The effect of temperature on food consumption, food conversion and somatic growth was investigated with juvenile burbot Lota lota(age 0 years). Juvenile burbot showed a significant dome shaped relationship between relative daily food consumption (C~R~) and temperature (T) with C~R~β=βββ0Β·00044 T^2^β+β0Β·01583 Tβββ0Β·06010; (nβ=β90, r^2^β=β0Β·61). Maximum C~R~ was at 17Β·9Β°βC (95% CL 17Β·2β18Β·6Β°βC). The temperature related instantaneous growth rate (G) also followed a dome shaped function with Gβ=βββ0Β·000063 T^2^β+β0Β·002010 Tβββ0Β·007462; (nβ=β95, r^2^β=β0Β·57), with maximum growth rate at 16Β·0Β°βC (95% CL 15Β·3β16Β·6Β°βC). A significant linear relationship was found between the water temperature and the conversion coefficient (C~C~) with C~C~β=βββ1Β·63 Tβ+β59Β·04; (nβ=β80, r^2^β=β0Β·74). The results indicate that juvenile burbot in large lakes benefit from higher water temperatures in the littoral zone, by increased food uptake and growth, especially during the warm summer months. Because profundal water temperatures do not reflect the optimal temperature for food consumption in large burbot, temperature is unlikely to be the main proximate factor for the obligate littoralβprofundal migration of juvenile burbot observed in many lake populations.