Gaijin

Someone from this business manages this listing.

#63 of 1,697 Restaurants in Helsinki€€€€, Japanese, Asian, Vegetarian friendly

+358 10 3229386+ Add website

Write a Review

Hours

Sun

17:00 - 0:00

Mon

17:00 - 0:00

Tue

17:00 - 0:00

Wed

17:00 - 0:00

Thu

17:00 - 0:00

Fri

17:00 - 0:00

Sat

17:00 - 0:00

Improve this listing

MICHELIN

What is Travellers’ Choice?

Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.

Ratings and reviews

4.0

802 reviews

#63 of 1,697 Restaurants in Helsinki

MICHELIN

View more on MICHELIN Guide

RATINGS

Food

Service

Value

Atmosphere

Details

Someone from this business manages this listing.

Learn More

CUISINES

Japanese, Asian

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options, Gluten free options

Meals

Dinner, After-hours

features

Location and contact

Bulevardi 6, Helsinki 00120 Finland

Kampinmalmi

+358 10 3229386

Improve this listing

MICHELIN Guide's Point of View

Gaijin comes with dark, contemporary décor, a buzzing atmosphere, attentive service and an emphasis on sharing. Its experienced owners offer boldly fla...

Read more on MICHELIN Guide

Can a gluten free person get a good meal at this restaurant?

Yes

Unsure

Details

Manage this business?

About

At Gaijin we’ll take you to a mystical journey full of elegant, unforgettable and exotic tastes. Majestically located in the corner of Bulevardi and Yrjönkatu, we want to enchant you with an extraordinary experience blending Japanese, Korean and Northern Chinese traditional cuisines, with our own contemporary techniques.Gaijin has been designed around the philosophy of social eating and our menu reflects the beloved concept of ‘sharing’. Jump on board with our proficient staff and let our chefs take you to a tasting voyage around North Asian countries. Our sommeliers and bartenders have masterminded an outstanding drink menu to enhance aromas, flavors and textures. Join us at our stylish dining, we want to share this story with you. Gaijin BBQ, inspired by Korean barbeque and Japanese yakiniku, is all about togetherness and great tastes by the smoke free Shinpo grills.

CUISINES

Japanese, Asian

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options, Gluten free options

Meals

Dinner, After-hours

FEATURES

Reservations, Seating, Wheelchair Accessible, Serves Alcohol, Full Bar, Free Wifi, Accepts Credit Cards, Table Service

Contribute

Write a review

Upload a photo

Ask a question

We perform checks on reviews.

Tripadvisor’s approach to reviews

Before posting, each Tripadvisor review goes through an automated tracking system, which collects information, answering the following questions: how, what, where and when. If the system detects something that potentially contradicts our community guidelines, the review is not published.

When the system detects a problem, a review may be automatically rejected, sent to the reviewer for validation, or manually reviewed by our team of content specialists, who work 24/7 to maintain the quality of the reviews on our site.

Our team checks each review posted on the site disputed by our community as not meeting our community guidelines.

Learn more about our review moderation.

4.0

802 reviews

Excellent

368

Very good

228

Average

111

Poor

Terrible

Destination727639

3 contributions

Gaijin used to be my favourite

Feb 2020 • none

Gaijin used to be my favourite restaurant in Helsinki. Lonely at the top! Used to be... I came for the incredible taste, always making up for the service which was never super. Despite many visits, I was never ever recognised as a returning customer, correct service but rarely ‘from the heart’. New staff almost every time. Over the years, taste went down and price went up. Charging for water, for rice (no, not for a refill but for the rice which was brought without asking for it). You’re down for almost 10€ already just by stepping through the door. With some pain in the heart, I‘ll be looking for a new favourite next time in Helsinki. Farewell Gaijin...

Written 10 February 2020

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Tebessa

Helsinki128 contributions

Business lunch

Jan 2020 • none

Had a really long business lunch here in Jan. I was looking for a quiet place that would allow us to discuss privately. Luckily Gaijin was quite empty at 1pm so we ended up enjoying a 2hrs tasting menu. Loved the full menu and will definitely come again.

Written 10 February 2020

PKT207

New Delhi424 contributions

Amazing Asian food in Helsinki

Jan 2020 • friends

A great restaurant centrally located serving amazing Asian food. They have a nice ambience, great food and drinks. We had and loved the: softshell crab buns, pork buns, artichoke dish, and the main course caramelised chiken. The food hit the right spot.

