Cafe Ekberg [Mimi's World Tour]

Bakery: Cafe Ekberg
Address: Bulevardi 9, Helsinki
Website: http://www.cafeekberg.fi/
Style: Finnish
Price: $-$$

World Tour 2012! I've got 14 locations in 3 countries to review this year and this is the first one!! ^__^ Actually, I went to Helsinki three years ago, but, not having started the cake tour yet in full force (Fazer was, of course, a must-visit), I was ashamed at the fact that I had really gone nowhere. Although I was only four days in my one of my two favourite places in the world (Finland and Iceland have quickly become my sweethearts; I'm in love with both of them XDDDD), I had to take advantage and just run out and get as much done as possible, cake-wise, though again, I didn't accomplish nearly as much as I had hoped. Still, it was thrilling. Especially since I love, LOVE Finnish baking!

Cafe Ekberg, a small distance away from the tourist-trodden centre, is, I believe, the oldest cafe in Helsinki. They have two parts to their Ekberg empire, the cafe serving coffee and lunches to the left and then the bakery/pastry shop where you can have things to take away. I went to the latter, and found it to actually be very well priced in comparison to city centre cafes (especially on the Esplanade -_-), but the emphasis in this old-fashioned (line up, even though it's two people, is done by numbers and the number board is *ancient*) place is on bigger purchases such as breads and full cakes... and everything looks amazing. They still have the staples like korvapustit (Finnish cinnamon buns), but as I had two other people travelling with me, at least for two days, my mom suggested we buy one of the more interesting bigger loaves which I wouldn't hope to try elsewhere.

Hence we settled for this gorgeous thing (and yes, the icing is pink ^^) which began with "mazariini"... I could have sworn it was 'kakku' or something, but nothing is giving me image results. -__- Nonetheless, it was lovely loaf (7,70 euro) which ended up being for way more than three people and pretty much a pulla (Finnish sweet bread flavoured with ground cardamom seeds) with icing and stuffed with almonds. It was so soft and moist (the crumbs are due to us not having a knife, not because it was dry XD) with that fairly generous layer of icing on top. Heavenly. *-* It only sucks that I didn't have the time to keep coming back here, though my horrible Finnish would get me remembered by everyone. ;P I actually think, as blasphemous as it sounds, that Ekberg's variety and level of uh, temptation, in terms of the sweets, exceeded that of the Fazer cafe.

What's the overall opinion? I don't think I can wait for my NEXT trip (no, nothing's planned) to Helsinki so I can go back to Ekberg, but I loved what I tasted (and saw) the first time around. Wow. *-*

Rating: ****