The story
Grön is a Nordic restaurant at Albertinkatu 36 in Helsinki, awarded one Michelin star in 2026 for high quality cooking. Executive chef and owner Toni Kostian runs a small dining room built around a single seasonal set menu.
What is growing at the moment decides what goes on the plate. The kitchen works with Finnish and Nordic produce and changes the menu through spring, summer, autumn and winter. Ingredients come from producers, the forest, the sea, wild foraging and the restaurant's own farm. The aim is to serve each one at its best.
Green asparagus arrives with egg yolk, Västerbotten cheese and caviar. Grilled peas are paired with aged pork, barley BBQ sauce and smoked cream. Norwegian scallop is finished with Grön's signature XO sauce, and zander comes with white asparagus, sorrel and a vinegar lees hollandaise. Pine soft ice with spruce shoot and blueberry sits among the desserts. A vegan menu is available by preorder, and the pairings include wine and a non-alcoholic option.
The dining room seats 16, so the kitchen is never far from the table. The White Guide, which placed Grön at Masters level in 2026, describes a dimly lit room filled with conversation in Finnish and English. Young cooks plate small dishes by hand at the open kitchen.
Recognition
Ambience
Details
History
On Friday nights, Grön’s tiny, dimly lit dining room is always packed, the space reverberating with a gentle hum of conversations in both Finnish and English. The first thing you’ll notice upon entering is the coterie of young cooks hunched over a sea of small dishes, adding final touches by hand or tweezing garnishes into place in Executive Chef Toni Kostian’s theatrical and lively open kitchen.
High quality cooking
Location
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