Café Birgitta

A unique summer café in Helsinki

Cafe Birgitta is a unique summer cafe in Helsinki, Finland, built with the non-settling Honka Fusion log. Located on the open seashore, the cafe basks in direct sunlight and celebrates a large horizontal view over the Baltic Sea. The café sits like a protected nest in an urban area where it is easy to drop in.

Watch a video about how Cafe Birgitta was designed and built (in Finnish):

The concept of Café Birgitta takes advantage of the surrounding nature: you can spend time on large outdoor terraces or gaze upon the sea through large glass walls, protected from wind and rain. The building materials and interior decoration solutions, which include an open fireplace, also respect nature.

This unique log house has a solid pine log frame which also acts as the interior wall design. The building consists of three log-framed structures of various heights, laid out in almost a propeller-shape. Sliding glass elements, suspended from the ceilings, make it possible to close the central space and provide shelter from the wind. The fireplace stands in the middle. The outside of the building is made of 50x50 mm laminated wood elements with a scorched surface. The insides are of untreated solid wood.

Sliding glass elements provide shelter and allow patrons to marvel at the continuously changing view over the water: here you can enjoy spring, summer and autumn by the sea. In the winter time Café Birgitta is closed.

You have a wonderful view over the sea through the windows. The natural, wooden structure complements the scenery beautifully.

Cafe owner Tommi Leppälä

The cafe was designed by architects Minna Lukander and Jari Heikkinen from Talli architecture and design. It won The Log House of the Year 2014 competition, organised by The Finnish Log House Association HTT.

The building's architectural design takes advantage of both traditional and new, innovative solutions.

Professor Pekka Heikkinen, Aalto University
A member of the Jury in the Log House of the Year 2014 competition

Facts:

• Project type: café
• Architect: Minna Lukander, Jari Heikkinen / Talli architecture and design
• Area 158.0 sqm
• Construction Year 2014
• Wall structure: Honka Fusion non-settling log, covered with laminated wood elements with scorched surface
• Location: Helsinki, Finland
• Honka ID: 16110