Last night, Shannon & Stephanie took her Mom, brother and myself out to eat at an Ethiopian restaurant called Mesob . It was fantastic. They serve the food on a plate made from a sponge-like bread (Injera) that is real light and airy. Also, you eat with your hands! There are no eating utensils offered. You use your hands and your bread plate to pick up the food.
I ordered the meat sampler with 5 meat dishes and 3 different vegetable sides (Mesob menu). The collard greens and the cabbage sides were outstanding! Here is what I had:
Beef dishes:
Tibs Wat
Minchet Abish Kay Wat
Minchet Abish Aletcha
Lamb:
Ye’Beg Aletcha
Chicken:
Doro Tibs
Veges:
Gomen – collard greens
Tikil Gomen – cabbage & potatoes
Misir Wat – spicy split lentils
We all split a couple of apps:
Ayib Bemitmita – homemade farmer’s cheese w/ Ethiopian chili powder
Kategna – rolled Injera (that Ethiopian bread) coated w/ Ethiopian chili and clarified butter. Quite spicy!
The meal went down easy with the Pinot Grigio we brought with us. After dinner, we all had a few cups of traditional Ethiopian coffee. They actually roast the beans to order. Fantastic. Looked like it would be thick and heavy, but it was actually light and very drinkable. This what Wikipedia says about the coffee ceremony and it is exactly how they performed and served it:
“The coffee ceremony is the traditional serving of coffee, usually after a big meal. It often involves the use of a jebena, a clay coffee pot in which the coffee is boiled. The preparer roasts the coffee beans right in front of guests, then walks around wafting the smoke throughout the room so participants may sample the scent of coffee. Then the preparer grinds the coffee beans in a traditional tool called a mokecha. The coffee is put in to the jebena, boiled with water, and then served with small cups called si’ni. Coffee is usually served with sugar but is also served with salt in many parts of Ethiopia. In some parts of the country, nit kibbeh is added instead of sugar or salt.”
I would love to have this restaurant in Birmingham….
