Restaurant in Helsinki, Finland
Michelin value, late nights, no-waste kitchen.
Nolla holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand (2024, 2025) and a Star Wine List #1 ranking at a €€ price point — making it the clearest value decision in Helsinki dining. The zero-waste kitchen sources locally and runs late on weekends (midnight Fridays and Saturdays), which is rare for a restaurant at this level. Book it for a late dinner when most of the city's serious kitchens have already closed.
A 4.6 Google rating across 794 reviews is the first number to notice. The second is the price tier: €€, which puts Nolla in a different bracket from most of Helsinki's serious restaurants. The combination of Michelin Bib Gourmand recognition (2024 and 2025), a Star Wine List #1 ranking (2025 and 2026), and a mid-range price point makes this one of the clearest value decisions in the city. If you are in Helsinki on a Thursday, Friday, or Saturday and want to eat well past standard dinner hours, Nolla is the answer. The kitchen runs until 11 pm Tuesday through Thursday and midnight on Fridays and Saturdays — hours that most of Helsinki's higher-end restaurants do not keep.
Nolla , Finnish for "zero" , is built around a genuine no-waste operating principle. The three founding chefs, Albert Franch Sunyer (Spain), Carlos Henriques (Portugal), and Luka Balać (Serbia), started from a shared frustration with how much professional kitchens discard and built a restaurant designed to eliminate that waste from the ground up. Ingredients come from local farmers, fishermen, and artisans. The menu leans toward minimalist presentations with a Spanish influence, and the vegetable cookery in particular draws consistent attention from critics. What the kitchen produces is described as having a strong flavour depth despite restrained plating , a combination that reflects how the sourcing decisions shape the cooking rather than the other way around.
The wine list is worth singling out. A hand-written booklet of mostly French and Italian selections earned Star Wine List's leading Helsinki ranking two consecutive years. That credential matters here: at a €€ price point, a wine list that earns that kind of recognition is not common. If you are exploring Finnish dining as a wine and food enthusiast, the combination of the wine programme and the sustainability sourcing gives Nolla more layers than most restaurants at this price level. For broader context on what else Helsinki's restaurant scene offers, see our full Helsinki restaurants guide.
Helsinki's serious restaurant scene largely shuts down early. Most tasting menu restaurants in the city are done by 10 pm. Nolla's Friday and Saturday service running to midnight makes it one of the few places where you can eat a considered, award-recognised meal late without settling for bar food. The Bib Gourmand recognition confirms the kitchen is operating at a level above casual late-night options. If you have already done drinks at a Helsinki bar , see our full Helsinki bars guide , and want a proper meal after 9 pm on a weekend, this is the most credible option in the central city. The address at Fredrikinkatu 22 puts it in the Punavuori district, which is well-positioned for an evening that starts elsewhere and ends here.
Tuesday through Thursday the kitchen closes at 11 pm, which still gives you a later window than most comparable restaurants. Monday and Sunday are closed, so plan accordingly. The current Friday and Saturday midnight closing means you are not rushed if you arrive after 9 pm, which removes one of the common stresses of late dining at restaurants that technically stay open but stop taking orders.
Reservations: Booking difficulty is rated Easy , you are unlikely to need weeks of advance planning, though weekend late slots may fill faster than midweek. Hours: Tuesday to Thursday 5–11 pm; Friday and Saturday 5 pm–midnight; closed Sunday and Monday. Address: Fredrikinkatu 22, 00120 Helsinki (Punavuori). Budget: €€ , mid-range for Helsinki, below the price tier of most Michelin-recognised restaurants in the city. Wine: Star Wine List #1 Helsinki 2025 and 2026; hand-written booklet, mostly French and Italian. Awards: Michelin Bib Gourmand 2024 and 2025; Opinionated About Dining Casual Europe ranked #479 (2024) and #863 (2025).
See the comparison section below for how Nolla sits against Palace, Grön, Olo, and other Helsinki options.
