African Restaurants in the Phoenix East Valley Area

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Ethiopian Restaurants

Cafe Lalibela [Web Site] [Menu]
849 W University Dr, Tempe, AZ 85281
480-829-1939

Review by Darrin Chandler — July 7, 2005

As is often the case, this little gem is located in a strip mall and is completely unimpressive from outside. Coming in we were seated immediately and our drink orders taken after a minute of looking at the menu. I had a bottle of Harar, an Ethiopian beer, which was nicely hoppy, well balanced and refreshing. My wife ordered a glass of chardonnay, since the several Ethiopian wines come only by the bottle.

Perusing the menu for a short while I decided on the “Spicy Combination” comprising Doro Wat (chicken), Kye Sega Wat (beef) and Misir Wat (lentils), with a side order of Tikl Gomen (cabbage). My wife ordered Gomen (collard greens), Shiro Wat (peas), and Doro Wat. Injera, a very odd bread, comes with the meal.

Our food arrived within minutes, and we both tucked in. It took us a moment to get the hang of eating using the Injera rather than utensils, but it's not hard. All the items in my spciy combo were delicious. I really couldn't pick a favorite. The cabbage dish was cooked well, but just didn't have much flavor to it. Perhaps I missed some subtle flavoring due to the other spicy dishes, but I don't think so. I tried my wife's choices and they were excellent as well, even though they weren't spicy. The exception, once again, was the gomen, in this case collard greens. Same complaint of lack of flavor. It took my wife one bite to decide that she absolutely loved this place. When we were done the only thing left on the plates were the Gomen and Tikl Gomen. I think my wife would have eaten more of hers if she hadn't been so full.

A word about the Injera — I wouldn't sit down and eat this on it's own. It's a crepe-like sourdough with a spongy, rubbery texture and a slight yeasty taste. However, it's made for scooping up the main dishes and it serves that purpose well. Its flavor, which I don't like at all on it's own, blends well with the wonderfully seasoned entrees.

This is a place we'll visit many times, I'm sure.

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