Three stars for our server and the view. Food is overhyped and overpriced for the teeny portions. We ordered the large order of four seared scallops and requested them to be cooked more than seared. The scallops were the size of a US quarter and thin. The four skewers of prawns held two small shrimp apiece. Both items were tasty, but the portions were small for the prices. The tempeh was decent in portion, as was the rice. The chocolate dessert lacked substance and taste, and we left 95% of it. Most disappointing. read more

Got lucky with this place, we wanted something to top the other places we were eating at. On Yelp this place came up as an Asian Fusion with a Helsinki twist. Also is a Michelin rated restaurant which we didn't know until we arrived. After eating I would say this place was more Eurasian Fusion if that is such a word?!?! Service was on the slow side as people probably liked to sit for 3 hours and eat their food slowly. Doesn't work for me since I am the most impatient person you would ever meet! :-) On multiple occasions asked them to keep bringing out the food. Once they figured out the rhythm, plates started coming out in time and was just right. Every single item was full flavored and didn't lack in anything, lots of spices and flavors all seemed to work together in a unique way. For sure would come back and do the tasting menu again. read more

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Is Farang Helsinki's best restaurant? Well does a bear shit in the woods? I cannot vouch for all the bears, but in the case of Farang, my answer is yes! Some people might say that Chez Dominique is the best one, but those people do not look at food as sustenance, rather as some sort of art. Plus, they are commonly skinny whereas I'm on the chubby side. So who do you wanna trust more... seriously? Let's look at the facts. The cocktail list is impressive and skipping over it would be a mistake. I highly recommend trying the Malay Pom Pom with chai vanilla and ginger. If you want the full Farang-experience you should also go for both the wine and food tasting menus. If you do not care for sharing meals and trying loads of different courses, then the hell with it - order a Singha beer and go for the crispy pork. You will not be disappointed. For a free meal of cripsy pork, I would steal a baby, throw rocks at old people and watch Adam Sandler's hit movie "Jack and Jill" from start to finish. That's how good it tastes! I also like the high sealing. It makes the restaurant seem more open and spacious. The stylish decor and dim lighting give off this very New York -like vibe. It's a perfect blend of cool trendiness and old school romance - an ideal setting for a Prince music video. Stop thinking about where bears take care of their business and go enjoy the awesomeness that is Farang! read more

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Many people around me enjoyed the regular tasting menu (€64). I opted for the Wonderful Seasonal Tasting menu (€69). It is a lot of food for one person so bring a friend and you will have room for the wine pairings. read more

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Excellent food. Good service. A bit on the pricey side but upscale, different, and delicious.

My #1 biggest complaint about this place is the sheer amount of salt they put in some dishes! Especially towards the last dishes of our menu order, the sauces and curries were so laden with salt that it burned! That's not authentic and in fact very European... That being said, the caramelized pork was delicious. Overall it was a long (3 hours) but inconsistent dining experience. Sure it's a spectacle but at that price it better be. This is SEAsian street food for people who despise the beer bellied backpacker Finns that travel to Thailand. read more

If you want to go fine dining in Helsinki, the place to go is Farang. This is no doubt the best restaurant in town (as also the readers of CITY Magazine agree). Farang serves modern Asian cuisine and is run by the famous chef Tomi Björk. He is know through several cooking shows on Finnish TV. If you come to Farang first time you should order one of their tasting menus. They contain of seven to nine courses that are each an experience. The menu starts with cold starters like Cha Plu leaf with smoked trout. Among the warm courses could e.g. be the the Veal Cheek Seremban with slow braised veal cheeks, aromatic chili vinegar broth and mint-sprout salad. As a last course a delicious sweet treat like 'Hola Hola 6 with thai style marinated fruits, sweet peas, lime, vanilla-coconut cream and mandarin mango sorbet awaits you. With every tasting menu comes a wine recommendation. But you can also start your Farang experience with one of their delicious cocktails. Don't forget to reserve a table at least a week early. And calculate with around 80 € per person if you go with a tasting menu. You can of course also order each dish separately. read more

