Visit Helsinki: Heavenly YUME

Hello my dear readers! I have a new post ready for you from my series of “Visit Helsinki” posts in which I present you the best places in my city where to go dining, shopping, exploring, hotels to stay at, etc. I’m so glad that the response to these kind of posts has been so welcoming and accepting that I’m more than excited to continue bringing you and discovering you the real gems that Helsinki has to offer, no matter if you’re a local or a tourist, this city has a lot to offer and I’m here to prove that with my “Visit Helsinki” posts. 🙂

I believe that by now, pretty much all of you know that I’m completely in love with an Asian countries, culture, food, esp. with Japan but China, Korea and Thailand are incredibly exotic and interesting to me as well. I love learning about these countries and am always daydreaming of visiting them someday. While I’m waiting for my daydreams to come true, I can do “so little” to make myself feel more closer to those countries by visiting a few places that have that Asian vibe and taste which I’m looking for.

I’ve been already writing about Yume restaurant last year, so if you haven’t seen that post, please do check it here. Ever since then, Yume became my favourite restaurant in almost whole Europe! So far I had to travel to Croatia or London in order to enjoy some of my favourite restaurants and have a complete foodie experience but since discovering YUME and esp. NOW since they have changed up their whole menu in January, my little Asian heart has been singing “taivaallinen” the whole time, which translates “heavenly” from Finnish to English !

Since we have opted for a cocktail and cold sake back in the first review of Yume, it was only natural to test a new cocktail and a sake this time around. We went for Artisan 55 Junmai Ginjo which was not such a basic sake, it’s rice is more polished and has more refined taste than the regular one. As for the cocktail, we took one of the costumer’s favourites which is also a non alcoholic one and it was cucumber shiso martini with Hendrick’s gin, cucumber, shiso and lemon juice. Both drinks worked wonderfully with every dish.

Upon receiving the new menu in our hands, it was so hard to choose the dishes which we wanted to try out. Everything sounded absolutely divine and was “ticking” off all of the boxes so to say. After some “negotiating” between ourselves, we went for:

Whitefish sashimi which was one of the best sashimi plates that I ever had tasted anywhere. It’s marinated in Korean spiced sauce, which to me had a perfect spicy Kimchi taste and sesame seeds were perfect taste enhancer.

Sashimi was followed by salmon and eel nigiris as well as by the majestic Alaska roll ( whitefish, avocado, shiso mayo and fish roe on top ). The roll was perfectly crunchy, creamy and refreshing! Besides Lotus roll at Katana in LA, Alaska roll is the best sushi roll I have ever tasted! I must confess that I was so impressed by it, that I had 3 extra orders of just this sushi roll! YES! 😀

Another personal favourite was eel nigiri with kabayaki sauce which I like even more than the usual teriyaki sauce. These little nigiris are taste bombs! I swear that I had “seen” fireworks while munching on these.

Next up were YUME’S legendary Thai pork ribs which are a constant on their menu. They’re equally popular with adults as with kids too! My daughter is obsessed with them, they’re perfectly sweet, salty, sticky and peanuts add a nice crunch to the whole dish is the way that she has described them to me. 🙂

We have ordered one Menu Yume which started off by bringing us a hot stone with the marble beef. Beef was very tender, melted in the mouth and worked perfectly with the spicy ponzu sauce that we have dipped it in. This dish was not just perfect in it’s simplicity and taste, but also, we have concluded that it’s a great “social food” meaning that it’s a nice dish to share with your partner or a business colleague. To put it in a plain language, it’s fun to use the hot stone since you “cook” your meal.

Hot stone was followed by chicken yakitori and crispy eggplant fritters with the curry dip! I liked the fact that the chicken yakitori was served and tasted different than the classic chicken yakitori which I’m used to see in pretty much any Chinese/ Japanese restaurant. Eggplant fritters were something very different and interesting and when topped with the curry dip, you get a very full balanced taste!

Main course was veal cheek braised in black vinegar sauce, served with the Jasmin rice and an extra side order of pak choi. The meat was so tender that it was melting like butter in the mouth and the sauce was perfect to go along with the meat because it wasn’t overpowering it in any way, in fact it completed the already perfect taste of prime meat.

Dessert was the grande finale, a perfect crown on the top of the cake! It was a guava sorbet with coconut custard and mixed exotic fruits. Very fresh and “Summery” dessert. 🙂

If you want to have whole Asia in your palm, go to Yume and get lost in the explosion of tastes, incredible service and charmingly romantic interior. They have definitely stepped up their game to a whole new level and if you would have to pick only one restaurant which you can/ have time to visit when in Helsinki, Yume would always be my number one recommendation.

*This post has been made in collaboration with Yume restaurant. All of the opinions are my own!

*Thank you to Miss Seidi for making this collaboration possible and to wonderful Vanessa for being our server that evening.

*Photography by: Natali K.photography