First things first: uni food prices
So, one of the best things about student meals at Finnish universities is that they are incredibly inexpensive considering the general costs of living. As university meals are subsidised by Finland’s social insurance institution Kela, students pay only €2.70 per meal. (University staff and people not affiliated with the university may also eat at student restaurants but pay more for the same food.) Here, this meal comes with two drinks – a glass of water and a glass of juice, Kotikalja or milk – and one or two slices of bread with margarine, butter or another available spread.
A great variety to choose from
Each campus in Tampere has more than one student restaurant and different campus restaurants are run by different caterers, known for their distinctive variety of foods. Some of my friends, for example, prefer Juvenes over Fazer’s or Sodexo’s restaurants and vice versa. Due to the selection of restaurants, most special diets are catered to daily: there are, for one thing, always gluten-free and vegan dishes available, but one should check meal plans ahead. A website which provides an overview over all student-priced meals in a week on all campuses in Tampere is Unisafka.
The university cares about students’ food supply
For students who do not have the energy, creativity or simply the means to buy and cook their own food, Tampere University provides several meals throughout weekdays, starting with a simple breakfast in the morning hours (at Juvenes), a warm lunch in the middle of the day, and the possibility to take an extra meal home for the evening. It seems like take-away options have become popular since the start of the pandemic – and they certainly are a great way of making sure students don’t go hungry at the end of the day. What I appreciate especially are the salad bars and the availability of vegetable sides which allow students to make healthy food choices.
Special treats on campus
Maybe not quite as healthy but certainly very tasty, special meals are offered by some campus restaurants on Fridays: Campusravita on TAMK’s campus, for one thing, makes decently-sized pizza and on Hervanta’s campus, one can get chicken or cauliflower wings with French fries; both for €5 student price. In pre-pandemic times, all campuses used to also have bistros which would sell delicacies for people with particularly developed taste buds (Bistro Ioni on Hervanta’s campus recently reopened!). Moreover, cafés which offer nice study or meeting spaces in addition to coffee, tea and snacks can be found on all campuses. Their opening hours, however, have changed mutlitple times during the pandemic.
And if now, you’re keen on a visual impression of Tampere University’s student meals, check out this Instagram account which is run by TUNI students: @tampereunifood.
-Tatjana
