Turku, Tintå

When I moved to Turku, the streets following the river Aura were much darker. Not just because of lack of light, but because lack of life - or life worth of following. Long left for space of drunkers and drug users, riverbank has gone through major changes, all positive so far. First there was light; lights for the streets and for the river. After the light came life. And with new restaurants the river came once again the centre of happening in Turku. In other hand, the market square, as previous centre (and still in some sense the centre), has declined in its glory. Maybe some day it will experience same kind of face-lift as the riverside. Or maybe it will become more predominantly working-class scene in contrast to upper middle-class restaurant scene by the beautiful (although brown) river.

One of the newcomers, wine bar & restaurant Tintå has been very popular since it was opened. Belonging to same restaurant group as Blanko just 20 meters apart, it also shares its fame - although Tintå has made its own name after the opening. Seats outside offer wonderful view of the river, Aura-bridge, and the shadow of the big 180-year-old trees. Interior is well planned, using plenty of wood, and reminds me of spanish bodegas. Wine list isn't the best in Turku (that belongs to wine bar Viinille, with slightly lower prices also), but stands out very well, offering good wines. Lack of air proper air conditioning can though make some wines too warm, like we experienced once. Also the use of wine refidgerators doesn't always work properly; once we had red wine that was way too cold, and we had to wait for half an hour to it taste better. But in most cases, you'll find good wines to drink.

I do have one thing to complaint of the place though. Wrong temperatures occasionally, or lack of seating available in busy evenings doesn't make me reject the place. But in summer, the seasonal help isn't always the most helpful. Tintå's own staff is professional and they know how to treat a customer. But in the summer, the help isn't at all that attentive, which has made me leave the place twice without getting any service. You don't necessary get any table service to tables outside, if the normal staff isn't there to serve. I guess the seasonal help thinks everyone makes their orders inside.

Tintå 2010, opening summer.

 River and bridge Aura - and some white wine.

 Summer and white wine - and some work, of course. You understand much more about religion after one glass of wine... or sumtin.

 Ciabatta with mozzarella, together with white wine - only if I would remember the wine, it was French and fabulous.

 Red wine for ugly autumn day - and work.

 Inside Tintå: you can see wine list from the mirror and through doorway, and some wine racks above one's head.

Again one bottle of red wine, and I have no clue what it was. But I do remember that it was too warm and we had to cool it down in a cooler. Cheese plate was quite a disappointment. Enough to get you hoping for more wine to suppress the frustration I guess.

Food is decent in Tintå, but you don't want to come here just for food anyway. Slightly pricey food, like small pizzettas taste ok, but makes one think if you really want to pay that much for piece of baked wheat. So, to be short, if you don't bother about spending bit more money and just want to enjoy the place with its many good qualities, Tintå isn't the worst place to have fun. Interior is pleasant and sometimes the company may be near perfect.