There is a place in Tampere that is much more than what it seems and it’s all about local and sustainable food.
I thought it was one of those fancy places, you know, coldly elegant. I thought it was inspired by hype Helsinki’s vibe - with all respect. But hey, I’m exploring new stuff in my life. So I booked.
You see, with food just like with people, my thing is authenticity. Street food. Organic food. Real kebab. Real fat Pyynikki doughnut. Never try to impress. Be real. Be authentic. They’ll love it or they won’t. O my, I write like a marketer this morning. :-)
Ok, you get the idea. With food, I don’t buy it easily and I have a well trained taste when I enter in a restaurant.
So, Kajo.
Between the covid, the break up, the parenting, the work deadlines, the stress level, I almost cancelled 10 times.
Still. I went there 2-3 weeks ago. And I had one of the best evenings of my life.
Yeah.
French-Sicilian born in Morocco, I felt home like never before since I am here. Yeah.
Like with friends from all over the world coming out of the kitchen and telling me ’’hey try this, it’s made of this and that’’, very complex recipes and yet absolute simplicity. Perfection is balance and it is hard to reach. That’s rare. That night, they had it.
Every course brought me surprising memories of my childhood on a Mediterranean island, another place in Cuba, faces of beloved ones, tenderness of my kids, it brought me creativity and comfort, beauty and space, it was amazing! I couldn’t even believe I was in Finland but yet I was in the heart of Finland, in the heart of what attracted me like a magnet when I arrived here.
The food, the team, the light, the music, the restroom, and ah, oh, yes, the wine, the fresh bread the surprising mix of ’’yesterday bread’’ (I wont spoil) and this goddam eucalyptus thing, and ’’the’’ potato...
They call it ’’Oodi luonnolle’’. I call it a 3 hours bliss. They make it vegetarian or not, as you prefer (I took the vegetarian menu).
So slow down. Treat yourself. Go to Kajo.
#sustainablefood #nature #sustainablerestaurant #tampere #art #tampererestaurants
In a previous life, I used to be a travelling guides writer. Meaning that I was pay to tour a country or a region, test, select ad write about hotels, restaurants, hype cultural spots and natural wonders. It was amazing and I loved it. I wrote about food quite a lot, for French publishing houses and also newspapers, I learned with experts how to train my taste. Well, I’ve always been a foodie and really I loved it. Based on this, I can say that my taste is very strong. Tampere was not the best place to live for foodies but hey, things change, and so this series is my selection for you... And I started this series because I enjoy sharing good things, nothing more.
My evaluation of KAJO is based on the followings:
Fresh and local A+
Creativity A+
Vegetarian menu A+
Service, flow, timing A+
Vibe, light, music A+
Spirit, authenticity A+
Hygiene A+
Commitment to sustainability (producers, waste, labels...) A
Body comfort (table, chair, display on the table) B
I use A+, A, B+ and B only. Meaning that the restaurants I share about here are all at the top. If they don’t meet my criteria I’d rather say nothing.
