Gastropub Tuulensuu

This interesting and very pleasant gastropub offers an extensive selection of draft beers and very interesting and delicious food choices. They also offer bottled and canned beers, cocktails, wines, and spirits. In terms of the dog policy, when I asked via email, the reply was “All well-behaved dogs are welcome to us as long as other customers don’t complain :)”, which seems totally fair to us. Tuulensuu, like Gastro Pub Nordic and Sailor’s, is part of the Nordic Brewery chain. 

We have been here many times, and always have had a great time. In terms of food, I will not describe everything we have tried or this post will be extremely long! Nevertheless, the menu offers plenty of interesting and delicious sounding choices with a couple vegetarian options (more veggie choices on the starter menu than mains). There are about 12 starters on offer plus some snacks, 10 main courses, and 3 desserts. We often go for some of the same dishes and drinks (because they are so good we cannot resist), so even after many visits, our knowledge of the food and drinks on offer is a little limited. Nevertheless, we have tried quite a few menu items, a couple of draft beers, two cocktails, and a couple glasses of wine, all of which were excellent in our opinion.

As for our experience with the food, on our first visit (December 2020), while there were a lot of starters that we really wanted to try, we opted for the Pelmens (Pelmeni) because these are a favourite of ours and not easy to find. While the Pelmeni did not look like what we are used to (see first photo below), they exceeded our expectations and were truly exceptional; far better than many we have had elsewhere, including in St. Petersburg. The whole dish was perfectly seasoned and balanced, the meat filling was delicious, the dough thin and perfectly cooked, and the butter and smetana (sour cream) toppings were wonderful. 

For the main, again we were really torn between a number of dishes, but we ended up going for the fried lamb’s liver, and a Steak Frites. The liver; “Fried Liver of Lamb, sour cream, mashed root vegetables & baked Beetroots” was amazing!! The liver was delicious, soft, and perfectly cooked, and all the sides were excellent, especially the baked beetroot. As for the steak, it was exactly as described by the very helpful and friendly staff member; an entrecôte steak pounded until very thin, served with chips and a savoury butter, “no green stuff”. This was not the best steak we have had, but better than a lot we have had. It was very tasty, the chips nice and crispy, and the savoury butter was delicious.

On our second visit (January 2021), we again went for the Pelmeni, which were prepared differently than our first visit, and again they were excellent. This time, the Pelmeni looked much like we have had elsewhere and were served in a home-made moose broth and topped with pickled forest mushrooms; sublime! The moose stock was outstanding and the mushrooms provided a very slight sour and woody flavour that really complemented the dish. Also on this visit, we tried the pork Schnitzel and found it to be delicious. The meat was juicy, well tenderized but not too thin, the crust was crispy and buttery, and the garlic mayonnaise (aioli) and French fries complemented it very well. You can add a forest mushroom sauce for €3, but we chose not to do so due to already enjoying the mushroom element on the pelmeni. On our second visit, we also had the same beers and cocktails which were again delicious. All in all, everything was perfect on our second visit and confirmed that this is one of our new “go-to-places”.

Since then, we have been back many times and have tried a few different menu options, and have never been disappointed. For example, the two deer starters were excellent, the lamb meat balls are to die for, especially the potato side dish, and the cheese pie (more like a quiche) was fantastically cheesy (I think it broke the laws of physics).

Next, to the drinks!  We have had various draft beers including a German pilsner (Konig), an AIPA (Nordic Brewery AIPA), a few IPAs, and some other international beers, all of which were delicious. We also keep going with the same cocktails: a Piconi (a Negroni made with Picon instead of Campari), and an Arctic Blue Gin and Tonic with blueberries. Both cocktails have always been fantastic, and to my pleasant surprise, the G&T was not sweet in the slightest and the choice of Fever Tree tonic was a great match for the Arctic gin. We also thoroughly enjoyed a glass of Chianti on our first visit and have tried a couple other glasses of red wine and have never been disappointed. All in all, the drinks were delicious, hence the fact we keep ordering more (we are usually only there for about 90 minutes!)

In terms of prices, we have not chosen the cheapest options, but always thought everything was very good value. For example, at the time of writing, the pelmeni are €12.50, the cheese pie is €13.50, the steak €22.50, lamb meatballs €19.50 and the Schnitzel is also  €19.50. The draft beers are currently around €8 to €10 (0.5 litre), the cocktails are between €8 and €12.50, and the wines we had are also €12.50. . As noted, we have zero complaints about the prices or value for money.

To say we enjoy our visits here is a huge understatement, and we are already planning our next visit. Great food, great drinks, very friendly, welcoming and professional staff. We are so happy to find another great (dog-friendly) place that offers something unique. Highly recommended.