"Gaijin" had been one of the restaurants I really wanted to dine in Helsinki for some time. Friends and I booked a table on my birthday last year but we didn't make it as I had a high fever and couldn't get out of the bed. Since then, we have talked about going there some time soon and got there last evening ð
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Gaijin doesn't have Michelin stars but it was reviewed a lot and told to be one of the best restrants in Finland. I can tell you now it is true!
We chose Sunday to dine there for their Sunday menu. On Sunday, there are only two choices in the menu, either 5-course(55â¬) or 3-course(38â¬) menu. And the price is much more reasonable than other days of week. We tried 3-course menu started with Wasabi Scallops ð Presentation was absolutely beautiful! (above picture) and it tasted awesome! It definitely tasted "Japan".
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The course menu was served with Japanese rice (I think it was Japanese) with seaweeds. It also reminded me of Japan a lot. (You know what I mean if you have ever lived in Japan ð And I liked to eat the rice with sauce from scallop dish.
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The main dish was Braised Veal Cheek which also went super well with rice. And it was quite a big portion! At this point, we were so full!
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So, it was great that dessert was not huge but yummy :)
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Dessert included in the three-course menu was chocolate cake but I told them I would like to avoid chocolate if possible when they asked us about our allergies. And I got another dessert, sake-blueberry sorbet, which was served for five-course menu. I, of course, tasted friend's chocolate cake a tiny bit (who wouldn't?!) and it was lovely.
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And my sorbet was also smiley being so fruity and fresh :)
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Having such a lovely dining experience at Gaijin, I guarantee you wouldn't be disappointed by them!
ã©ãããããçŸå³ãçãä»ããçŸãã Gaijin! è¶ ãèŠã!
ah.. only one tiny tiny disappointment was that they had really narrow space between tables. I understand the restaurant is so popular that they want to accommodate more people by putting more tables and chairs but even for a tiny Japanese girl, it was almost impossible to walk through between two tables to get the chair!
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And.. I should probably explain what "gaijin" means. It is a Japanese word and means foreigners.So, in Finland I am "gaijin" and yesterday, I was "gaijin" eating Gaijin ;-)
For more informationããåºã®Web Pageã¯: gaijin.fi and the below is the menu we had yesterday.ããããŠæšæ¥é£ã¹ãã®ã¯ãã®ã¡ãã¥ãŒã
14.10..2012 ..2012 - - -- SUNDAY MENU SUNDAY MENU 35/person
WASABI SCALLOPS: fried scallops, wasabi butter-dashi emulsion, roe
CHEEK, PUMPKIN & NUTS: braised veal cheek, pumpkin, nuts, ramen broth
GOHAN: japanese rice
MINT & XOCO chocolate cake, almond & sea caramel, mint crÚme, mint sorbet
and my dessert from the other course
SAKE BLUEBERRY: sake & blueberry sorbet, lemon flavoured white chocolate creme