If you are exploring Finland more broadly, Kaskis in Turku and Kajo in Tampere are worth knowing about. In the Baltics, Somm in Vilnius applies a similarly serious approach to fusion and modern cuisine at a comparable price positioning. For accommodation and other Helsinki planning, our Helsinki hotels guide and experiences guide cover the rest.
The vegetable preparations are the most consistently praised element of the menu across critic coverage. The kitchen's sourcing from local farmers means the vegetable dishes reflect genuine seasonal availability , in the current season, that shapes what appears on the menu more than a fixed list would. The Spanish influence from co-founder Albert Franch Sunyer shows in some preparations. Beyond vegetables, the wine pairing is worth taking seriously given the Star Wine List #1 ranking. Specific dish names are not confirmed in our data, so ask the team what is performing leading that week.
At a €€ price tier with Michelin Bib Gourmand recognition two years running, yes , the tasting menu format at Nolla offers better value than most comparable experiences in Helsinki. The Bib Gourmand designation specifically recognises quality at a price below the full Michelin star tier. If tasting menus are your preferred format, you would pay considerably more for the same level of critical recognition at Olo or Grön. Specific menu structure and pricing are not confirmed in our data , check directly with the restaurant.
Yes, particularly if the occasion calls for something considered but not formal. The Bib Gourmand and Star Wine List credentials give it enough weight for a birthday or anniversary dinner, while the €€ pricing means you are not committing to a €€€€ spend. The late Friday and Saturday hours also make it viable for occasions where dinner is part of a longer evening rather than the whole event. If you need a more formal setting or a private room, Finnjävel Salonki or Palace are better fits.
At €€ with two consecutive Michelin Bib Gourmands and a Star Wine List #1 ranking, Nolla is one of the clearest value propositions in Helsinki dining. You are getting award-level cooking and a serious wine programme at a price point that most of the city's recognised restaurants do not come close to matching. The only scenario where it might not feel worth it is if you specifically want the full Michelin star experience , in that case, Grön or Olo operate at a higher tier, but at a correspondingly higher price.
Helsinki's Punavuori neighbourhood is comfortable for solo diners, and Nolla's easy booking difficulty means you are not fighting for a single seat weeks out. The wine list quality makes it a good solo option if you want to eat at the bar or a smaller table and focus on the food and wine programme without the coordination of a group booking. The late closing on weekends also suits solo travellers whose schedules are flexible. For solo hotel context, see our Helsinki hotels guide.
Bar seating availability is not confirmed in our data. Given the restaurant's easy booking difficulty and the hand-written wine list that suggests an informal, engaged service style, it is worth calling ahead to ask , but do not assume walk-in bar seats are guaranteed, particularly on Friday and Saturday evenings when the late hours draw more traffic. The wine programme makes bar seating a worthwhile option if available.
Dinner only , Nolla does not serve lunch. Service runs from 5 pm across all open days (Tuesday through Saturday). For dinner, the Friday and Saturday late service to midnight is the distinctive slot: it gives you flexibility that Helsinki's other award-recognised restaurants do not offer. If you want to compare options for daytime dining in Helsinki, our full Helsinki restaurants guide covers venues with lunch service.