Written 17 January 2020

Xano

42 contributions

High expectations but mediocre experience

Oct 2021 • couples

Had a birthday dinner in this place , took 6 course tasting menu for 72 euros and sommelier wine menu for 52 euros, we were quite frustrated with the quality of food and the unreasonable price that we paid in total 300 euros for two. Each dish was so small and there were totally nothing special in there. There were a lot of green leaves and sauces and tiny pieces of meat. We got one small piece of chicken for two even if we took two tasting menus. Also the scallops were amazingly small. This place has a Michelin recommendation but it was too overrated. I wouldn’t recommend to visit it.

Written 10 October 2021

1 contribution

Dissapointment

Nov 2021 • couples

We had the vegan versions of the vegeterian menu. The first 5 dishes were totally cold, (I have never been served cold baobuns before) the rise was heavily overcooked (porridge almost) and much of the veggies were undercooked and hard to the bite. The components and tastes of the dishes made little sense. Did not taste bad, but certainly not worth the money. A waiter asked us if we liked the food, and my reply was ”well.. I guess it is ok” to which she replied nothing and just walked away. After that, no more questions were asked, except if we wanted coffee. All in all neither the food, the display or the service was worth the money or met our previous experiences and expectations. This restaurant has come to its’ last season!

Written 17 November 2021

Tanjushka

19 contributions

BIG dissapontment

Nov 2022 • none

Restaurant was full, tables were packed very close to each other, could not hear what my husband was saying to me half of the time. Food service was very slow, waited 35 min. for it to arrive. Quality of meat was awful for 40 euro price, we had 4 different dishes, only teriyaki chicken was ok, but again overpriced for size of portion and taste. Spoons and folks were placed by waiter directly to the table between dishes, there is no tablecloth or paper napkins available. All three of us had loose stomach next day and for 211 euros we felt like it was a terrible experience and we never would go back or recommend it to our friends.

Written 29 November 2022

Pirkka Junes

Espoo28 contributions

Quality was not good anymore

Dec 2022 • couples

I used to rank Gaijin one of the best restaurants in Helsinki several years, of course you have to like Asian food if you choose Gaijin. Last visit in Gaijin was a bit disappointment. Service was not at the level that you wait if you pay from a dinner over 100€ per person. Waitresses were more like robots who told facts of the food and drinks and that's it. I remember the days when you could talk a bit about food and wines with waitresses. I'm pretty sure that many waitresses were first night working that night. Restaurant was too crowded. We Finns like our own space 😎 Food. It was okay but raw materials were low cost materials (a lot chicken and pork) I remember days when you could eat veal etc. at Gaijin. Wines. Very low quality. I tasted four of them. Unfortunately can't recommend anymore.

Written 7 January 2023

Jan L

Helsinki32 contributions

Bad service, no longer worth the money…

Aug 2023 • friends

We had a table reservation after opera at 10 pm, they were constantly hurrying up with food because ”kitchen is closing”. So as an example I had two foods unfinnished and they brought more without even saying what we were eating so eventually ended up eating cold food. Regarding wines, we needed to remind them every time they brought food - perhaps they forgot that we ordered pairing. We mentioned about food service rythm to the waitress, she was unable to do anything and althought they offered discount they never have any - no tip and not going back although I used to organize firm events in the place…

Written 26 August 2023

Vanessa J

Turku9 contributions

What a waste of money!

Dec 2023 • family

Poor service, rude staff. Food was good, we had the tasing menu. Small portions, but nice plated and tasteful. Wine package was bad. Too little wine to each dish and server didn’t bother to tell us about the wines or that one glass of wine was for two dishes, so we ended up sitting with empty glasses and had to order extra (and pay extra). Staff was rude and areogant and didn’t change plates between dishes. Dishes did come in very fast in the beginning, asked them to slow down the pace and we were told that next group will arrive 2000 so we better hurry up. One ordered the ”light flight” wine package and paid the half, but ended up getting the same amount of wine as the others, paying normal. Two of those who paid for full wine package ended up getting very different amount of wine (see picture). Will not visit agian, what a waste of money.