After having visited Gaijin (that is owned by the same people as Farang and Boulevard Social) I was eager to also visit Farang which was the first restaurant in this mini empire of restaurants. While Gaijin is more inspired by Japan, Korea and the Northern parts of China Farang is more Southeast Asian inspired. The concept is otherwise similar as Gaijin with food made to be shared among everyone at the table and with fabulous drinks. The quality of the food is in general excellent and the flavors are great. I especially liked the Crispy Pork and the Grilled Lamb. Those are not to be missed and the satay is also rather good. Fun that they have some different beers then normally can be found at Asian restaurants and the cocktails are great. It is really a place I wish was available in Stockholm so imagine the joy when hearing that they will be opening in Stockholm early 2013. Just hope they will be able to keep the same quality there. read more

I thought I knew a lot about South-East Asian cuisine... but Farang still managed to surprise in many ways during this absolutely fantastic dinner! We ordered the Farang tasting menu, in which each dish had a special twist: it was like putting together a jigsaw puzzle where every piece finds the perfect spot in an explosion of goodness! They each had the right amount of spices and all the flavours mix so well together: chillies, betel leaves, palm sugar syrup...The caramelised pork was probably my favourite of the menu: amazingly crunchy on the outside, and incredibly tender on the inside (Ok I'm drooling on my keyboard now :) ). The cocktails were also remarkable: I can recommend the Mojito style one with ginger in it... gorgeous! Let's not forget the great service: friendly, efficient and helpful without being too pushy, what more could we ask for? I'll definitely go back! read more

I had heard a lot about this place. I was prepared to shell out a bit of money but also expected to be blown away. But I wasn't. We were two and we ordered a vegetarian tasting menu. The food was delicious and well presented. However we found very similar ingredients and Evert dish was sweetish. Individually every dish was great but I wouldn't have expected such similarity. I did mention this to the staff with 2 main courses remaining but I guess it was too late. We had several persons serving us and they brought the next course before we were done with the previous. That was a major blunder. The wines were fantastic and dessert was probably the most thought out item. read more

When the bill for 2 people comes to 230 euro, I prefer to have a nice big table which doesn't touch the people sitting next to us (separated only by a thin fabric). On the other hand, I very much appreciated the testing menu, as well as the wine selection that came with it. read more

Food was good. They were out of chicken and lobster on a Saturday night which they told is after attempting to place our orders. Service was terrible. Waited a over an our for our final course. We cancelled it. read more

An excellent restaurant experience in central Helsinki! I recommend warmly their tasting menus, which are best when served for small groups. Also the vegetarian tasting menu is excellent. The last time we visited there and took the tasting menu they served our group including one vegetarian, one very allergic person, one who can't eat fish, one who doesn't tolerate lactose and one "normal" customer - without any mistakes, glitches or delays in their service! This is not a cheap place, but it's worth the money spent. The only minus comes from somewhat noisy atmosphere - especially if your table happens to be near a bigger group - and very basic and sometimes a slightly messy bathrooms. read more

We had a great dinner but, have warn you even without drinking we were well over our travel budget. Nice professional staff, excellent service. Very clean, hip Resturant. read more

Easily one of the best restaurants in Helsinki! Food is absolutely delicious, the service is top top-notch (friendly and professional) and you definitely get your moneys worth every time! I love it! read more

Incredible restaurant in terms of both food and atmosphere. All three tasting menus seemed amazing but my group (4 people) opted for 5 a la carte dishes. Out of what we had, I would definitely suggest the yellow coconut curry with cod and the thai pork ribs -- amazing. The atmosphere is very clean and simple though with a warm feel added by candles and curtains. Also to add, extensive cocktail menu and a selection of intriguing deserts. Would recommend for anyone looking for a Southeast Asian food experience only metres from the centre of Helsinki. read more

Excellent food and atmosphere. Try out the tasting menu's or caramellized pork. The drinklist is interesting with a lot of delicious cocktails to choose from. read more

Always a pleasure to dine here, and I tend to always order the same few items from the menu. Great food, you can't really go wrong with any dish, and service has always been great. read more

