PHENOMENON: Café Ekberg

O EKBERG! MY EKBERG!

Cafe au lait and a Napoleon mille-feuille, please.
There is definitely no other café that is more Helsinkian than Café Ekberg. There are two reasons: the cultural tradition going back to 1852, and the interior. How wonderful that three generations of Helsinkians are seeping into the ambiance of the café at the same table; or tables full of young ladies from southern Helsinki chatting. More cava, perhaps? 

Or elderly ladies meeting up for a weekly coffee, which they have done for half a century. Is it time for an arrack pastry, an Alexander or perhaps a rum baba? Also, A-list cultural celebrities and society matrons are enjoying the atmosphere in the afternoon. Of course, there is a group of gentlemen, who, from year to year, have so much to talk about in secret. Ekberg’s, obviously, has table service. 

The current decor at Ekberg’s is from 1952. Sturdy marble tables, chairs that you could sit in for hours, and lighting by Paavo Tynell. The windows open to Bulevardi in the same location where the Ekbergs opened their new café and bakery in 1915.