Best Bars

As with food, so with drink. The principles behind the annual survey carried out by trade magazine Viisi Tähteä to discover Finland’s leading restaurants were applied to the country’s various brasseries, café-bars, drinking dens, and pubs. The result? A definitive list of Finland’s best bars.

Rather than relying on the opinions of individual critics, the findings were once again based on a questionnaire sent to industry professionals to get an insider view of what makes a great place to drink. All bar, pub, and restaurant people polled were asked to state briefly the reasons behind their selection and to explain what made their chosen venue stand out.
More than just a top 20 however, the list aims to shed some light on the stories behind the scenes. That means the people, their vision, ideas, and expertise. We also touch on bar culture, design, management, service standards, local food and drink, and signature cocktails.

Finland enjoyed a restaurant revolution a few years ago; since then pubs and café-bars have been overshadowed as the spotlight has fallen on chefs and food. But the country’s cocktail culture took a quantum leap forward lately – arguably as big as the earlier shake-up in eating out. Bartenders and pub owners now travel and work abroad for example, just like top chefs. On these “spying and studying” jaunts, they even answer their mobile phones! Sceptics may say they’re just enjoying a mojito on the beach, but these footloose Finns are actually looking at business development and gaining more international experience which then benefits the scene back home.

This is already evident in flairtending (cocktails mixed with an artistry of movement on the part of the bartender), a growing use of local ingredients (like domestic berries), and the advent of molecular mixology (cocktails meet science) – all of which create new bar experiences. With molecular mixology in particular, Finland’s bar staff are ahead of its chefs.
Recent years have also seen more quality imported beers in the country, and an increase in the number of small, artisan breweries. It has reached the stage where Finland’s “beer culture” might even be compared to “wine culture” elsewhere in Europe. Hand in hand with these developments has been a growing trend for drinking top quality beer with food.
All good reasons to check out the country’s best bars…

Eeropekka Rislakki, Editor-in-Chief