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We’ve seen solar energy used to power a number of innovations featured on our virtual pages, including a UK-based micro-cinema on wheels. Now we’ve discovered the Lapin Kulta Solar Kitchen Restaurant, a pop-up venture which uses only the energy of the sun to cook food. Following its launch at Milan Design Week in April, the Lapin Kulta Solar Kitchen Restaurant — created in partnership with iconic Finnish beer brand Lapin Kulta — subsequently traveled through Europe on its way to Helsinki, where it was open for 10 days in August. The restaurant was open only on sunny days, and its offerings depended on how much sunshine was available at the time of cooking, ranging from full solar barbecues to lower-temperature meals and salads. Cooking with solar heat affects the taste and texture of the dish “in a surprising and positive way, producing a completely different taste experience,” according to the restaurant’s website. The video below demonstrates the restaurant in action at its Helsinki location: The Lapin Kulta Solar Kitchen may have been a pop-up event, but there’s nothing to say something similar couldn’t be a full-time venture — particularly in a sunny locale. Hospitality and clean-energy entrepreneurs: be inspired! Spotted by: David Licona