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    Gaijin

    4.1 (62 reviews)
    PriceyAsian Fusion
    Closed 5:00 pm - 11:00 PM

    Gaijin Photos

    GAIJIN ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Trendy
    Moderate noise
    Good for groups
    Outdoor seating

    Recommended Reviews - Gaijin

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    Reviews With Photos

    Silver Fang drink
    Olive R.

    This was very chaotic. Poor service. As a place that is considered a Michelin star restaurant...this was horrible. I had there main prefix meal. It included scallops, which were over cooked. The "sushi" was NOT fresh...something I could get at a to-go place. They sat me at the bar, and I had a view of the kitchen were I could see them cleaning the dishes and mopping the floor. At least put curtains or a swinging door. Main reason for the 2 stars is because I noticed a waitress dropped a glass, touched the ground...and continued working!!! She didn't wash her hands!!! Very gross and unprofessional!!!

    Pork buns
    Miriam W.

    Gaijin was recommended to me by numerous Helsinkites and to my lucky discovery, I ended up in a hotel just steps away from this pan Asian (with a strong Japanese/Korean bent) restaurant. Do not miss the PORK BUNS. They're the closest to Momofuku's I've had in Europe. I'm especially fond of the togarashi mayonnaise on these babies. Ditto the DRUNKEN CHICKEN was a masterpiece of flavour explosion. I spooned its residual sauce on my rice and contemplated tipping the bowl and pouring the honey-soy remnants into my mouth. The sauce was actually that good! Order the KIMCHI PORK SHU MAI. You won't need more than one or two of these each given their supreme savoriness. Skip the XO GRILLED BEEF. This Chinese style marinated beef arrived slightly above room temperature and somewhat single-noted in flavour. The cocktails at Gaijin also deserve a shout. I had a well-balanced grapefruit drink but was tempted by many creative concoctions including one fresh watermelon juice number and another featuring egg whites and passionfruit.

    Oysters were AMAZING!
    Joe B.

    Great cozy yet contemporary atmosphere. We had a reservation for sunday evening, and they had a tasting menu for the day. We ordered 6 item tasting menu. Before this I started with a Hattori Hanso cocktail which was an espresso infused cocktail. Suprisingly nice! Highlights of the dishes were the Oysters for the starter. A strange looking concoction that slipped right in your gullet and mixed together wonderfully. Secondly the Ribs were AMAZING and feel off the bone! My Vegetarian GF had one and LOVED THEM so you can be sure they are good. A bit expensive as to be expected, but we definetly want to return for some special occasion.

    Pork belly buns
    Gregor A.

    When the Finnish people next to you start talking about how good the food is and that you made an excellent choice to go there, they are either drunk or really, really enthousiastic. It was the latter. Gajin is a really great pick for everyone that wants to spend a great evening of fine dining. The atmospere is not uptight, but very relaxt. We chose to have the gajin tasing menu with the accompanying wines. The small asian diches are fantastic, all of them taste unique and super good. Look at the photos! I would make sure to get a table at 8, so there are no other tables behind you. Service can be extremely fast with bringing the dishes. That is the only downside. Other than that this restaurant is very good!

    Ryan L.

    Great Asian-fusion restaurant with a tasting menu. Conveniently located downtown (a few doors down from the Klaus K hotel), and there is a front bar/lounge area which doesn't require reservations. There is one fixed tasting menu, one seasonal (changes 4-5 times per year), as well as a vegetarian option, and a la Carte options. Great bar, too, with both classic and custom cocktails. I had one cocktail and the seasonal set menu and it was an excellent dinner -- hard to decide which dishes I liked the best, as they were all excellent, but the iberico ham was particularly notable.

    Dessert on the Sunday menu
    Franziska K.

    We went to Gaijin on a Sunday which was an excellent choice - they had two menus on offer, 3 courses for 35 Euro and 6 for 55 Euro. The three course menu was above my expectation and it was filling, too. The main course (roasted salmon with a truffle-miso infusion, fennel puree, romanesco and pickled radishes) was both innovative and not too far out there. But the dessert trumped all. A black tea flavored white chocolate mousse with peach sorbet and black pepper meringue. Presentation of the food was above average. The cocktail I had was also great - Harushinki or something like that - and better value at 12 Euro than the 7,50 Euro Asahi beer my boyfriend had. Overall an amazing value for the Sunday menu.

    Mussels
    Jinna R.

    Tasting menu was amazing! Food was delicious and filling at the end of the meal. We recommend going here for those want to experience Asian fusion fine dining. Definitely will return when we're in Helsinki again.

