Turn Table: An Urban Farm And Restaurant In The Middle Of The City

Helsinki World Design Capital 2012 wouldn’t be complete without an urban farm.

Urban agriculture is hotter than hot these days, and although the majority of urban farming projects aren’t gonna solve any food-related problems, the idea of re-using vacant urban spaces for traditional country-side activities is appealing. During our Helsinki visit, two weeks ago, we visited ‘Turn Table — The Urban Garden’, a newly opened city farm and restaurant located in the old Pasila railway area.

The idea behind the Turn Table is to produce vegetables at this place, prepare them on the spot and serve them in a temporary restaurant. The pop-up restaurant, made from transparent plastic and wood, is constructed on a so-called railway turntable, a rotating platform for turning railroad rolling stock. This makes the urban farm extra interesting. The Pasila railway area is located just a bit outside downtown Helsinki and has a great industrial vibe.

At the Turn Table restaurant, which is run by environmental organization Dodo, a whole variety of garden and cultivation-related activities and learning experiences are organized throughout the Summer, enabling Helsinkians to learn about organic, urban farming and the inspiration to take the seed of growth to their own neighborhood.

Helsinki is 2012’s World Design Capital. Visit Finland invited us to come over to explore the city’s design treasures. The ‘Design in Helsinki’ series highlights the best projects, concepts and designs we came across during our visit.