Santeri’s café

Kappelintie 22 Kaustinen

In the early 1900s, the café of Santeri Isokangas (1885–1967), “kaffila”, became a social and musical centre where locals came for coffee, people from more remote parts of the municipality waited for a lift, and where freight workers, office and shop staff came for lunch. There were also a few rooms for travellers. Music was the main attraction of the café, however, and the customers could always use the violins and the harmonium, sometimes also the piano. Several famous folk musicians from Kaustinen played at the café, including Johannes Järvelä, Friiti Ojala and Artturi Peltokangas. Musicians from other municipalities also stopped to play here on their tours. If a truly good musician happened to come by, Santeri invited local players to join, and the café would soon be full of listeners. In addition to offering meals and jam sessions, the café was a news agency, a place for socialising, a salon and a night bar.

Santeri ran a farm and the café, but he was also engaged in various businesses such as the timber trade as well as sawmill and mill activities. He used to introduce himself as Businessman Isokangas. The café was closed in the 1970s.