They have these lunch buffet places here that are phenomenally popular. They are only open for lunch, not dinner. They offer a buffet of salads, main dishes, and dessert, with a menu that changes each day. It costs a set price, usually around 10 Euros (though it could be more or less, depending on how fancy the place is).
Maybe non-Chinese lunch buffets have become a huge thing in the US while I've been away, but I don't think so. And so I have to wonder if lunch buffets are so popular here because Finns grow up eating hot lunch at school every day. They're used to getting up from their desks (first school, then uni, then work desks) around 11am (oh yeah, Finns eat lunch crazy early) and strolling up to an impressive spread of food that has been prepared for them. Maybe the habit formed in childhood has just continued into adulthood...for an entire country.
Jeremy and I have been to a couple (including this one - click for photos and a look at the menu) and they are quite delicious. The salads are more than just a pile of iceberg lettuce with the odd shredded carrot - I had one that was kale and quinoa, and another that featured some kind of bean I hadn't had before. Then there is the main dish, with usually a vegetarian and non-vegetarian option (just like at school!). Finally, there is dessert and coffee. Beverage choices include water and milk (again, just like at school).
Also, oddly, no matter the restaurant, Thursday is pancake day, and maybe also pea soup day? It seems that these lunch buffets always serve those items on Thursdays. I love pea soup but the way they make it in Finland is a little too intense for me. I still like it, but I can only handle so much. It's as if they add actual sweat from a Finnish mountain man, or brew it in the socks of a Finnish mountain man, or something - it's very earthy.
In conclusion, I am in favor of lunch buffets. There is something so cozy about tucking into a nice hot meal at midday, isn't there?