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    9 months ago

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    11 years ago

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    8 years ago

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    13 years ago

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    9 years ago

    The beef was good,restaursnt was nice, i travel a lot and this rest you have to try and visit

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    12 years ago

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    10 years ago

    Fish is fresh and rice is Japanese mom approved. The presentation of the food is pretty. Unique flavors. Liked the dessert. Good cocktails.

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    10 years ago

    Very nice food. Great central location. But a bit pricey for the venue and "overall experience".

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    12 years ago

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    9 years ago

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    8 years ago

    Excellent food and Service. Ordered the ribs and pork belly sandwich and would recommend.

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    11 years ago

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    9 years ago

    Excellent quality food and service. Totally worth of every penny. We had 7 course tasting menu which was amazing.

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    12 years ago

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    Gaijin Reviews in Other Languages

    Review Highlights - Gaijin

    Conveniently located downtown (a few doors down from the Klaus K hotel), and there is a front bar/lounge area which doesn't require reservations.

    Mentioned in 2 reviews

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    Pastor - Mariscos mixtos

    Pastor

    4.2(18 reviews)
    0.0 kmKamppi
    €€€

    Pastor is some sort of Peruvian, Asian and Latin crossover restaurant and whatever they wish to…read morecall themselves it does work. The space is welcoming and despite the packed room and fairly barren walls they managed to keep the sound level low enough for people to easily carry-on a conversation. Staff are friendly albeit a bit stressed but not so that it bothered me. They have a fairly interesting wine list, with a lot of variety and fairly many wines by the glass (for example four different sparkling wines by the glass). The beer selection is also good with many interesting options and the cocktails impress as well. What was a disappointment was however the non-alcoholic selection- 2 beers and sodas. No cocktails, ciders or other interesting stuff and the beers were not really that exciting. Food is meant to be shared and that was what we did. Great and plentiful edamame with ginger, soy and lemongrass sauce was very nice. The empanadas were ok and the sauce saved the dish. The zucchini tempura was fresh and the sauce was r a good fit. The highlight was however the short ribs, plenty of food and really tender and juicy with the right flavors. A bit messy to eat but good. The churros for dessert are better skipped, not bad but also not worth it.

    We had the unfortunate experience to be food poisoned here, Saturday 3 FEB, by the CEVICHE ESTILO…read moreFILIPINO dish. It must have been that one because it tasted way fishier than the other two ceviches we had. Our last day (Sunday) in Helsinki was ruined, and a hellish flight home awaited. Also, it took three days in total to get well enought to return to normal routine/work. Otherwise the staff was super friendly and the rest of the food was ok. The Pimientos De Padrón could have used some salt, because there was none, and the fried potatoes tasted/looked like standard restaurant fries except the sauce. We emailed Pastor about the food poisoning, but all we got was excuses and zero understanding. We'll probably never return to this restaurant because of that.

    Photos
    Pastor - Pääruoat: lohta ja yrttiriisiä

    Pääruoat: lohta ja yrttiriisiä

    Pastor - Espresso

    Espresso

    Pastor - Ribs, quinoa, patatas bravas, salmon miso and chicken

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    Ribs, quinoa, patatas bravas, salmon miso and chicken

    Rulla - Interior. Not a lot of seats available, which is a bit of a shame

    Rulla

    4.4(8 reviews)
    0.3 kmKamppi
    €€

    The perfect place for some filled rice paper rolls is Rulla. They have a wide selection of rolls…read morewith different exciting fillings. Pick a meal of three, four or five rolls accompanied with one of two delicious daily salads. And don't forget the dip for your rolls. Everything here is fresh. And you can taste that. The food is great, really delicious and makes you full without feeling stuffed afterwards. The small restaurant in Yrjönkatu is sharing its premises with Nudge. That means that you can not only have a really nice lunch in a cozy atmosphere. You can also find sustainable products from small local shops that sell cosmetics, children's clothing and Finnish design.

    Retail and rolls ...what a combination....awesome concept I…read morewould highly recommend a visit to both the shop NUDGE and the little eatery inside... Rulla. The wares are really well chosen organic or sustainably produced clothes and other items. And the the rolls are a tasty treat with multiple sauces and home made soup of the day included in their specials, all reasonably priced. The rolls are their version of a Vietnamese spring roll, smaller and very unique .They have a bunch of options , from veggies to fish and one or two beef based rolls. As a person who has been to countless Vietnamese restaurants the rolls here beat the Viet version, at least for us round eyes, hands down, The people there are friendly and it is low key and quick. There are only 3 tables so it can get full easily .Perfcec light lunch.

    Photos
    Rulla - Lunch for two

    Lunch for two

    Rulla - Exterior

    Exterior

    Rulla - Kaunista & hyvää.

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    Kaunista & hyvää.

    Gaijin - asianfusion - Updated May 2026

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