Elite

Elite is a sure choice. Elite has a reputation as a favorite of artists which can be seen in the menu as well.
The food is excellent and the service good. The interior is very 30s-​like which is nice, though maybe some paint is needed here and there. The atmosphere is very unique and all in all experience brilliant. Even my mother-​in-​law was happy, which is an achievement!

Back to the future. Sorry back to the past but in a good way. The restaurant has been in the same place since 1938 and renovated last maybe in the 1980’s. Cool place to go with your dad or mom.
For all the foodies this is a good restaurant to go and #reset your taste buds from all the cross kitchen coriander asian hamburger kebab sushi tapas you’ve been eating ²⁴⁄₇. Back to basics!
Food:
Dishes are CLASSIC Finnish restaurant dishes prepared just right. Ingredients are top notch and the cooks know how to prepare them.
Can I repeat myself again, CLASSIC. Simple dishes with great taste. Steak was good, potatoes were good, the sauce was good, everything was good. Nothing for you to jump to the moon but all in all really tasty and CLASSIC.
We had a couple of different dishes sirloin and tenderloin steak with cream and cognac sauce and risotto with prawns. Everything was prepared as we liked and my mom 70 years old really loved the food. For us younger generation the food represented probably the food our parents ate in restaurants in Finland between 60’s and 90’s.
Environment:
Renovated probably around 80’s and that shows but not in a really bad way but in a kind of sympathetic way. You can feel the old glamour and sense the restaurants gold age being a couple of decades ago still not fading what it is today.
When you walk in there is a doorman to get your coat (3 €). The restaurant is quite large on the inside and there are lots of tables. A lot of tables to seat also big groups.
Service:
Service was really friendly and old fashioned in a good way. Food came out in a timely manner and the waiter was helpful with the menu and different choices.
One of us chose the fillet steak which came flambéed by the waiter next to our table. Great show to spice up your family dinner for the old folks ;)
Price:
Not the most expensive restaurant but in the upper middle class. Sirloin steak 28 € and tenderloin 32 €. Pretty standard for Helsinki. Taking in to account that the food was well prepared and tasty it was rather reasonable.

Food: ⁴⁄₅
Environment: 3,5/5
Service: ⁴⁄₅
Price: ⁴⁄₅

What, why, and how could it be; no reviews since May 2013? Accidentally discovered this gem on a Sunday bike ride to the parks. Elite is everything the menu description says plus all previous reviews herein. If I was a director, Elite would be in a scene; if I were to relocate to Helsinki, this would be the neighborhood; if I were to stamp a must stop, Elite cannot be passed up. Elite is the full package: ambience, service, food, price and simply stunningly Art Deco hip.

simply outstanding– first rate plates, plus 1932 ambiance. perfect

classy old school place in my ‘hood. i’d heard it was ‘past its best’, but I was pleasantly surprised by the food and and the service. i had the liver, which was very tender and tasty. the ambience and interior décor are stylish and original looking. sure, the artists that used to frequent the place in the good old days have likely moved on to cheaper eating holes, but don’t let that stop you making a pit stop here.

This restaurant has a reputation of beign very classy, traditionell and having served the great artists of Finnish cultural scene. The food and atmosphere are praised from one decade to the next. And you know what? With all that, my expectations were very high and they managed to exceed them.
The place is beautiful and I especially loved the stylish counter by the entrance. My lunch choice was the most famous course of this place: Tauno Palos onion steak. Delicious. On top of all that, the service was top notch. If I made movies, Id make sure I had a restaurant scene in this place.

Elite is one of those definitive places in your neighborhood that you can always trust. The food is awesome and the atmosphere something that cannot be built, it has to be earned. A place where you can go to have a luxurious dinner or just go in with friends to talk and drink good beverages. Highly recommended.

One of my favourite restaurants in Helsinki. Traditionally an artists’ restaurant, the place has quite a history. Regulars have been such like writer Mika Waltari and actor Tauno Palo, who is something like Cary Grant, Errol Flynn and Gregory Peck put together for us Finns.
They have a wonderful Onion stake named after Tauno Palo, which cannot be spoken too highly of. And the service is always excellent. Heartfully recommended.