Scan Magazine | Culinary Feature | Ravintola Harald
Embrace your inner Viking Whether you are looking for a romantic dinner for two or a feast for 50, Viking Restaurant Harald offers plenty of treats to tempt your taste buds. The restaurant, inspired by Viking mythology and history, offers diners a fun way to let their hair down and find the Viking within. By Ndéla Faye | Photos: Viking Restaurant Harald
The first Viking Restaurant Harald opened 18 years ago in Tampere, Finland. Since then, six more branches have opened in Helsinki, Jyväskylä, Kuopio, Lahti, Oulu and Turku – and another is opening in Espoo in August. “The idea is for our guests to switch off and leave their busy everyday lives at the door, while enjoying great-quality food and drink. We offer diners an all-round experience where they can delve into the Viking world,” explains Raine Verho, development director and partner at Viking Restaurant Harald. To encourage even the shyest of guests to partake in the Viking role play, staff members are dressed in Viking outfits 36 | Issue 90 | July 2016
and have a Viking name complete with a backstory of their ancestry. “Our main focus is providing great, friendly service. And when your dinner is served by Lovely Ljúf or Smiley Sigrid, you can’t but have a smile on your face,” laughs Verho. Ranging from animal pelts to horn helmets, every detail has been thought of to add to this unique dining experience – and humorous limericks and Viking puns on the menus add to the playful atmosphere.
Time travels for taste buds Restaurant Harald is not afraid to push boundaries when it comes to culinary experiences: from moose sausages to
veal osso bucco and Baltic herring, the menu offers something a little extra for those who want to try new taste combinations. Aptly entitled Voyages, the restaurant’s menu takes customers on a culinary time travel – and dishes are served on shields, swords and handmade clay pots to give a fierce Viking feel to complete the dining experience. The menu draws inspiration from Nordic food and puts a unique twist on many traditional Scandinavian dishes. “We pride ourselves on using fresh, seasonal Scandinavian and Finnish produce, and we’re launching a brand new menu this autumn,” says Verho. Serving fish from the northernmost fishmonger in Finland and organic yoghurts from small local dairy farms, the ingredients showcase a wide range of fresh Finnish produce. “One of the customers’ all-time favourites is our tar-flavoured ice cream from nearby Peltola farm, served with
