Cafe Abyssinia: Ethiopian food has arrived in Auckland

I know my wish was granted when I found out 2 weeks ago that an Ethiopian eatery has opened up in Auckland. This is what I have been yearning for years. If you have not sampled any Ethiopian/ Erithrean food you just have to! Why? Do you need a reason for delicious food? 

Ethiopian and Erithrean food are the same. The food, people and culture are the same. The only difference is politics. That's what I have been told both times by an Erithrean and the owner of Cafe Abyssinia. 

We went on a rainy Saturday afternoon and had a bit of difficulty finding the cafe but we found it anyway. No drama. We were warmly greeted by one of the staff and he recommended us to try a Lunch Special. We ordered 2 sets and there were so much food! Not complaining. The portion were generous already and we were offered more sauces and injera bread if we can stomach it. Our orders were served in a large platter and in true Ethiopian tradition, the food is to be shared with your eating partners. Depends on who your eating partners are, I would have a problem to share with another person as greedy as me. But there were more than enough food that I can eat so I am fine. This time.

All the meat were cooked with lots of flavour and I liked the chicken doro wat the most. I was expecting some lentils and veges but there wasn't any. Next time I would order a vegetarian set with the special lunch set because  there were  too much meat. 

Look at how porous the injeras are!! Heavenly!

We can't finish our food and asked for it to be packed and saved ourselves another generous dinner portion. The price range here is between $15 to $17. We vowed to come back for dinner with some friends in the next week or two. What do you do when you find a gem like this? Spread the word and share the joy of being so fortunate to live in a city with such food diversity.

One of the staff/ owner told us that they welcome group bookings and the largest group booking  that they have catered for so far is 18. So bring your friends, family and colleagues here with you the next time. Do give them a ring because the food here are made to order and can take a while if you come in a big group. We waited for about 20 minutes for our food but we were happy to wait for good food. Good things takes time.

The food here are prepared with care and not merely for profits only which is another reason why I love eating out in small family owned eateries. Don't expect to be waited on hand and foot from them. These guys probably never ran a restaurant before and all they want is to share the food from their beloved homeland with the rest of us. Drop in on the weekend with an open mind and let your taste buds roam.

Cafe Abyssinia
 Shop 6,
190 Stoddard Rd, Mt Roskill
Ph: 09-6205599
Hours: 10 am to 10 pm

Tweet

Follow @herworldly