Helsinki: the new Scandi star
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Helsinki may seem like a curious choice as the location for the new Guggenheim museum. There are already several galleries with a serious art-world presence such as the Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art, The Amos Anderson Art Museum (which is set for a huge expansion) and Galerie Forsblom where, two years ago, Japanese sculptor Mariko Mori held a major solo exhibition. But the arrival of the American outpost will boost Finland on a global scale.
Helsinki isn't a place that brags many look-at-me attractions. It's more under-the-radar than Reykjavik. It has a gentler beat than Stockholm. And in terms of chasing Copenhagen's apron strings when it comes to food, there's still a little way to go. And yet. On my first night I am served a bowl of risotto, the grains blended then simmered to a porridge-like consistency. It is coloured with pureed garlic mustard and scattered with tiny specks of Japanese black and white rice, a handful of leaves and a few pretty yellow edible flowers. 'This is what Helsinki tastes like right now,' says Sasu Laukkonen, owner of Michelin-starred Chef & Sommelier, who was the first person in the city to put wild produce at the heart of his food when he opened his restaurant five years ago (choose from four, five, seven, or, if you're really hungry, the full nine courses). Laukkonen has a garden the size of a football field where he grows as many of his own vegetables and herbs as he can. He drives a battered old Audi to pick up one pig at a time from his local supplier, and regularly invites some of the world's most exciting and innovative chefs to squeeze into his four-man kitchen. Esben Holmboe Bang from Oslo's Maaemo and Mads Refslund from New York's Acme have both done guest stints.
Fifteen years ago there were no innovative restaurants worth mentioning, apart from Chez Dominique, which earned two Michelin stars before closing at the end of 2013. Now four places hold stars, and the city has pioneered the quarterly, worldwide Restaurant Day as a way to encourage anyone to open a restaurant or bar (at the last count, 32 countries took part). And two years ago, it held its first-ever street-food festival.
Over the next few days, I pop into cafés and patisseries for first-class coffee and cake. Teemu and Markus, Fleuriste and Good Life Coffee in the up-and-coming Kallio district are the best. I eat at hotspots including the Bronda brasserie, owned by power duo Matti Wikberg and Finland MasterChef judge Tomi Björck, where sharing dishes include mushroom-and-truffle arancini, baked mussels sofrito and Spanish-anchovy toast.
At Story, in the middle of the recently revamped 19th-century market hall on the waterfront, waitresses in dark denim aprons serve eggs Benedict for breakfast and herb-crusted white fish for lunch in a space designed by architect Joanna Laajisto. If you like the look of a restaurant interior in Helsinki, chances are it's either by Laajisto or Futudesign, the agency behind Bronda. There are wire lights made from fishing traps, pots of herbs dotted about and huge, brass-trimmed chalk boards behind the counter with a DJ booth above.
Think of Scandinavia as a whole and it's this kind of pared-back design that springs to mind (either that or the erratic weather; I visit in June when, as well as being ethereally light until the early hours, there's a freakish flurry of snow and the temperature dips to a chilly 9˚C). Many household-name Finnish brands (Artek, Marimekko, Iittala) and international designer fashion houses (Louis Vuitton, Longchamp) form a mini version of the Champs-Elysées on either side of the neat lawns, fish-shaped fountains and bench-lined paths in Esplanadi Park. But it's the smaller streets in the lower end of the design district where I find my favourite shops, from homeware store Kauniste to gorgeous stationer Papershop.
Exploring on foot is easy - it only takes 40 minutes to get from one side of the city to the other - so I head north to the spaceship-like Temppeliaukio Church, carved out of the stony ground, hence its nickname, Rock Church. I wait outside as an ageing, newly wed rocker emerges with his raven-haired bride, before being allowed in to gawp at the saucer-shaped copper roof, angled concrete panels that let in the light and sand-coloured granite walls. I carry on to the new Kulttuurisauna, one of four public saunas in the city. In the 1930s there were around 100, used as much for socialising as for washing. I sweat in the heat for as long as I can bear before dashing outside in the drizzle to climb down a metal ladder for a split-second, full-body dip in the freezing sea. Doing the same hot-cold-hot-cold dance is Kate, a girl from Philadelphia who studied here a few years ago and is back for a visit. 'Helsinki is a low-key city, it's subtle,' she says. 'It's about being near the water and breathing the air.'
