In English
Museum and Home of Lemin Särä
In the centre of Lemi’s village of around 3,000 people, surrounded by some of the most beautiful countryside in southeastern Finland, Lemi Local Heritage Society runs a small local history museum and outdoor area with historical buildings. The main museum building doubles as one of the country’s most popular single-option eating places that each year attracts thousands of gourmets from across Europe. The delicacy they come for is known as Lemin Särä.
At the heart of Lemin Särä is a slow-cooked leg of lamb, roasted in a wood-fired oven for up to nine hours. It sits on a wooden roasting dish, which gives the whole feast its name: this is a trough (“särä”) made of a birch tree log, which infuses the lamb with its distinctive sweet and slightly smoky flavour.
The second (and only other) ingredient of the dish are Lemi potatoes, which are renowned across the region. Neither the potatoes nor the lamb get any other seasoning than salt: the taste is all in the local produce and in the delicate simplicity of the centuries-old recipe, which has been voted as one of Finland’s Seven Wonders.
Fresh, locally baked bread and Finnish butter are served on the side. The unleavened bread is made of barley, again following the traditional recipe. The favoured drink for almost all guests is kotikalja, a fermented table drink which is made on the premises using barley malt, sugar and water. It’s the perfect complement. (Please note that we do not currently offer any wines.)
The Local Heritage Society’s museum building originally dates from 1882. A prime example of the region’s vernacular architecture, it was moved to its current site from Savitaipale some 20 km away in the early 1970s. Ever since, the building has provided an authentic setting where both locals and travellers come to sample the melt-in-the-mouth lamb. It’s known as the Home of Lemin Särä.
The slow roasting process involved in the making of Lemin Särä means that guests have to book in advance. The easiest way to do this is on our booking page where you will also see the number and times of sittings each day. You can also get in touch via e-mail at kattaus@museosara.fi or by phone on +358 40 5280003. Our hostess will be pleased to help you with your booking and with any special dietary requirements.
For the more intrepid traveller, the Local Heritage Society can also offer the ultimate experience of a relaxing evening in a traditional smoke sauna followed by Lemin Särä. Contact our hostess for details and prices and to make your booking.
Wikipedia: Finnish Smoke Sauna
We’re also on Facebook and Instagram where we post regularly on news and events at the local heritage museum and on local art and culture projects supported by Lemi Local Heritage Society.
Lemi Local Heritage Society – Lemin Kotiseutuyhdistys ry
Vainikkalantie 6
FI-54710 Lemi
leminkotiseutuyhdistys(at)museosara.fi
How to find us: