The best thing about Flow is the huge selection of food, says Restaurant Andrea’s Head Chef Veera Valtonen. It’s a great environment for chefs to come up with new ideas such as pop up shops, and to create exciting dishes that they wouldn't get a chance to work on in their restaurants.

Flow - a festival unlike any other

These days, the ever-expanding Flow takes place in a defunct power plant close to the Helsinki city center.

—Flow has become a real concept. The environment in the middle of Helsinki is different from a lot of other festivals, says Andrea’s Restaurant Manager Taneli Kesäläinen.

The re-imagined industrial setting fits in with one of Flow’s core tenets: sustainability.

The festival promises a zero-carbon footprint, 100% recycling and sustainable meals.

—The crowd is very aware and appreciates quality in all its forms, therefore the bar is set quite high, says Head of Food Experiences Filip Forsberg.

The environment in the middle of Helsinki is different from a lot of other festivals

Festival meals have come a long way, and people now expect more than grilled sausage.

Diverse music meets diverse food

Gone are the days of bad festival food. At Flow, the culinary experience is just as important as the music. These days, the restaurants are announced the same way they announce the lineup, so it’s really a part of the experience.

As a chef, Veera Valtonen is excited about this year's new restaurants:

—If you like international dishes, then you’ll love the Jerusalem artichokes at Maannos and the Japanese-inspired cuisine at Gohan. If fried chicken is more your thing, you should give Kuurna restaurant’s new pop up concept a visit. Andrea’s menu, including our iconic octopus dish, is of course absolutely worth a try (check the menu here!).

—Festival meals have come a long way, and people now expect more than grilled sausage. I think Flow has been a major agent in that change, says sous chef Lasse Auranne.

Flow’s gastronomic diversity isn’t limited to food. Restaurants and pubs offer a wide variety of drinks for thirsty music lovers.

—I would go for a fresh crisp white or rosé, perhaps even sparkling. It’s summer, so I’d steer away from full-bodied reds and drink something light, says Sommelier Maria Kuzina.

Veera Valtonen is excited about this year's new restaurants at Flow Festival.

A food lineup to match the music lineup

Festival-goers look forward to sampling dishes from around the world, many of which are vegan. In fact, each restaurant at Flow will offer a Sustainable Meal option, which follows the festival’s guidelines for healthy, ecological eating.

With so many new and exciting dishes to experience in this year’s event, Flow is the perfect place to try something new and to fall in love with the best food Helsinki has to offer.

Are you ready to find your next favourite dish? Check out restaurant Andrea’s unmissable menu here.