She's absolutely right, so the next day I make for the shore, past the flapping orange tarpaulins of the outdoor market where fruit stands are piled high with cherries and strawberries. Blonde-haired teenage boys and weathered old men sell salmon, fried herring, potatoes and spring onions from three boats moored on one side. An accordionist competes with noisy, swooping seagulls and the gold minarets of the Russian Orthodox church glint in the sun. Helsinki has about 330 islands sprinkled around its almost 100km coast, but I opt for one of the nearest, Suomenlinna, which has a maritime fortress built by Sweden in the 18th century to protect its land from Russia (it didn't work: Russia conquered Finland in 1809). After a 20- minute journey on a blue-and-white vessel that mirrors the shades of the sky, I walk around the headland along narrow paths edged with cow parsley. The island has some 900 residents but I can't imagine where they all live as I only spot a dozen mustard-coloured clapboard houses.
Later, back on the mainland, I follow the curving coastline on the edge of Kaivopuisto Park, where drivers wait patiently at a zebra crossing for a line of ducks and their chicks to waddle across the road, until I reach Mattolaituri, an Ibiza-like bar with deckchairs and jazz music. Two girls in Breton-striped tops share a wedge of chocolate gâteau, blankets wrapped around their legs for warmth, as wooden yachts, their sails puffed out, lean into the water and pass by. This, then, is Helsinki. Quietly, carefully reinventing itself as the most intriguing pin on the Nordic map.
What to do in Helsinki
Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art (+358 29 450 0501; kiasma.fi) The permanent collection focuses mainly on Finnish artists but changing exhibitions such as the current Demonstrating Minds: Disagreements in Contemporary Art have a more global flavour.
Design Museum (+358 9 622 0540; designmuseum.fi) For a snapshot of the city's design heritage, from chairs by Alvar Aalto to modern fabrics by Marimekko. Spring's blockbuster show is a retrospective of Eero Aarnio, best known for his groovy 1963 Ball chair.
Galerie Forsblom (+358 9 680 3700; galerieforsblom.com) A serious player on the Finnish art scene - global names on the books include Chantal Joffe, Julian Schnabel and Secondino Hernandez.
Where to eat in Helsinki
Spis (+358 45 305 1211; spis.fi) Expect experimental Nordic cooking: nettle soup with cottage cheese and nutmeg, scallops with parsley, lavender and rhubarb sorbet. About £75 for two.
Patrona (+358 40 672 9398; patrona.fi) The best Mexican in town, with shrimp tostadas, mushroom quesadillas and pork-belly enchiladas all on the menu. Cholo, a Mexican street-food kitchen, is just around the corner. About £35 for two.
Restaurant Demo (+358 92 289 0840; restaurantdemo.fi) Michelin-starred joint in the design district with a reputation for nose-to-tail cooking. About £90 for two.
Kuurna (+358 10 281 8241; kuurna.fi) This shabby-chic place - peeling plaster ceilings, mini Gothic chandeliers, moss-green walls - has just 11 tables and you can hear the pans sizzling in the open kitchen. The set menu might include roasted leek and apple, fish of the day with salsa verde and chocolate cake. About £55 for two.
Where to shop in Helsinki
Papershop (+358 45 359 9319; papershop.fi) Catnip for anyone with a stationery obsession: ribbons spill out of a wooden dresser, while shelves hold letterpress notebooks, wrapping paper and washi tape.
Kauniste (kauniste.com) A textile company founded by a collective of mostly home-grown designers and artists, with pastel-coloured paper Catherine wheels in the window, pretty rolls of fabric and quirky, screen-printed cushions, blankets and tea towels.
Liike (+358 45 154 8870; liike-shop.com) This is the place to find up-and-coming Finnish labels: day dresses by Camilla Mikama and Jaana Haaksiluoto, casual menswear by Frenn and unisex sandals made from birch and leather.
Where to stay in Helsinki
Hotel Fabian (+358 96 128 2000; hotelfabian.com) The closest thing the city has to a boutique hotel, with 58 stylish rooms - mostly monochrome with graphic cushions, industrial lights and wooden stepladders used as bedside tables. Doubles from about £120.
Etu-Töölö Apartment (airbnb.co.uk) Set in a former book-printing factory, this open-plan, architect-owned space has an Eero Aarnio Bubble chair and a piano in the living area, as well as terraces with views of Finlandia Hall. About £175 per night.
FinnAir (+44 870 241 4411; finnair.com) flies to Helsinki from Heathrow and Manchester
This feature was first published in Condé Nast Traveller March 2016
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