Gastronomy in Vyborg

Vyborg is known in Finnish history as an international culinary city. Sweden founded Vyborg Castle in 1293. Before that, there was a Karelian trading post in the area. Vyborg received city rights from Sweden in 1403. Russia conquered Vyborg from Sweden in 1721. In 1811, Vyborg was incorporated into the Grand Duchy of Finland. Vyborg remained part of Finland until 1944, when it was ceded to the Soviet Union. Today, the city is part of Russia, but its international status as a cradle of progressive gastronomy ended in 1939.

History

The ring-shaped bread known as rinkeli was introduced to Vyborg in the 14th century by the Grey Friars. After monastic life ceased following the Reformation, the townspeople acquired the friars’ knowledge of pretzel making. Over time, the delicacy became a prized treat among the upper classes and even among royalty. From Vyborg, pretzels were dispatched to the inauguration festivities of the Royal Academy of Turku in 1649 and later to the nobility of Saint Petersburg during the 18th century. Tsar Alexander III himself was said to have received six Vyborg pretzels each week, delivered by courier for his personal enjoyment.

The earliest recorded mention of guild halls in Vyborg dates to 1485, marking their significance as the foremost centers of urban life after the castle and town hall. These guild halls served not only as venues for negotiating commercial and civic matters but also as important gathering places for festive occasions. Illuminated by wax candles, participants would toast saints from pewter tankards in celebration. At the time, Vyborg hosted several small breweries that produced beer to satisfy the thirst of townspeople, while more refined beverages were imported from Central Europe, notably from Germany and the southern Baltic regions.

During the reign of King of Sweden Gustav Vasa, in the 1540s and 1550s, when Vyborg’s mercantile life was flourishing, guild halls, wine cellars, and beer taverns served as popular gathering places for merchants, sailors, and travelers arriving from abroad. Vyborg’s distinctly international character naturally extended to its tavern culture. By the 17th century, the city had gained a reputation for its lively and convivial atmosphere - reportedly more cheerful than that of Turku, as noted in a wedding poem written in 1709.

Among the city’s most frequented evening venues were the town cellars and those owned by Antoni Borchardt. Borchardt’s cellar, located on Boskapsgatan (later Piispankatu), was particularly renowned and is regarded as the earliest known establishment historically referred to as a “restaurant.” Cellars typically had both a “better” and a “poorer” side: in the better section, leading burghers enjoyed southern wines and French brandies, while on the poorer side, petty traders and common townsfolk gathered over locally brewed beers served in juniper-wood mugs.

A significant transformation of Vyborg’s cityscape occurred after 1735, when taverns multiplied rapidly—eventually numbering more than 175. Spirits were mainly imported from Saint Petersburg and Livonia, while local brewing remained confined to beer. In 1748, a decree allowed tavern keepers to distill spirits and brew beer, provided that the necessary grain was purchased from Vyborg’s merchants

The food culture of Vyborg between 1811 and 1944 was exceptionally diverse and international, evolving from Finnish-Karelian traditions into the gastronomy of a European metropolis. The city’s position as the western trade gateway of the Russian Empire and Finland’s second-largest city created an environment where Karelian home cooking, Russian social dining traditions, and Central European restaurant customs converged.

At the beginning of the autonomous period, Vyborg still resembled a rural fortress town, where food culture was dominated by basic Karelian ingredients: rye bread, sour milk, fish, turnip, cabbage, peas, and porridges. Meat consumption was limited, and preservation methods such as salting and drying were common. With Russian soldiers and merchants came borscht soups, sour cream, spiced meats, and strong spirits, which merged with Karelian traditions.

In the latter half of the 19th century, Vyborg prospered rapidly, and its restaurant culture began to resemble that of European metropolises. In the Torkkeli Park area, new social venues emerged, notably the restaurant Espilä (founded in 1890), which offered classical French cuisine with local nuances. The Vyborg Seurahuone Hotel, opened already in 1832 - a year earlier than its Helsinki counterpart - served international menus to travelers and merchants.

By the early 20th century, Vyborg had become a center of Finland’s restaurant life and an international meeting point. The railway connection with Saint Petersburg brought affluent Russian tourists, and with them came refined dinners, dance restaurants, and curated wine lists.

In the everyday meals of an ordinary Vyborg resident in the early 20th century, Finnish-Karelian traditions remained visible: potatoes, rye bread, meat soups, salted fish, and pork fat were staples, while on festive occasions Karelian stew, pies, roast lamb, and wheat bread were prepared. Sunday lamb and potato dishes and Karelian pasties were typical regional specialties. Beer and wine were commonly enjoyed, as the number of breweries and taverns in Vyborg was exceptionally high by Finnish standards.

Vyborg’s food culture served as a bridge between East and West. It combined Finnish raw ingredients with Russian flavors and German-French dining practices. The city’s elegant restaurants, lively market scenes, and cafés made Vyborg a gastronomically advanced center before its destruction in the Winter War of 1939.

References

1. Suuri karjalainen piirakkakirja (2021) – Pirkko Sallinen-Gimpl
2. Karjalainen keittokirja (2009) – Pirkko Sallinen-Gimpl
3. Karjalan ja Petsamon pitäjäruoat (1987) – Jaakko Kolmonen
4. Karjalan parhaat leivonnaiset (1993) – Jaakko Kolmonen
5. Pitokokin parhaat (2000) – Marja Krons & Aira Viitaniemi
6. Karjalainen ruokakirja (vuodelta 1962) – Irja Seppälä-Pora
7. Ruokamuistoja Karjalasta (2020)
8. Klassikoita Karjalasta - Keittokirja