Zucchini

Really great vegetarian place to eat in Helsinki. Just a few streets over from the outdoor seaside open market. This eatery prepares a few selections daily, so the menu is always changing (the way it should be), and left up to the whims of the owners and cooks.
Walk in, get in line, pay attention to the ordering process. The staff does speak English but most guests appear to be locals on their lunch breaks. We sat at a table that had a few open seats which gave us the opportunity to chat with the locals a little bit.
We opted for the soup and salad, and the portions were very generous. The soup was a summer soup with lots of cauliflower and dill — Delicious! It is important to note that all the foods we ate were whole foods (not processed), with lots of flavor. A little bit goes a long way to quenching your hunger. Being someone who usually has no problem clearing a plate it was a struggle to make my way to the bottom of the soup bowl despite how delicious it was. You won’t be hungry for a long while after eating either.
The eatery is on the small side, so if you see a line outside you may not be able to find a place to sit. Don’t let that stop you from trying this place — It seemed like they were set up for take-​out, and there are plenty of parks nearby to have a picnic.
We really enjoyed our meal here from a number of different perspectives. Staff was warm and friendly despite a modest language barrier and us not knowing the ordering format. The locals that we shared our table with had been equally warm and friendly. The food speaks for itself. Five stars on all accounts.
It is places like this that serve to remind us what our own hometown is lacking. There is a good chance I would eat here every day if I could.

My family was in town for a few days, and ¾ of them are vegetarians. Zucchini was recommended as the #2 best vegetarian restaurant in Helsinki by a news article, so we all went there to check it out. It is a communal place – sharing of tables is common. We saw several people (it was lunch time on a weekday) eating together out of necessity.
The food is very good and the portions huge. I got the soup (nettle and cream) and salad (sprouts, veggies, radicchio) for 9 Euros. My family got the combo plate, which is whatever the daily menu happens to be. That day it was mashed squash, spinach, salad and a pasta. They also got dessert. The wait staff were very kind to us, as we had two small children also making a grand mess of the table.
The location of the restaurant is easy to find, just a couple blocks off the main esplanade in downtown. This is a solid choice.

I was in Helsinki with a big group of students and discovered this place on our way back to the cruise at the harbor. It’s a shame that such a great place is hidden at a side street — but most of the good places are always hidden. We had a vegetarian paella for 10Euros and it was the best I ever had. Very very good.

I live in Los Angeles, with veggie/​vegan joints all up in my area. Going to Finland for a week, I obviously had dietary concerns. Zucchini to the rescue!
We ate here 3 times during our week-​long visit. Zucchini is one of those places where it doesn’t matter what’s on the menu. You know you’ll get well thought-​out, expertly prepared food. All 3 items tend to complement each other, and the sauce ties everything together. The bread is fresh and tasty.
The staff speaks great English and are friendly and chatty. On our third visit, the guy said, «Tomorrow bon voyage?» Very kind of him to remember us.
Our friends who’ve lived in Helsinki for 8 months say they’ve yet to see a repeated meal. If I lived there, I would love to test that theory. If you don’t require a giant slab of meat on your plate, I urge you to visit Zucchini.

Great lunch place. The dishes are yummy and big. Their bread is excellent too. Service is always friendly! And relatively cheap considering prices in Helsinki.

I love Helsinki for many reasons, the vegetarian food for offer is not one of those reasons. In fact the city sorely lacks when it comes to vegetarian restaurants. But I’m so glad the one we did get to try was such a great one! Unpretentious, with a 1970−80ies vibe to it, jampacked with guests and very friendly staff (extra plus for the guy/​s who speak Swedish). A soup or a main dish or both, bread with spread and water is included in the lunch.
A big plate of healthy and very very tasty vegetarian food, you will certainly not be hungry when you leave the place. With those generous portions I’m surprised noone seemed to have a problem wiping the plate clean. And no neither had we. The food simply left you satisfied and full, but not with that nasty bloated feeling some food tend to get you.
A pity they’re only open for lunch (until 4pm I think), it would be great to be able to have dinner there too. Whenever you’re in Helsinki and crave fresh, generous dishes of vegetarian food (or nice cakes, I spied that too in the display) Zucchini certainly is well worth a visit.

We went here because it’s vegetarian and we knew that meant we could eat anything there. I worried when I didn’t see any English, but all you do is walk in and the nice guys at the counter make you a big plate of food. We just took everything, which they said was a lentil loaf and some other salads, potatoes and beans. So glad we went in, everything was delicious. A big healthy vegetarian meal.