Lapland, Finland is located in the northern arctic circle, and it is true that Santa Claus has a village there. I am sure that if we visit him, we will not only get pampered with gifts, but we will be treated as well to some of the finest Sami cuisine there is. You want some fish? Or game food like reindeer?
I will go to Lapland and kiss Santa eventually, but while I am in his country visiting in the south, I can of course indulge and relish in a little bit of Lapland flavour in the city. Something like a prelude to all things great to come =)
Lapland in Ravintola Saaga
Website: Restaurant Saaga (an A&S Restaurant)
The magic of Lapland in the heart of Helsinki, says the slogan of this Lappish restaurant. I found the ravintola (restaurant) online after hours of googling and visiting numerous travel and food sites.
Did you know that Finns eat dinner rather early? Just like the Dutch by the way. Especially during winter when daylight is as precious as gold. Early means between 18:00 and 19:00 and this is during spring, summer and autumn.
I arrived at the restaurant around 19:30 and was surprised to noticed that it is in full swing. It took a while before someone entertained me because all staff were busy running around serving the diners. Eventually, a young woman came forward. She has this huge friendly smile on her face and asked me in an upbeat manner if I have a reservation. I said no. She frowned and twitched her lips, and said they are fully booked. Then she looked back at me, staring quizzically but blankly, as if she is trying to solve a crossword puzzle in my forehead. She blurted out—Come follow me upstairs.
Oh, I take that as a—YES!?
Just when she told me to follow her, two women came in, who happens to have no reservation as well. They were told by the girl that they are fully booked but they can reserve for tomorrow. They did and left. Oh my, I am soooooo darn lucky!
Who would have thought that this restaurant is fully booked at 19:30? Lesson learned, this isn’t France or the south of Europe. Be early for dinner next time in Scandinavia. Ecstatic that I was not thrown out of the door, I followed her eagerly through this winding staircase decorated with perhaps reindeer leather skins.
So what do you think of the wild Lappish décor?
Before we dig in to the menu you might wonder why I chose this restaurant. Two reasons really. One, I wanted to eat reindeer meat, just to try really. Two, the Lappish style interior brings me to visualise the wild Lapland arctic scenery. So with that, I really felt lucky to have snagged this table without a reservation.
Sami Cuisine: Reindeer Rump Steak!
Now this dinner is really an experiential dinner for me. I am curious to know how reindeer meat tastes like. I have had elk, the cousin of reindeer, both animals belonging to the deer family. Tried the elk dried meat and elk soup in Tallinn, Estonia inside a medieval dungeon-like setting. The whole experience including the fares were very good.
I like grilled meat so I opted for the ‘Reindeer Naarmankaira’ on the menu. It is a reindeer rump steak on a skewer and served with salla style root vegetables, fried horn chanterelles and thyme butter sauce. Mmm, sounds lovely, and looks actually very yummy as well!
I struck up a conversation with the friendly gal serving me and she said that in order to really have high quality reindeer steak, the meat must be tenderised not only with marinade and seasoning, but time is another factor as well to consider. It takes HOURS, sometimes a day or two of tenderising and marinating in the fridge. Some meats will have to be braised for several hours even.
My rating: 4.3 stars out of 5.
Really enjoyed the Lapland ambiance and Sami cuisine at this restaurant. The reindeer rump steak was very tender, juicy and flavourful. Saaga you have met my expectations and thank you for giving me a table even without prior reservation. Appreciate it a lot!
I highly recommend Saaga Restaurant, but for those interested, make sure you reserve in advance.
Travel Period: May 2013
Destination: Helsinki, Finland
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