Rich and I are big fans of food tours. Whenever we travel we always sign up for a food tour if it is available. Some have been absolutely fantastic, some not really so great, but we always learn a lot about the city and the culture, more than we ever have taking normal tourist tours. So when we booked our trip to Helsinki we did a bit of research on food tours and signed up to Heather’s Helsinki.
Heather has been in Finland for around 14 years, married to a Finnish man, and she has been doing tours in Helsinki for many years. If you are planning a trip to Helsinki, once you have bought your ticket and reserved your hotel, email her. Her four hour food tours are fantastic. She starts by giving you a really good overview of Finnish foods at the food section at Stockmann’s , and then brings you to a surprising amount of locations, and gives you many many generous samples including a bowl of really creamy and delicious porridge, the most incredible sausages and beer samples at a micro brewery, local cheeses and even blueberry soup.
The last stop on our tour was Hymy, a Raw Food Café right off the waterfront. She brought us here because their berry cheesecake is excellent, and it was. Sitting there enjoying a slice I noticed that they had a raw hot chocolate which, of course, I had to try. I enjoyed my ‘raw’ hot chocolate sitting outside on their quiet little terrace. It was beautiful and I would have it again. Hymy is tiny but is attached to a fantastic little shop filled with interesting bits for the home and art works that spill out onto its shared terrace.
Verdict: Heather’s Helsinki tour are very highly recommended, as is this tiny little hot chocolate stop. Hymy, Helsinki, Finland
