Potatoes, meat, fish, milk, butter and rye bread are the traditional mainstays of the Finnish diet, but food in Finland has been greatly influenced both by Western (French and Swedish) and Eastern (Russian) cooking. Tourists can expect excellent fresh fish dishes such as pike, trout, perch, whitefish, salmon and Baltic herring. All are in abundance most of the year. Each region has its own traditional dishes. In restaurants (ravintola), the menu is continental with several Finnish specialities. Inexpensive lunches are served at places called kahvila and baari (the latter is not necessarily a licensed bar).
Things to know:
Restaurants are divided into two classes: those serving all kinds of alcohol and those serving only beers and wines. Waiter service is common although there are many self-service snack bars. Bars and cafes may have table and/or counter service and all internationally known beverages are available. In restaurants, beer is served from 0900 and other liquor from 1100. All alcohol is served until half an hour before the restaurant closes. Nightclubs are open to serve drinks until 0200 or 0400. Service begins at 1100 and continues until the restaurant closes. The age limit for drinking is 18 years, but consumers must be 20 before they can buy the stronger alcoholic beverages. There are strict laws against drinking and driving.
National specialities:
• The province of Åland has Skärgårdssmak, or 'Island flavours', and features mainly local fish.
• Karelia à la carte focuses on the Karelian buffet traditions and wholesome stews and casseroles.
• Lapland à la carte features reindeer meat, smoked or in other forms, fish and Lapp puikula potatoes, with cloudberries for desert, often served with hot toffee sauce.
• Kalakukko, a kind of fish and pork pie, baked in a rye flour crust, and karjalan piirakat, a pastry of rye flour stuffed with rice pudding or potato and eaten with egg butter.
• Various kinds of thick soups are also popular.
• Crayfish is available from July to August.
National drinks:
• Koskenkorva or Finlandia vodka schnapps, traditionally drunk with lamprey, Baltic herring or other cold fish.
• The Finnish berry liqueurs, mesimarja (arctic bramble), lakka (cloudberry) and polar (cranberry).
• Finnish vodka, usually served ice-cold with meals.
• Finnish beer is of a high quality and mild beers are served in most coffee bars.
Tipping: Tipping, once non-existent in Finland, is becoming common. A 15 per cent service charge is included in the bill in hotels. Restaurants and bars have a 14 per cent service charge weekdays and 15 per cent on weekends and holidays. The obligatory cloakroom or doorman fee is usually clearly indicated. Taxi drivers are not normally tipped.

Finnish handicrafts, jewellery, handwoven ryijy rugs, furniture, glassware, porcelain, ceramics, furs and textiles are amongst the many Finnish specialities. Excellent supermarkets and self-service shops can be found all over the country. Helsinki railway station has the first underground shopping centre in the country, where the shops are open 0800-2200 (Sun and public holidays 1200-2200). Itäkeskus is the largest enclosed shopping centre in the Nordic countries. Kiseleff Bazaar is great for handicrafts and souvenirs. At the Katajanokka boat harbour, there is a shop selling glass, china, wooden articles and textiles. Duty free: Anyone permanently resident outside the EU can claim back purchase tax at the time of departure. Repayment can be made (on presentation of a special cheque provided by the retailer) at the following gateways: Helsinki, Turku, Tampere, Mariehamn, Vaasa and Rovaniemi airports; onboard ferries and ships operated by Polferries, Silja Line, Vaasaferries and Viking Line; and at the main checkpoints on the land borders with Sweden, Norway and the Russian Federation. Shopping hours: Mon-Fri 0900-1800, Sat 0900-1400. Shops are generally open on Sunday from June to August. Many departments stores are also open 0900-2100 during the week and Sat 0900-1800.

Prices for alcohol vary according to the restaurant’s classification.
E: Elite price category.
G: General price category.
S: Self-service price category.
A: Fully licensed.
B: Licensed for beer and wine.