Food & Drink - Finland - page 668

VEGETARIANS IN FINLAND
Most medium-sized towns in Finland will have a vegetarian restaurant(kasvisravintola),
usually open weekday lunchtimes only. It's easy to self-cater at markets, or take the
salad/vegetable option at lunch buffets (which is usually cheaper). Many restaurants also
have a salad buffet. The website www.vegaaniliitto.fi has a useful listing of vegetarian and
vegan restaurants; follow 'ruoka' and 'kasvisravintoloita' (the Finnish list is more up-to-
date than the English one).
Drinking
The Finns lead the world in coffee (kahvi) consumption, downing over 20 million cups per
day - that's around four each for every man, woman and child. While the distinctive stand-
ard Finnish brew can be found everywhere, smarter cafes and restaurants will have es-
presso machines. Cafes are ubiquitous, ranging from 100-year-old imperial classics to
trendy networking joints and simple country caffeine stops.
Finns drink plenty of beer (olut) and among the big local brews are Karhu, Koff, Olvi
and Lapin Kulta. The big brands are all lagers, but there's quite a number of microbrewer-
ies in Finland (look for the word panimo or panimo-ravintola ), and these make excellent
light and dark beers. Cider is also popular, as is lonkero, a ready-made mix of gin and
fruity soft drink, usually grapefruit. A half-litre of beer in a bar costs around €5 to €7.
Finns don't tend to drink in rounds; everybody pays for their own.
Beer, wine and spirits are sold by the state network, Alko. There are stores in every
town. The legal age for drinking is 18 for beer and wine, and 20 for spirits. Beer and cider
with less than 4.8% alcohol can be bought at supermarkets, service stations and conveni-
ence stores. If you buy cans or bottles, you pay a small deposit (about €0.20). This can be
reclaimed by returning them to the recycling section at a supermarket.
Wine is widely drunk, but very pricey in restaurants, where you might pay €45 for a
bottle that would cost €10 in an Alko store. Sparkling wine is very popular in summer and
keep an eye out for locally made berry wines.
Other uniquely Finnish drinks include salmiakkikossu, which combines dissolved li-
quorice sweets with the iconic Koskenkorva vodka (an acquired taste); fisu, which does