Today Emmi and I had lunch at one of the tiny restaurants in the kauppahalli. It was called City Sergio's restaurant, and I have to say it was a massive mistake.
I've always thought those restaurants were so cute and that it would be lovely to go to one of them, and that the atmosphere would be really unique. This place was very cheap, and perhaps that goes some way to explain the quality of the food. Emmi ate a kebab which she said really wasn't good, and I ate a pizza which, frankly, was absolutely foul. For some reason they had used pickled peppers as a topping, so there was a strong taste of vinegar, and the cheese was also extremely greasy. The whole thing was freshly prepared there and then, but it still tasted really bad. It was not an experience I intend to repeat. I suppose if you don't try you never know, but in this case I wish I'd never bothered to find out.
I really wanted the food to be good. I wanted it to be a nice experience, because the idea of sitting in the market, watching people shopping, and eating something nice is so appealing, but sadly it was not to be. I was very disappointed. There are several other restaurants and cafes there, selling various types of food, and I certainly hope that those places are better than the one we went to. It was a real let-down. I guess it was pretty bad advertising for them that we left two half-finished plates on the table; anyone walking past would see them.
After that we looked at the chocolate shop, and some of the things they sold were amazing. They had chocolate in all sorts of shapes, and even with images printed onto them, such as Finnish flags and the cathedral of Turku. It was really interesting. My favourite things were tiny chocolates in the shape of Karelian pies! They were really cute. Emmi pointed out chocolates in the shape of nuts and bolts, dusted with cocoa powder to look like rust. Everything was so cleverly made, and very impressive.
Go shopping in the kauppahalli, but definitely do not go to that restaurant.
Thanks, I'll have to visit Kauppahalli again, I rarely do because I am working. Do you know if the City Sergio's is related to the Sergio's Italian restaurant by the riverside?
ReplyDeleteNo idea, but really, avoid this place
ReplyDelete