For a broader picture of serious Finnish dining beyond the capital: VÅR in Porvoo, Musta Lammas in Kuopio, Pöllöwaari in Jyväskylä, and Lucy in the Sky in Espoo. Helsinki's wine scene is covered in our Helsinki wineries guide. For a reference point on what award-level fish cookery looks like at a different scale, Le Bernardin in New York City sits at the other end of the price and formality spectrum. Closer to home, The ROOM by Kozeen Shiwan offers a creative Helsinki alternative worth knowing about.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nolla | Fusion, Modern Cuisine | €€ | Star Wine List #1 (2026); Nolla has a clear and transparent sustainability policy, from sourcing to social considerations. The wine list is a cute hand-written booklet consisting mostly of French and Italian selections, with a...; Nolla is headed by three chefs: Albert Franch Sunyer from Spain, Carlos Herniques from Portugal and the Serbian cook Luka Balac. All three were bothered by the amount of waste produced in the restaurants. Together they wanted a restaurant where good food goes hand in hand with sustainability and no-waste! Nolla is Finnish for 'zero'. All the ingredients they use are sustainably grown and come from local farmers, fishermen and artisans. The menu features original minimalist dishes with a Spanish touch here and there and, above all, a great wealth of flavour, especially in the vegetable preparations.; Star Wine List #1 (2025); Opinionated About Dining Casual in Europe Ranked #863 (2025); Chef: Luka Balać document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function() { var el = document.getElementById("Achievements_chefs"); if (el && el.parentNode) { el.parentNode.removeChild(el); } });; Michelin Bib Gourmand (2025); Opinionated About Dining Casual in Europe Ranked #479 (2024); Michelin Bib Gourmand (2024); Star Wine List #1 (2021) | Easy | — |
| Palace | Finnish, Modern Cuisine | €€€€ | Michelin 2 Star | Unknown | — |
| Grön | New Nordic, Creative | €€€€ | Michelin 1 Star | Unknown | — |
| Olo | Scandinavian, Modern Cuisine | €€€€ | Michelin 1 Star | Unknown | — |
| Gaijin | Middle Eastern, Asian | €€€ | Unknown | — | |
| Savoy | Pizzeria, Contemporary European, Modern Cuisine | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
Side-by-side comparison to help you decide where to book.
The menu at Nolla is driven by whatever is seasonal and local, so specific dishes vary — the kitchen's zero-waste model means preparations shift with supply from local farmers and fishermen. Vegetable dishes are widely cited as a strength, with Spanish-influenced technique applied throughout. Go with the full menu rather than picking selectively; the format rewards letting the kitchen lead.
At €€ pricing with a Michelin Bib Gourmand (2024 and 2025), Nolla sits in a strong position: you get tasting-menu format and award-backed cooking without the €€€–€€€€ outlay of Palace or Olo. The Bib Gourmand is Michelin's explicit signal that a restaurant over-delivers for its price. If you want a structured evening of small courses rather than à la carte, this is the format to book.
Yes, with a caveat on setting expectations. Nolla is a Michelin-recognised restaurant with a serious kitchen, but the €€ price tier and casual positioning mean the atmosphere skews relaxed rather than ceremonial. If your occasion calls for white-tablecloth formality, Palace is the more appropriate Helsinki choice. If you want cooking quality and a distinctive concept without the stiffness, Nolla works well.
Two consecutive Michelin Bib Gourmands (2024, 2025) and a Star Wine List #1 ranking (2025 and 2026) at a €€ price point make a straightforward case: yes. Opinionated About Dining placed it at #479 in Europe for 2024 and #863 in 2025 in the casual category — a strong independent signal that the cooking holds up. Comparable tasting menus elsewhere in Helsinki cost significantly more.
Nolla's booking difficulty is rated Easy, which works in favour of solo diners who often struggle to secure tables at tighter restaurants. The kitchen's counter-friendly, course-driven format suits solo eating. Friday and Saturday late slots (open until midnight) give you flexibility without needing to plan weeks ahead.
The venue database does not confirm specific bar seating arrangements at Nolla. Given the address at Fredrikinkatu 22 and the relaxed casual positioning, it is worth calling ahead or checking availability when booking if bar seating is a priority. The booking difficulty is rated Easy, so securing a table directly should not be a barrier.
Dinner is the only option. Nolla operates Tuesday through Saturday from 5 pm, with no lunch service listed. Friday and Saturday run until midnight, making those the best nights if you want a late, unhurried evening — Helsinki's tasting menu restaurants typically close earlier, so Nolla's late kitchen is a practical advantage on weekends.
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