Dongbei House — Restaurant in Helsinki sub-region

I was killing time in Helsinki, searching for a place to eat, and this Dong Bei joint popped up. Dong Bei—Northern Chinese—food rarely makes it onto the mainstream radar, but it should, because when it’s done right, it’s a brutal, honest flavor hit. Being a fan, I had to try it, and I wasn’t let down.

I had a vegetarian friend tagging along which narrowed my options—no pork-filled dumplings this round—but honestly, the food still hit hard. My friend, new to Dong Bei, was hooked by the time the plates cleared. Could those dumplings have packed some pork? Hell yes. Could I blame the restaurant? Not a chance; blame the veg-head.

The tofu skin stole the show—crispy, chewy, the kind of texture you don’t get from anything else. I’ll be back, maybe with a pack of carnivores next time for an all-out meat fest. But hey, no hard feelings, friend—next time, the...

To say its bad would be an understatement. We ordered the deep fried mutton with peppers and cumin and the braised pork with cabbage and vermicelli. The fried mutton was very grisly. The fat was not tender at all. Neither was the mutton deep fried with any type of breading. It was dropped directly into oil, which made the fat very very chewy. It was placed on top of a bed of raw onions. Why could the onions not be cooked with the dish at least? It was inedible. The braise pork dish was not braise pork at all, it was just thin sliced pork belly (my wife does not eat pork belly) with cabbage and vermicelli in a broth primarily made out of vineger. It was very unbalanced and was just okay. Would not...

I have been visiting this restaurant - my favourite restaurant in the whole of Helsinki - for years. Even if the food is excellent, I won’t be going back until renovations in the area are finished.

When I visited now, I ordered my food but after ten minutes had to cancel and leave. The waitress said that there was some pipe renovation taking place, and the noise and drilling was UNBELIEVABLE. Another couple who came in also left when hearing the noise. I wear an Apple Watch and the noise warning app kept telling me that the current level of noise would damage my hearing. I’m not sure why the building has to do drilling at such a time?!

I’m sorry for the restaurant but felt the need to write...