EXHIBITION-INSPIRED TREATS AT CAFÉ VICTOR

Sep 18

2 min read

When art becomes flavor

Café Victor shares its granite palace with Turku Art Museum, and that shows in what's on the menu too. Whenever a new exhibition opens upstairs, our café team starts thinking about what it could become in edible form. That's how all the popular themed pastries that Café Victor has served over the years came to be!

Each themed pastry has only ever been on our menu for the run of its exhibition.

Millefleurs — a themed dessert inspired by Eggert Pétursson's exhibition

Designed for the summer exhibition, the Millefleurs dessert was inspired by Eggert Pétursson's Icelandic exhibition. It combines Iceland's nature with the exhibition's beautiful colors and floral theme. The dessert includes rhubarb, skyr-vanilla mousse, cookie crumble, pistachio, and a touch of elderflower syrup.

Millefleurs dessert in a glass, rhubarb and pistachio, Café Victor

Stillhet — a themed pastry inspired by Gunnel Wåhlstrand's exhibition

When Gunnel Wåhlstrand's exhibition opened, the café created a gluten-free pastry named after it: Stillhet. Its color moves from dark to light, just as the exhibition's own palette does. The filling is made from genuine licorice root, and the treat is finished with an "ink splash" on top.

Stillhet macaron, dark-to-light color, licorice filling, Café Victor Turku

Omenamunkki (apple doughnut) — a themed pastry inspired by Nelli Palomäki's exhibition

This autumn's apple doughnut, omenamunkki, was inspired by Nelli Palomäki's exhibition, which features images of monks from Valamo Monastery — a wordplay on "munkki," which in Finnish means both "monk" and "doughnut." It was designed to be enjoyed with vanilla sauce.

Apple pastry with vanilla sauce, Café Victor Turku

Three-landscape cake — a themed pastry inspired by "Three Views of a Landscape"

On the opening day of the Three Views of a Landscape exhibition, the café baked its first three-landscape cake (not counting the team's own development and taste-testing versions). The cake has three layers, each representing a different moment: dawn, moonlight, and a rising storm.

Three-layer landscape cake, dawn-moonlight-storm theme, Café Victor Turku

"What color" scone — a themed pastry inspired by the collection exhibition

Inspired by the museum's new collection exhibition, What Color, the café created a matching product of its own: a generous scone with the season's colorful jams and cream.

"What color" scone with jam and cream, Café Victor Turku

Paradise pastry — a themed pastry inspired by Emma Helle's exhibition

Emma Helle's Alternative Paradise exhibition inspired the Paradise pastry: a sticky lemon base topped with fresh lemon curd white chocolate mousse and tropical fruit.

Paradise pastry, lemon base and white chocolate mousse, Café Victor Turku

Why themed pastries?

Themed pastries are our way of staying connected to what's happening upstairs. They're not permanent menu items — they appear and disappear each time the exhibition changes.

If you'd like to know the current or upcoming exhibition's themed treat, stop by the café, or follow us on Instagram @cafe.victor_turku to see new treats as soon as they launch.