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04 Apr 2009, Posted by Nora Pouillon in Guests from Washington D.C., 0 Comments

Saturday, April 4, 2009


In the morning Jari picked me up and we went to Hakaniemen Hall, the local food market hall where we met Aki and Markus. There I had another photo shoot in front of an organic vegetable stand. I was introduced to the owner of a meat stand where they sold every kind of meat and poultry imaginable. They also sold goose liver that is not force-fed. She had many different roasts and cuts for Easter. The hall had great fish stands with ocean and lake fish, spices from Morocco, chocolate and bakeries. It was a very lively and diverse food hall.

We walked a couple blocks to have lunch at Silvoplee, a self-service vegetarian restaurant with a 1970s décor. The food, which is served buffet style, was good and included bean dishes, lentils, potatoes, tofu, salads, soups. They also served beer and desserts.

Then we visited an artist friend of Aki and Jari, named Harri, at his studio. He had won many awards and had interesting pieces with clean lines and at the same time practical. The bookcases, chairs and lamps were innovative and creative.

We walked across the street to a neighborhood beer bar (forgot the name) that had a lot of atmosphere. They ordered a chocolate beer for me that I hated.

Jari left us to prepare for his long trip to Lapland the next day. Aki and I went to the Ateneum, the National Art museum to visit the exhibit of the Kalevala, the national epic, which was interesting and informative. He then showed me the famous train station, famous for its architecture. I did a little shopping at the Finnish H & M called GinaTricot. Then we went back to the stone church, Temppeliaukio. This time we could walk in and really appreciate its beautiful inside structure with its copper dome ceiling.

I went back to the hotel to pack. Jari picked me up in the evening for the last time to take me to Mange Sud, which was a wonderful ending to my five-day stay in Helsinki.

Helsinki is an interesting, beautiful city that I would return to again to explore.

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About the writer

Nora Pouillon Restaurant Nora Nora Pouillon
Three decades after opening Restaurant Nora, the nation's first certified organic restaurant-- now a Washington institution--Nora Pouillon continues to advocate a holistic organic lifestyle, the basis for her cuisine and her commitment to living and eating sustainably. As an educator on the benefits of healthy food and sustainable living, Pouillon helped establish FRESHFARM Markets, producer-only open air markets in the Washington, DC area and beyond. Nora, a film directed by Joan Murray premiering at the DC Environmental Film Festival, documents Pouillon's reputation as one of the most influential pioneers and leaders in the organic and local-food movements. "What really is exciting for me now is how organic food and local food have become nearly mainstream," says Pouillon, named one the city's 12 power chefs by The Washington Post. "After struggling and being called a crazy person and a hippie, and now seeing that the most of the population understands what I was trying to do and is doing it is just wonderful." While Pouillon's late sister was married to a Finn, Pouillon never had the opportunity to visit her there and see Finland. Excited to discover a completely new culture and cuisine, she hopes to connect the chefs and farmers she meets in Helsinki with their Washington counterparts, and to share her knowledge with farmers about starting farmers' markets. "Not many people know Finnish culture, and I'm one of them. Bringing my experience back to Washington and exposing Washingtonians to what I learn will enrich us all."

Host

Aki Arjola Producer, Eat&Joy Aki Arjola
Jyrki Sukula Chef and restaurateur Jyrki Sukula

Eat&Joy is an annual two-week event organised in Helsinki at the end of September by Uni One Oy. It also runs up to four times a year in other cities in Europe. Launched in 2004, Eat&Joy seeks to draw attention to three specific areas: the high quality of Finnish food ingredients from the country's small producers, the New Nordic Kitchen, and to Finland's cutting edge creative efforts in art, design, music and fashion. Eat&Joy's latest endeavour is to highlight Finnish Ingredients and New Nordic Kitchen in different cities around the world. This year, Eat&Joy was organised in Berlin and Paris.

Eat&Joy will introduce the local food, food producers and Helsinki restaurants to Nora Pouillon during her stay in Helsinki. The aim is to enable Ms Pouillon to meet many interesting people involved in food and establish lasting contacts. Her stay will be hosted by chef Jyrki Sukula and producer Aki Arjola, who is the chairman of UniOne Oy, the company behind Eat&Joy. Jyrki Sukula is a renown chef and restaurateur with close to 30 years of experience in the restaurant and hospitality field.