Great food, great service, very cozy environment. Beware it's much more affordable to go there with a bunch when you can share. If you go as a couple, either it will be too much, or you can try only a limited selection. read more

Good, but no wow factor. Fresh, but too much coriander. More variation in the menu, please. The meat dishes were super, though. Very good wines. read more

I sometimes go here just for their particular dish, which is one of the greatest inventions of Finnish cult cuisine by Tomi Björk. This particular dish has to be the slow cooked palm sugar glazed pork. Topped with fresh chilli and coriander, it goes so well with the entire southeast Asian themed menu that this restaurant is so hyped for. The starting cocktails are also fabulously made, with authentic ingredients. Desserts could be a fraction bigger than what they are, but certainly worth experimenting. The overall interior of the venue does not differ from any other standard 'sleek', über chic or hip dining venues aimed at affluent professionals. However it is truly the crowd and the impeccable service in various languages that makes this my all time favourite restaurant in Helsinki. read more

Had the full tasting menu. Not only was it delicious, it was wonderfully filling as well. Delicious dish after delicious dish kept coming out. The wine menu was excellent. There was some miscommunication about replacing the dessert wine with another, but the waitress sorted it out and made it right in the end. read more

Save your money and find a better place to eat while In Helsinki!! Service was great but the food is definitely lacking in taste. The crispy pork was burnt so badly that it was inedible. While the presentation of the food was beautiful, the chef uses so much ginger that everything is one note and not a pleasant one at that! Total bill was over 200 Euro for two people for the tasting menu. read more

We came here in august 2012 and had a wonderful experience. Had no problems getting a table. The restaurant is recommended in the Michelin guide in 2011 and 2012, but as far as I know it doesn't have any stars yet. You can choose form either a la carte or pre setup menus ranging from 7, 9 and more courses. We went with the one with 9 courses. There was no problems for us getting full from those 9 small courses. Price was form around 60€ for a combined menu as we had. A bottle of wine about 25€. The food was amazing. It was one of the best eating experiences we have ever had. The atmosphere was also very good. Nice and trendy locale with dark lighting. Very few tourists is always a plus and sign of good quality. Great service as well. read more

Normally when I see the term "fusion" I get a little worried .. No need to be in this case ! I had a fantastic set meal with their recommended accompanying wine list .. Incredible !! Excellent service .. Will be returning :) read more

Extremely good Asian fusion in Helsinki...We were a group of 8 out of which 5 Chinese, 1 Indian and 1 Thai (and me who is French living in China for 10 years...). Overall great food (red curry approved by Thai! and everything else either veg. dishes or chicken or else...) and quite interesting ideas in the recipe. The wine list is also very decent and affordable. We paid about 430 euros for 8 with 2 bottles of wine at 70 euros each. and the portions were really big so we couldnt finish all. For Helsinki that's definitely okay! I would put 5 or even 6 stars if it was not for the arrogant staff who "welcomed" us. This gentleman (who on top looked from Asia origin...) didnt seem to appreciate our presence (maybe too many Asian...go figure...). This horrible arrival somehow ruined part of the evening and hopefully the waiter who attended to our table after that (another one of course) was very friendly and efficient otherwise I would have probably rated even lower...! So Great experience as soon as you passed the entrance and get to your table. read more

A party of 9 people ordered the standard tasting menu. The various dishes ranged from very tasty to way too sweet. The problem occurred when the waitress came around with a bottle of white wine and then a bottle of red. She began pouring without asking if we wanted any. I pointedly asked her if the wine is included in the tasting menu. In perfectly good English, she said "yes, it is" then continued to pour. The white wine was only okay and I didn't like the red at all and hardly touched it. When the bill came, we were surprised that Farang had added 330€ wine charge. We asked the waitress about it only to be told the wines are "recommended pairings" with the various dishes. At no time did the staff inform us that the wines were in addition nor did any of them asked if we wanted a pour before serving. We could have easily ordered better wines separately according to our preferences. None of us at the table liked this semi bait-and-switch policy of Farang. We left the restaurant with an odd and somewhat unpleasant taste after an otherwise enjoyable outing. A pity. read more