Great food and drink experience: Lalibela Ethiopian restaurant

Lalibela Restaurant Ethiopian Cuisine

 We have always liked the fragrant and full-bodied Ethiopian coffee. We even tried Ethiopian cuisine over a decade ago. And as we always want to expose the girls to different cuisines, we went to Lalibela in Danforth to let them try Ethiopian cuisine.

We arrived to an incense smoke-scented spot with African art strewn on the walls. It was cozy and service was friendly. But, if you did not know what you wanted, you might be hard-pressed to get a recommendation. We just got the platter specials so that we can try their specialties. Turns out that the Vegetarian platter and the Lalibela Special was quite similar.

Lalibela Special @Lalibela Restaurant Ethiopian Cuisine

The Vegetarian platter and Lalibela Special both had beet, cabbage, lentils, chickpeas, collard greens and split peas. The only difference was that the Special had meat stews of chicken, lamb and ground beef. These were served on top of a big platter of injera (sourdough Ethiopian flatbread, similar to a crepe).

Vegetarian Platter @Lalibela Restaurant Ethiopian Cuisine

We also added an order of Beef Tibs (which are beef cubes sautéed in onion and tomato), also served on a platter of injera.

Beef Tibs @Lalibela Restaurant Ethiopian Cuisine

We ate with our hands, using the injera to pick up the bites of meat and veggies. They were all very tasty! DD#2, who is not very fond of spicy food, actually enjoyed the meal! She loved the Tibs--and so did we! They do have a kids menu just in case… The meat were all cooked well and quite delicious. Despite both orders mostly having the veggies, we ended up quite full.

Ethiopian coffee in jebena @Lalibela Restaurant Ethiopian Cuisine

Of course, as is tradition (or so I heard), after a big meal, there is the Coffee Ceremony. So we ordered this as well. The server started by showing us the beans she was roasting—allowing us to smell the aroma of the beans on the pan. After a short while, we got a small jar of coffee (jebena, clay coffee pot used to brew coffee) along with small cups called si’ni in a tray with incense and a sugar bowl. They also provided some popcorn for snacks.

Popcorn snack with Coffee Ceremony @Lalibela Restaurant Ethiopian Cuisine

The ceremony was nice but the coffee was absolutely amazing. I had 3 of the small cups while Grandma had 5! Even the girls couldn’t resist the beautiful aroma and took a few sips of the beautiful coffee.

Coffee Ceremony @Lalibela Restaurant Ethiopian Cuisine

It was a nice experience and the food was good. It was a bit pricey for a mostly veggie offering, IMHO. Still, if we are ever in the area again, I will not hesitate to come back. Even if it is just to have coffee!