Restaurant Savotta — Restaurant in Helsinki sub-region

Arrive at the front door, there's a queue (all foreigners). I go inside to see what's up. I am ignored, there is no one welcoming guests or taking names. I see several large, uncleared but empty tables. Maybe they give higher priority to serving people already there? We wait a little while and are seated. Menu looks tempting. We are not very hungry, so go for the Supreme Savotta appetizer platter (‎€22.90) and a small Cream of celeriac soup with smoked reindeer and lovage, served with house bread and butter (€11.40). Prices seem very reasonable, as we had been told that portions were large. We also order two beers. The appetizer and soup arrive, but no bread and no beer, which we ask for. Our waitress is busy setting tables. Hmm, maybe they give higher priority to people waiting in line? Bread arrives a little later. We ask again about the beer, which doesn't come. Our waitress is busy setting tables; another table that was seated a bit after us still doesn't have a menu. We ask again about the beer, which finally comes (and is delicious). A couple of the items on the appetizer dish are very tasty—the berry-cured whitefish and the bear salami. The paté is awful; tastes like old meat. The rest of the items seem like filler: a green salad, and an egg salad with fish. The soup is fine, though small, and the "smoked reindeer" turns out to be about 6 little cubes of reindeer, less than a gram total. Even getting the waitress's attention to pay and get out takes a while.

Tourist trap through and through. Waiters and waitresses in clunky outfits, as expected. Menu in multiple languages. On a big tourist square. Mediocre food. Most customers foreign. Recommended by our hotel, by Tripadvisor (4 stars!), and by Google reviewers (4.5...

Dining at Restaurant Savotta in Helsinki is less a meal and more a cultural excavation—with a few raised eyebrows and a taxidermied reindeer or two along the way.

Let’s start with the atmosphere: charmingly chaotic. Mismatched chairs, patterned plates that look like they wandered in from a Finnish grandmother’s attic, and rustic wood paneling that feels equal parts nostalgic and theatrical. It’s quirky, kitschy, and leans hard into national character. The dining room seems frozen in time, like a cabin preserved mid-holiday feast.

The staff, on the other hand, seem slightly less enthused by your arrival. There’s a distinct air of “why are you here?” that feels jarring if you’re not used to Finnish directness. We were asked curtly if we had a reservation—yes, the room was mostly empty—and only then were we granted passage to a table with the kind of reluctant grace you’d expect from a bouncer at a club you’re technically allowed into. But once seated, the odd charm of it all sets in.

The menu is deeply Finnish and unapologetically so. We tried the tasting platter, which was an excellent introduction: cured fish, reindeer sausage, root vegetables, and unfamiliar sauces that made us reach for our phones mid-bite (in a good way). We also braved the bear—a novelty more than a delicacy, and one I’d probably skip next time unless you’re into gamey meats with a side of moral dilemma.

Still, the flavors were bold, earthy, and memorable. Savotta isn’t refined dining. It’s Finland on a plate: a little wild, a little strange, and surprisingly satisfying—if you can embrace the gruff charm and roll...

I don't recommend to visit this place for a person with disability or families with a kid. I hope our terrible experience is not related to the whole team or the place itself, and the rude comments are the only one person's responsibility. My little kid with a disability got upset (she was thirsty and we needed wait too long for water). My husband almost immediately went out of the restaurant with our daughter to help her calm down. They returned when water was served, so her crying last for a minute, but still a server came to us and asked to go away. I explained the situation, said that my daughter is not verbal and she cried only because water wasn't provided fast enough and we are sorry it could disturb someone. I was told "It doesn't matter if she is disabled, and if she will start crying again you have to leave". It was said extremely rude and angrily. I was shocked and hurt. I believe it would be better for us to find another place, but I was felt lost so I didn't do that. The place looked charming, the food looked good, but I wasn't able to enjoy it fully. The server then returned with a part of our order and he looked happy, made some jokes, he didn't feel sorry a bit. I'm not sensitive person, but it was the worst experience I've ever had. Didn't want to leave any reviews first, but it could be useful for some...