Written 7 December 2023

Sanna O

1 contribution

Unworthy and confusing experience

Jun 2024 • couples

We went to the restaurant to celebrate my husband's birthday and ate an 8-course menu. First of all, when I reserved the table, I had announced on the phone that it was my husband's birthday and asked them if it’s possible to put a candle in the dessert. They promised that. I called the restaurant again during the evening, when we moved our table reservation to half an hour later, and I made sure again that the restaurant has information about this wish regarding the candle. It was said to be so. We made it clear right from the start that we would like to order pours of different sakes as a drink during the menu. Despite this, the drink list was taken away from the table and we had to ask to see it again several times to order more drinks. There was a long delay in bringing the list to the table. During the menu we asked for more rice for the scallops, this was never delivered despite the promise to us. The action was illogical anyway. Once I had a dirty plate taken away from the table and my husband was left with his plate. With the next course, new plates were brought to the table and soon there were a total of four cutlery on the table, in addition to the ones used before, two new ones. The table was wiped in the middle of the meal, even though there was no visible dirt on the table. This was very strange and interrupted the evening. In addition, drinks and food were served from any side without following any golden rules of serving. During dinner, I went on a trip to the toilet, during which I confirmed with one of the waiters face-to-face that they certainly knew about the wish for a candle. She said it was so. However, when the dessert arrived at the table, the waiter made sure whose birthday it was. This was very embarrassing and unfathomable that after three requests and verification, it was still unclear to them who had the birthday. During the evening we were served by a total of five different waiters. This felt confusing and we didn't feel like we were getting very personal customer service. I think it is unreasonable to pay almost 300€ for such an experience. The behavior of the waiters was confusing and unprofessional in every way. I gave feedback about it directly to the restaurant and they only offered snacks or dessert as a refund, which in my opinion was not worth anything compared to the dinner we experienced and paid for.

Written 27 June 2024

Paula V

Helsinki2 contributions

Appalling experience

Dec 2023 • couples

We went dining on a Friday night and got greeted at the door, although not actually greeted because we didn’t receive either a hello or a welcome, by a hostess, who didn’t have any smiles to give that day, and gave a miserable start to the dining. I have visited Gaijin before, but the last time was years ago. Back then I loved the food, but now I can’t say a positive word about it. The food was bland, there was no excitement or any attention to detail. The same small bowl of rice stayed on the table during multiple dishes, so after the first one all the other plates were ”enjoyed” with some cold rice, creepers! I could get better Asian food from the take away sushi section at my local supermarket, which isn’t what you want for an over 200€ dinner with your husband. The last savoury dish looked horrible but tasted even worse and mainly reminded me of cat food. Good all times have definitely passed when it comes to Gaijin, and rest assured, I won’t be going there again.

Written 29 December 2023

mbc3122018

Chicago15 contributions

A hidden surprise

Dec 2019 • friends

Gaijin on Lake and Morgan in Chicago is truly a hidden surprise. Japanese pancakes were exceptional and wants you to come back to try then all,however, the desserts are equally fantastic. I wasn't sure what to expect, now i can't wait to go back.

Written 5 January 2020

Maija H

2 contributions

Disappointing vegetarian menu

Aug 2021 • couples

We visited Gaijin with high expectations, sinne previous visits have been great. However, the vegetarian menu was just disappointing. The food was not bad, it was just very bland and the tastes quite boring. The vegetables were a little undercooked. All the main courses were served with rice, which was quite filling without adding taste. The dessert was not well balanced with a cake of weird consistence and vague taste and mandariini sorbet. First three courses were served with sake. I did not find that very pleasing. The wines were fine. The only dish with character was the starter with shitake mushrooms. That was delicious. All in all, the price-quality ratio was poor.

Written 4 August 2021

DWB1982

Woking216 contributions

Superb In Every Way

Feb 2023 • solo

Every single dish on the tasting menu was superb, both in terms of flavour and presentation. The serving team had the most impressive level of granular detail about every dish and the sommelier wine pairing was explained with equal expertise. I thought my whole dining experience was excellent, and I would not hesitate to go back here when I am next in Helsinki.

Written 9 February 2023

Someone

Oulu315 contributions

Simply amazing restaurant

Aug 2020 • none

We had a great dinner with friends. The food was really great and tasty. Especially Gaijin pork bun, baby back pork ribs, chicken 'katsu party' and red geisha dessert. The service was also good and the milieu pleasant.