these light, cardamom scented buns during the week, but Kaffila served by far the best ones. They also had Oatly oat milk for my no-milk latte, and the Englishman reported that his Americano was perfect too, so we were both happy.

Lastly I must mention Pispalan Pulteri. Not one of the five because I wasn't so very impressed by it, but if you wish to visit an authentic Tampere institution, make your way Pispala. This is an old worker's quarter which has since become the most desirable area to live in, mainly due its old charm provided by wooden houses, built higgledy piggledy during the first part of the 20th century, on a hillside overlooking one of the large lakes surrounding the city, Näsijärvi. Pispalan Pulteri is an old bar/pub which various Tampere artists have frequented over the years, and if I'd asked for coffee and vodka, I'm sure I would have been served it without an eye brow being raised. Instead we had two beers, but the Englishman refused point blank to eat there after a visit to the gents. Say no more.

Osteria Tufo in Finsbury Park, London

Photo by By: Sunil060902 (Own work) via Wikimedia Commons

Ever since we've been in North London, for me Finsbury Park has just been a place to take the tube from. Lately, however, I've noticed that the area is undergoing a definite transformation.

Just a stone's throw away from the station is the newly opened Park Theatre, which we are yet to try out, but which has had great reviews for its first season. And a few streets away is an Italian restaurant called Osteria Tufo, which Son had heard good things about, so off we went last Sunday lunchtime to try the place out.

The place is owned by an Italian couple, Paola and Morris, who have over 20 years' experience in the restaurant business, including time spent at Carluccio's.

The shortness of the menu at Osteria Tufo gave me immediate hope for freshly cooked food, as did the simple decor. I and Son's fiancé (still looove saying that!) opted for traditional antipasti of Calamari Fritti, which was beautifully fresh and light, although I would have preferred the dish not to be served in a glass Pyrex dish. That and the cheap paper napkin which lined the dish, really let the presentation down.

The Englishman chose Polpette di Pesce to start. This was delicious tuna and swordfish meatballs served with chill tomato and capers, which tasted delicious. Son had Parmigiaba di Melanzane; oven-baked aubergine with tomato and mozzarella, which he was very happy with.

For mains we girls chose pasta. I had absolutely perfectly cooked ravioli with ricotta and spinach in a gorgonzola sauce, while Son's girlfriend had flat pasta with sausage meat and truffle oil. We all agreed this was the best dish of the day,with the meat tender and the truffle adding a beautiful scent of a rain soaked woodland. (Or perhaps it's the Finn in me that thinks of forests when eating anything with fungi in it?)

The boys had meat in the form of Porchetta, 'Savoury pork roast of Italian culinary tradition, layers of stuffing meat fat and skin.' Not something I would have chosen, but the Englishman said the taste delivered on a much higher level than its description.

For puddings the others shared a Babba Napoletano, a dish that came highly recommended. The sweet baked sourdough was indeed melt-in-the-mouth as was the dessert I always opt for, if it's on the menu: Affogato. Here they serve it with two scoops of ice-cream, but I asked for just one, because for me, the espresso needs to be the star of the dish. The staff were more than happy to oblige.

For the wines we chose a Sicilian house red, and a Gavi for the white. Both bottles were of excellent quaffing quality with a price tag to match. The whole meal came to £125.20 (for four, including a couple of beers to start), which I think is pretty good value for London.

This is beautifully executed traditional Italian food, with friendly, unfussy service. A simple task, you might say, but it's so very rarely achieved even by the big names in the industry.

We will definitely go back Osteria Tufo, if only to take Daughter who couldn't join us this time. This local Italian will also be the perfect place to shelter from bad weather when the tubes and trains are out of action. Here's hoping for some more storms and snow this winter. (Only joking)

Osteria Tufo
67 Fonthill Road
London N4 3HZ
Tel 020 7272 2911
www.osteriatufo.co.uk

Eating Out: Le Relais de Venise L'Entrecote in London

This French restaurant in Marylebone has a rigid format: You can't book tables and you will not be seated until the whole of your party has arrived. They serve just the one starter and main dish: salad, followed by steak and chips (or frites). The green salad comes with a delicious creamy dressing and lovely French baguette with butter. Then you get to choose how you want your steak cooked. The Englishman raised his eyebrows when I told the pretty waitress, dressed in a traditional French black and white uniform, that I wanted mine blue. (I'm still trying to get as much iron into my body as possible.) The steak comes with a sauce, which on Saturday was Sauce Verte (with herbs).

There is always a queue - on Saturday while we were eating in the buzzy restaurant, people were lining up around the corner of the building, but once we got out there were only twenty or so people waiting for tables.

There's a reason why this place is so popular: the food is truly delicious. The steak is perfectly cooked, the bread fresh, the frites crisp and just salty enough. The waitresses keep half of your portion warm and as soon as your plate it empty they appear with the silver tray and replenish your supplies. The house wine was excellent too, as was the cheese that the Englishman ordered for pudding. (We were on a high fat & high protein & high carbs diet on Saturday...) What's more you get proper cutlery, a steak knife and a linen napkin. These little details are so important.

In spite of the unyielding format of the restaurant, the place has a great atmosphere. We could have been in a Parisian brasserie. It's full of people enjoying their food and each other's company. On the Saturday lunch time there were several families with children, couples and groups of friends. The waitresses are efficient and friendly - they appear out of nowhere just when you need them. Still, you don't feel hurried; once inside you can take as long over your meal as you like. This in itself testifies to the commitment the restaurant has to its customers: how tempting would it be to hurry those inside when there's a queue of others waiting to fill the tables over and over.

Le Relais de Venise L'Entrecote
120 Marylebone Lane
London
W1U 2QG

Salad, bread, steak with frites is £21-00 per person and a bottle of house red, £15.95. There is a discretionary service charge of 10%. 

This is an unsponsored post - Helena paid for her lunch.