Lalibela, Ethiopian Cuisine.

Lalibela Ethiopian Restaurant.

As we came to the intersection where Lalibela is located one can’t help but notice that the neighborhood is a little rough around the edges and I thought to myself that it would be a little scary walking around come nightfall.  Little Ethiopia is what I would have called it because Lalibela was amongst several Ethiopian restaurants and stores on the block.  From the looks of the outside it seems as though it was once a minimart. 

Opening the door brought the sound of reggae music floating through the air.  The walls are painted a muted merlot hue and it took a moment for my eyes to adjust and as I looked around there were various Ethiopian art pieces scattered about as well as reggae memorabilia, huge speakers in a section that looks as though they might have live music on occasion and party lights that suggested that this place was used for dance parties or celebrations.  The atmosphere was very relaxing and enjoyable.

Our waitress was kind enough to take the time to explain the dishes to us, and after much deliberation we placed our order, I think she thought it was a bit much because she came back a couple times to double check that, yes, we did want Everything and she had written the order correctly.

She brought to our table what looked to me to be Spanikopita on steroids.  It was the Sambusa, both Lentil and Beef.  Biting into the Lentil Sambusa was a burst of flavors and I regret ordering only 6 to share between the 6 of us because 4 bites was not enough and I plan to go back for more.  The next thing she brought out were 2 HUGE platters with various meats and vegetables and 2 baskets of injera.  The injera felt like a Swedish pancake infused with silicone.  I broke off a piece of injera and picked up some of the meat in the platter and OMG my mouth was on FIRE.  I don’t usually like Hot spicy food but it was hard to stop eating because everything was so wonderfully delicious. 

Without writing a novella, the best way that I would describe the food would be India meets Mexico.  Like, taco meat cooked with the pungent flavors of India infused with Hispanic Fire, flavors and herbs. 

It was a fantastic experience, one that I will repeat with family and friends.  And I believe new friendships were formed as well.  Also can I just say that it was fun just eating with my fingers instead of having to wielding a knife and fork.  Barbaric, I know…

So where is this place you ask? 

So this is actually a flex assignment for class and I just copied and pasted so the Font is a little weird but eh, who wants to rewrite everything?

That's my blip for my BFFs today.