Ethiopian eats... in Providence!

Since it's opening, Abyssinia has received rave reviews. Whilst I can't say I loved the food (nothing beats Indian cuisine when it comes to curries and spices IMHO!) I certainly enjoyed the various elements and eating (gasp) with our hands - bid farewell to utensils as you're encouraged to eat with your hands only here!

Injera - aka Ethiopian flatbread that has been yeast-risen and made from teff flour. Taste-wise, there's a slight tang akin to sourdough...

My choice: Meat Combination for one ($17.95)

I chose "lega-tips" and "key wot". The former being veal sauteed in olive oil with spices; the latter being beef cubes in spicy berbere sauce. This also came with a selection of vegetarian dishes and stews including cabbage and carrot in olive oil, collard greens, Ethiopian yellow split peas, red lentils in spicy berbere sauce, Ethiopian curry sauce, sauteed green beans, salad and a little cottage cheese... to answer any alarm bells, yes it truly looked random but I enjoyed almost all of the toppings and the fact that you could mix and match flavours as you deemed fit! 

Kitfo Leb Leb - beef tartar, very finely chopped and lightly cooked in qibe butter and seasoned with mitmita. Cottage cheese and vegetables on the side

 J ordered this. I was definitely more keen on my own platter.... the tartar tasted somewhat bizarre which we didn't care too much for. She ended up sharing some of our food because portions here are HUGE.

"Ye'Beg Tibs" - lamb cubes sauteed in olive oil, with onions, peppers, tomatoes, rosemary and qibe butter

another "meat combination platter" with ye'beg tibs and doro wot (i.e. bone-in chicken stewed in berbere sauce and a blend of Ethiopian spices and qibe butter; with hard-boiled egg and Ethiopian cottage cheese)

My first time having Ethiopian cuisine was definitely enjoyable and more importantly, fun eating with hands only! My recommendations here would be the doro wot (chicken), ye'beg wot (spicy lamb cubes) and the mesir wot (red lentils) for sure. 

Food: ♥♥♥

Service: ♥♥♥

Price: Around US$13-20 per person before service and tax.

Address:  Abyssinia

333 Wickenden Street 

Providence, RI 02903

T: 401 454-1412