Cafe Mockba

The brothers Kaurismäki, Aki and Mika, are Finland’s only filmmakers of international repute. But they have a nice sideline as bar, restaurant and cinema operators in their native Helsinki. They run a top-notch restaurant within the city’s Museum of Contemporary Art, own the Corona Bar and the Andorra cinema, the city’s major art-house venue, but our favourite Kaurismäki venture is the Café Mockba (Moscow Café), a ‘celebration’ of the city’s strong Soviet influence. Be warned, though, this is no tacky theme bar – the brothers insist on authenticity in all things, including the Soviet-style sandwiches the bar serves.