Lungi

A lot of the reviews and pics for this place are for lunch and dinner, so that might explain the rating difference since we didn’t dine. A few friends and I stopped in late for drinks. The place was mostly empty — it was the middle of the week, so no problem finding a table at least.
The one staff member was friendly, and even stopped by our table for last call.
But drink wise, the real problem was selection. Really limited choices for Helsinki nightlife. Sure, you can argue this is more of a café or bistro place but if you’re open at night and your kitchen is closed, then you’re effectively a bar and customers have expectations. Sorry to be harsh, but standing at the desk reminded me of a hotel room mini bar.
So it was a below average experience for me – I doubt I’ll be back.

Had a nice burger here. The aioli was great and the fries as well. Friendly staff in a delightful part of the city. On the downside, the beer was a bit pricey and the burger was not the largest I have ever seen.

I just love this place. It has a unique welcoming atmosphere and it’s just a great laid back place to be (lungi is slang for laid back, taking it easy). Whether you want a great meal or just a drink, Lungi is it. Their burgers are super good. Price vs quality of food and service is excellent. When you frequent the place, the crew will start to know you and the service only gets better!

As a San Francisco expat, I often miss the delicious food my hometown offers. Lungi reminds me of the stylish, laid-​back haunts of SOMA and the Mission district in San Francisco. It has a modern, eclectic dining room and a patio for the sunny days. Let’s be real: the service industry in Helsinki is pretty crappy. Not so at Lungi. The servers were sooooo wonderful! Friendly, smiley, helpful with the menu, and really all-​around pleasant.
The menu is big-​city American, reminiscent of local independent spots in SF and NY. The goat cheese salad and pulled pork «burger» were outstanding. The french fries were out of this world. Our Bailey’s-laced raspberry tiramisu left me wanting more. And more.
For Helsinki, the prices are dirt cheap (€ 14 each if I recall correctly) and the service is outstanding. Great prices on wines and a good selection. Lungi is my new favorite place in Helsinki. I can’t wait to go back and try the veggie burger.

Looks like I’m the odd ball out here by saying that I wasn’t impressed and yes, that «meh, I’ve experienced better».
I came here last night with a colleague who in turn had come here because this place had been recommended to him. From the outside (and even from the inside), this place really looks nice and it actually has the vibe that I like: casual, chilled-​out and a bit jumbled-​up.
But let’s face it, I came here for the food and according to my friend’s friend and some other Unilocalers, this place has supposed to have amazing food! Well, not yesterday: I ordered the «Parmesan French Fries» as a starter and while these can be amazing, they were a glimpse of what was yet to come: honestly, it looked and tasted like they were fried yesterday, sprinkled with parmesan and then heated up in the microwave just before we ordered them.
Next up was the «Fish of the day» with apple-​horseradish and fried barley. Sounds yummy again — true… but it actually wasn’t. (By the way, while it says «Today’s Fish» on the English menu, it says Salmon on the Finnish one.) So, the salmon was bland, the horseradish was as spicy and uninventive as Miracle Whip and the fried barely… well, it was fried, so it actually was tasty — but for the wrong reasons! Nevertheless, I finished it all, because «der Hunger treibt’s rein»! (A German saying, which means that if you’re hungry, you pretty much don’t care and eat anything.)
So overall, I thought this was a let-​down and I ain’t be coming back — definitely not for the food. As I said, the atmosphere is nice, but unfortunately that didn’t do the trick for me.

One of if not the best meals I had in Helsinki (some kind of fried fish I believe)
Loved the comfy couches.
Free wifi.