atomicparadise

Great atmosphere for a small place. Menu was small, but food was tasty and fresh. Definately worth a visit for something different in Helsinki.

I've been to Gandi many many times and have never been disappointed, the food is made fresh with their own ingredients, each dish is different, you can taste the ingredients, the meat is superb, the bread is fresh.

I had lunch there once and it definitely wasn't as good as the main menu, so I base my review not on the lunch, but the standard evening menu.

Gandi has a modest interior and kind yet modest service. The thing that makes this place unique among other restaurants in Helsinki offering a similarly priced menu is that Gandi's food is made using fresh ingredients, the food is always hot, you feel like the food is made just for you and the meat is well cooked also. The Naans are fantastic too, fresh just like you would get in India (I have been).

I would say that options like Korma and some coconut based sweeter and milder dishes were too sweet and a little sickly for me. Other vegetarian options are great, especially the lentil curries.

The atmosphere in the place could be better I think, just some music and more subtle lighting and a less sparse interior (it looks like an old Finnish restaurant which is not a bad thing, I just find it unusual for an Indian place). It's very clean and hygienic too. The older guy who works as a waiter there always smiles and comes over and asks if things are okay, pours a glass of water and I've seen him greet people into the restaurant and back out. I've been there when there is no-one and when it is busy and he always recognizes your presence, greets with a smile and warmly welcomes in a modest way.

Apparently the chef has worked in London. Whether he has or not what I recognise after having lived in London is that fresh ingredients are always used and they make their own sauces and cook things without pre-prepared food. In London the only way to make yourself as a restaurant stand out is use fresh ingredients and do your best with them. I hate it in Helsinki when I go to different places and get the same thing.

I've been to many curry restaurants in Helsinki and it's strange that in a lot of places they serve something very similar. This is true in all of the Nepalese places I have been to in Helsinki. The ingredients don't seem fresh and I don't believe they make the sauces themselves. In fact the food often comes out too quickly and tastes re-heated (and sometimes I have had meat undercooked in a couple of places. Never trust a place if the sauce is hot, but the meat is lukewarm). This is never the case in Gandi. Once I waited a long time for food, but it was heavenly and melt in the mouth when it came out.

If you want some fast food and don't really care what you get for seven euros, come here.

From old reviews this restaurant may once have been good and from the outside it looks nice, actually even inside it doesn't look so bad, but the food was fast food garbage.

I had a bolognese, my partner had chicken salad.

The chicken salad came with suola-kurkku not kurkku as it said on the menu. I told them that in the restaurant, but they didn't get it. The chicken was processed and didn't seem fresh, canned mushrooms (it's a salad not a pizza...), dry and cold pita bread. It also would have been covered in hamburger sauce if we didn't ask to have it separate.

The bolognese was supposed to come with a salad, but there was no salad. Just a bowl on an empty plate full of soggy spaghetti, ketchup tasting bolognese sauce containing something that could barely be passed for meat and some grated cheese mixed together in a bowl, plus a little more water in the bottom. It was an awfull mess in the bowl to be honest.

The food is the same stuff you get in most Nepalese places in Helsinki, nothing special. A couple of times it has been good, but never anything special. A couple of times the meat has been undercooked which is not acceptable. When the sauce is hot, but the meat is lukewarm there is something strange going on. True, it's better than some places, but judged on it's own merit it is quite standard and a little dull.

I've heard from some people that a lot of restaurants in Helsinki have pre-prepared food, the ingredients are not fresh and the sauces are not prepared onsite. I can believe this since I have been to so many Nepalese places and get exactly the same thing on the same dish. I don't want fast food. I don't want standardised food if I pay over 14€ for it. I'd rather go to restaurants where they make the food fresh and risk it being awful in the hope I'll get something really special.

The service in this place is dire. The last time we went we actually phoned and booked a table. It didn't seem the had made a table ready for us at all, they just cater to whoever walks in. It was the first time we reserved, since often we just walk in too. Anyway, we walked in and the restaurant was full. No one acknowledged our presence. We had to wait for someone to leave until we got a table. That night we also had undercooked food and complained. There was no apology. The chef kindly came out and presented a new hot plate of food, but the appetite was already gone by that time (I wish the food came out that hot the first time around). We were offered 3€ discount which didn't make me feel any better.

I urge people in Helsinki to be more critical about what you eat and the service you get in these mid-range establishments. If it's overpriced fast food you want, that's what you're getting.

One of the best restaurants I've been to in Helsinki. Lots of character and great atmosphere, really takes you away from the cold snowy streets!

To some extent the menu is pricey and the portions at first sight don't seem too big, but compared to some 'European' restaurants in Helsinki the price is fair and the portions considering the quality of food are ample. The meals also come with fresh bread. For extra entertainment there is also a bellydancer if you're lucky!

For value and quality I would say the Lamb Guvec is best on the menu. Other dishes are equally as delicious, but cost a little more.

I was suspicious that it wasn't busy in this place, although people seemed to come and go for takeaway. I had beef with Chinese mushrooms and my partner a Chop Suey. The Chop Suey wasn't bad, but I fell in love with the Chinese mushroom dish. Piping hot food, which is a good sign. Friendly service. I love the decor too. I've never been to China (and there is probably no where like it there either!), but still it's great inside.

It wasn't by far the best experience I've had at a Chinese restaurant, but I was pleased overall.

This place lives up to it's reputation. The busy vibe in the market and cramped atmosphere isn't for everyone, but people come here for the food and it doesn't disappoint. The soups are hearty, with lots of good bread, fresh ingredients, the menu changes often and it's great value for what you get.

If it's cold outside, come in here and experience one of Helsinki's warmest charms. Don't forget to look around the market too and buy some local produce, it's all great.

There is also a Soppakeittiö in the markethall in the centre by the harbour which is equally good.

They do a great Thai green curry and red curry also. The other dishes are good too, nothing mind-blowing though.

Sometimes the service here is a little dull, like they can't be bothered that you are there.