Local’s Pick the 7 Best Cafés in Helsinki

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Helsinki as Finland’s capital is a fascinating historic city to explore, on the shores of the Baltic Sea. Albeit perhaps not as cosmopolitan as its Scandinavian cousin Stockholm across the sea, Helsinki is a colorful city with a fairly down-to-earth feel and plenty of exciting things to see and do. It is also home to hundreds of restaurants, and of course cafeterias.

Because Helsinki has a long history as a city, some of the best cafés in Helsinki are located in interesting historic places or buildings. Others are found in affluent areas, and others in slightly surprising places – they’re all unique, reflecting Helsinki’s general diversity as a city. Many of the best cafés in Helsinki favor the use of local ingredients like Finnish forest berries, in their products. Most of them also serve beautifully hand crafted, good quality pastries, inspired by traditional Finnish recipes or sometimes wordly influences.

All in all, Finnish people love coffee and they drink a lot of it. They also enjoy their small savory or sweet treats during work breaks or while going out to meet friends. It is no wonder there is such a vast selection of cafeterias to choose from in Helsinki. We’ve got the best of them – cafés that are outstanding due to their unique characters, inviting atmospheres, and tasty offerings.

Café Java

Lasipalatsi is a restaurant, shop, and art complex on Aleksanterinkatu, the main street running through Helsinki. It is just a minute’s walk from the central railway station, and also right next to most of the main shopping malls of the city centre. Downstairs at Lasipalatsi is Café Java – it is a classic meeting place in Helsinki. In the summer, there are chairs and tables out on the terrace, and in the winter, it is cozy and comfortable to sit inside and enjoy a hot drink or a bite to eat.

I especially enjoy the variety of traditional and flavored coffees at Café Java. They have a superb salad table where you can choose ingredients and make your own salad, and their filled bread rolls are wonderful as well. Café Java also serves delicious pastries and other sweet treats.

Café Regatta

This is certainly one of the most interesting cafés in Helsinki. Café Regatta is in Töölö neighborhood, by the sea, two kilometres from the centre of Helsinki. It feels a bit like being in the countryside, whilst being in the city. The wooden red hut by the water looks like a traditional Finnish summer cottage.

It’s for this reason that the venue prides themselves as a café with a “red cabin and a potato bed”, after a traditional Finnish saying. Outside, there’s a fireplace people can sit around – and you can buy sausages from the café, also vegan ones, to cook on the fire.

Café Regatta has a traditional Finnish cafeteria menu, on the inexpensive side. It includes lovely savory and sweet treats and fresh coffee. I can recommend their blueberry pie, sweet bread pulla, and Karelian pies. Their hot chocolate with cream is also delicious. I find Café Regatta is a great place to have a relaxed time, and of course to enjoy some good food or drinks.

Local tip: In the summer months, you can also rent stand up paddle boards, kayaks, and canoes from sub regatta, next to the café.

Fazer Café Kluuvikatu

A popular place for breakfast and brunch in Helsinki is the historical Fazer Café Kluuvikatu. They opened in the late 19^th century as a Franco-Russian café. Today, they’re a mix of traditional Fazer recipes and modern trends.

The café serves a wonderful breakfast buffet that includes delicacies such as croissants, Karelian pies with egg butter, meats and cheeses, yogurt, and drinks. For a coffee or tea moment, I can recommend trying some of their sweet baked treats such as cinnamon buns, sweet bread pulla, dark chocolate and raspberry cake, or traditional bebe pastries.

Fazer Café Kluuvikatu also includes a deli shop where you can buy freshly baked bread, sweet pastries, chocolates and candies by Fazer, and lots of other goodies.

Cajsan Helmi

This is another classic café in Helsinki. It is situated in Kaisaniemi park, the oldest public park in Helsinki, right next to the central railway station. Cajsan Helmi has a cozy, yet classy feel, and they really care about their customers having an unforgettable experience.

They like to promote real meetings and connections, and thus pride themselves as being a computer-free cafeteria. And indeed, while you’re visiting this pretty café, you really don’t want to look at much else than the dreamy cakes on display, the pretty furniture and interior decoration, and of course, the interesting people visiting here.

All the tens of savory and sweet treats are made in Cajsan Helmi’s own bakery. I recommend their pulla and the various cakes.

I especially enjoy their strawberry, cranberry, and vanilla cake, as well as the old classic, Runeberg’s torte. This traditional Finnish torte, made with almonds and rum and topped with raspberry jam, was named after a Finnish poet. At Cajsan Helmi you can also enjoy a tasty Skagen bread (a Swedish savory bread with shrimps), and lovely coffees.

Chez Janet

Chez Janet is an atmospheric French café on Bulevardi, one of the central streets in Helsinki. All about Chez Janet feels a bit like visiting Paris, from their products to their interior decoration and skilled staff. They serve light meals, drinks, and sweet treats, and they also have a gift shop with Parisien products.

Here you can enjoy French savory treats, such as quiches – you can choose between ham, salmon, vegan or vegetarian quiche. I love the range of teas they have available. And of course, their sweet pastries are truly delicious. I can especially recommend their chocolate eclairs and Paris-Brest, almond topped pastry filled with praline cream. Chez Janet is perhaps best known for their macarons, though, so you might like to give these a try.

Café Silo

Helsinki’s Suomenlinna fortress is a popular place among visitors, with its impressive historic buildings, museums, and walkways. The trip by ferry to the island alone is an experience in itself.

Suomenlinna has many lovely restaurants and cafés. One of the best cafés you’ll find here is also one of the best cafés in Helsinki – the atmospheric Café Silo. It is situated in a traditional wooden building, in a peaceful setting. Their cinnamon rolls and pulla sweet bread are among the best I’ve tasted. They even have the cream filled laskiaispulla for sale, which is usually mainly eaten during the mid-winter sledding festival, shrovetide.

Their sweet treats are freshly baked on the premises. Other treats worth trying include Runeberg’s torte, as well as the salads and hot soups. I hope you can visit Café Silo during your trip to Helsinki – it is well worth it.

Café Engel

This historic, high-end café is in a stunning place, on the edge of Senaatintori with a view towards Helsinki Cathedral. It is located in one of Helsinki’s oldest stone buildings from the 17^th century. Café Engel serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner, along with coffee time treats and drinks.

On their breakfast menu you’ll find scrumptious combinations. For example, their Mother Earth breakfast includes muesli with blueberries and lingonberries, freshly baked bread, hummus, avocado, and a sand thorn berry shot. For lunch or dinner they serve traditional Finnish salmon soup, beetroot burgers, as well as fried reindeer.

They have all the traditional hot and cold drinks on offer, along with wines and champagnes. Of their coffee time treats, I can recommend their lingonberry pie with whipped cream, among other mouthwatering treats. If you’re looking for a traditional Finnish experience, Café Engel is certainly a good choice.

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