May Day Breather

Cooking in my kitchen is absolutely amazing and I enjoy it enormously. However, this mother has to take a breather and hang her apron for a day ;)

What a better day than May Day! According to tradition, people here in Finland take to the parks to

May Day 2013 _ Vantaankoski River

enjoy a picnic and some drinks (well...more than some ;) ). I have myself enjoyed a few May Day celebrations in the main park of the City of Helsinki in the past. However, the weather in Finland is very unpredictable in May. Some years we had a wonderful summer's day and some, like today, a cold autumn-like weather.

Taking to the parks may sound great and some people might actually enjoy doing that every single year. For us, a family of four, this tradition belongs more to our youth. Somehow, we slowly shifted our habit of picnic in a park by the sea to a more classy May Day meal in a villa or mansion. Having small kids to drag about played a big part towards this shift.

So, our tradition for May Day changed. It was more practical and intimate to enjoy a cozy meal with each other and take the time to really enjoy each others company. After a couple of years of trying out meals in various villas and mansions, we came across the Kuninkaan Lohet (King's Salmon) Old File Factory by the river Vantaankoski in Vantaa.

Kuninkaan Lohet _ Viilatehfas

This year was the third time we booked a traditional May Day meal at Kuninkaan Lohet. The place is just beautiful. The Old Factory is right next to the river and the view can be enjoyed through the large windows in the dinning hall. The dinning hall, which features an old fireplace (below), used to be a factory where they crafted files. Moreover, one can clearly see the history emerging from the walls as the hall is covered with red brick walls and ceilings supported by iron bars and wooden beams.


The booking can be done online by filling in a form, via phone or email. The menu is a set buffet of traditional
May Day treats with starters, main dishes, desserts and coffee. Included is also Finland's traditional May Day drink called 'sima'. 'Sima' is a drink that can be brewed at home and resembles a bubbly lemonade.

May Day 2014 _ Menu

In the menu one can find all sorts of salads, new potatoes, variety of cheeses, breads, lamb, salmon and wonderful "typical" children's buffet treats like sausages and fries. At the dessert buffet one can savor traditional May Day treats like doughnuts and fruit of the month cakes.



We have enjoyed our May Day meals every year here and we strongly recommend this place. You can visit their pages Kuninkaan Lohet (English version coming soon) to view their offers. Special occasion lunches are organised all year round and their spaces can also be used for other gatherings like personal celebrations, business meetings and even culinary courses.