ヘルシンキ首都制定200年を祝うイベントがまだまだ続くヘルシンキ。今週はヘルシンキウィークでもあり、12日の火曜日はヘルシンキ・デー。 そのイベントの１つとして昨日から17日まで期間限定でオープンしているのがこのカフェ、Cafe Empire。ヘルシンキにカフェ文化が花開いた19世紀のカフェを再現。19世紀のドレスに身を包んだお店の人と19世紀のころの焼き菓子がいただける。
It's Helsinki week and Helsinki day is coming soon (12th June), and Helsinki is celebrating its 200th anniversary as as the capital. One of the events for the bi-centennial jubilee year is the Cafe Empire, 19th century-style coffee house, which is open only between 9th and 17th June. According to the Helsinki 2012 web page, "Helsinki’s café culture began to flourish in the early 19th century as a number of enterprising Swiss master bakers established themselves in the city. At home, cakes and pastries were enjoyed with coffee but also as dessert. The Sederholm House at Senate Square offers a wonderful setting for visitors to enjoy a selection of 19th century treats, while music from the same era whisks you away to Finland’s fledgling capital of two hundred years ago.."
I went the cafe today and experienced the 19th century treats. I had almond cake which tasted much better than I had expected, with the bitter lemon zest which gave nice contrast to the sweet cake and really nice almond even though there was only one piece of it on the top. A friend had crescent moon pie which she told me pretty nice.
私が選んだのは手前のアーモンドケーキ。レモンの皮のピリッとした味とおいしいアーモンドがなかなかよい感じ。あまり期待してなかっただけにさらに好感。そして友達が頼んだのは奥に見える三日月という名のパイ（日本語にするとちょっといまいちな名前）。三日月形のパイということである。これもなかなかおいしかったという話。ちなみに値段はアーモンドケーキが4€で 半月パイが2€。値段は21世紀である。
The cafe is located at the Helsinki city museum which is in front of the city's symbol, the Senate square. Through the window, you can see the nice view of the white Cathedral with the blue sky (if it is a sunny day like today). As to the 19th century theme, I have to say there wasn't much more than the sweets and dresses the waiters and waitress wore. But I thought it was kinda fun to check it out, especially when it is open only for one week.
カフェの場所はヘルシンキシティ美術館の1階。ヘルシンキのシンボル、大聖堂の前。ということで窓からの白い大聖堂と青い空がよい感じ。それ以外はというと1日2回19世紀風のコンサートがあるというくらいで、インテリアが19世紀とかそういうこともまったくないのだけれど、いつもと違うお菓子が食べられるし期間限定ということで行ってみてはいかがかと思う。情報はこちら。