Bistro Kattila

We have only been to Bistro Kattila once for dinner, so like many places reviewed, our experience and knowledge is very limited. However, we had a wonderful evening and know it is dog-friendly, so thought a review was in order, and as you will see from the review below, we will definitely be going again.

Like Piemonte and Myllärit, Bistro Kattila serves a fairly limited à la carte dinner menu, but changes it quite regularly, so unless you are going very often, you will always have new and interesting dishes to try. In terms of the dinner menu, Kattila seems to offer around six starters, four mains, and two desserts. The starters and mains include fish dishes and vegetarian options. They also serve a small selection of draught and bottled beers, some very nice wines by the glass and bottle, cocktails, and other drinks. In addition to the dinner menu, Bistro Kattila offers a changing lunch menu on weekdays and brunch (brunner) on Saturdays, and while we have not tried these yet, given our dinner experience and the intriguing sounding menus, we will do so soon.

On our visit, we thoroughly enjoyed the delicious food and drinks, our dog was welcome, and we found the restaurant comfortable with friendly and professional staff. The only issue we had was that there was not so much space for the dog, so when we go again, we will request a specific table. However, if your dog, unlike ours, is happy to sit under the table, you will have no problem.

First, we started our night with two very pleasant cocktails; an interesting gin & tonic and a classic gin Martini (but no olives unfortunately), and I think both were around €9 or €10 euros. Then we moved on to the starters, accompanied by a very good glass of wine and a cold beer. In terms of starters, we had a steak tartare, cured salmon, and some home-made focaccia, all of which surpassed our expectations. Not only were the starters presented exquisitely, but they also used very fresh ingredients and had many complex components. For example, instead of the usual raw egg, Kattila’s tartare grated freeze-dried egg on top. The bread was simple yet far better than most we have had, and the pesto that accompanied it was perfect.

Now to the mains; unfortunately I cannot remember all of the components/sides that came with the dishes, but both mains were truly wonderful. One of the mains was a slow cooked Iberico pork pluma, which I think is a cut taken from the pork loin close to the neck. The meat was very flavoursome and tender, and was served with sides that perfectly complemented the dish. The second main course was a pike Wallenberg, which I think is a fish version of a classic Swedish Wallenbergare. Anyway, while it may not have looked like the most complicated or delicate of dishes, it was very tasty with complex flavours and nice texture. I have read a review where both of these dishes were underrated, but we completely disagree. We enjoyed another beer and an excellent glass of wine (well-recommended by the staff member looking after us) with the mains.

Finally, as we were quite full, and do not overly opt for desserts, we went for a couple digestifs instead, but I cannot remember what we had (probably a brandy of some sort and a bitters).

In terms of value for money, I do not remember the individual prices, but the bill for 2 starters, 2 mains, and numerous drinks was a very reasonable €156.

To sum up, Bistro Kattila offers a comfortable space to spend an evening, the food offerings were not only delicious, but also very interesting and carefully prepared, the drinks were we were very good and well-matched, and the service was friendly and professional. All up, we were very impressed with Bistro Kattila and will definitely be heading back for another visit soon.