We chose Elizabeth May, but we’re sure the others were just as delicious

Abyssinia Café and Restaurant, Bloor at Grace St.

- Darcy Higgins

There’s little to be said about Abyssinia that isn’t positive. Right across from Christie Pits, the three of us (now four, if you’ll recall) met on a chilly April night at a table inside the front door of the place. After arriving and ordering spicy teas (Ethiopian tea is a black tea with some chai-like spices), we were taken upstairs by the extra-friendly owner and staff.
We were pleasantly surprised to see a small but lovely dining space with design and decorations that brought an extra touch of class to the usual style – a bit more upscale or modern feel. It was quiet with no one else around that night, though we were having a later dinner than usual.
A few more things stood out, including local art featured on its walls, and unique and encouraging for us, a blend of music of about every genre, escaping from the usual Ethiopian music which to the ferengi (foreigner) ears, sometimes sounds all about the same, we must admit. We mused that each song was selected individually (folk for Tessa, country blues for me, etc.)
Back downstairs is where the fast food is served. Again, atypical for a Toronto Ethiopian joint, Abyssinia dishes out fast food with a focus on pitas (any styles) with as much topping selection you could think of (the owner claimed 12 vegetarian possibilities, which sounded good to us... we’ll have to try another time). Unfortunately, no pitas wrapped in injera. We think a market is still open on this idea (Toronto fusion injera falafel anyone? Deep fried injera!?)
Opening the menus brought us images of Ethiopia with historical captions and an Amharic alphabet chart in the back. Rather than one big plate for our usual veggie combo, we received two plates for the four of us and with a nice variety.
We were offered a hot sauce wish we took and loved, an optional feta cheese on the salad, which was debatable, to be a little overpowering or maybe just right. Either way, the green salad was a nice change from the usual simple Italian dressing. All of the lentil and vegetable dishes were well liked, and if not the best we’ve had, we agreed they at least approached it.
What stood out in the visit though was the service. Staff was friendly, catering to our needs throughout the dinner and chatting with us to answer questions and banter a little. We always had enough injera and water before running out and were often asked with a friendly smile what else we might need.
A fun election challenge seen in The Sun brought us to this location in our only election season dinner. A dish was selected with each party leader, and our usual vegetarian combo was named for Elizabeth May (co-incidentally, a friend). Veggie May wasn’t getting the most orders however, as Stephen Harper’s meatier dish was taking the contest so far.
A final note gives us another reason to go back. The restaurant can be rented out for parties and apparently it often is. The owner told us they can “cater” to any type of event or group, and cakes and limos were promised as well for fitting occasions (we’ll take it). The restaurant also had a bar and DJ booth, which is said to be active Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights.
This place is different, in a good way. No hesitations in giving a strong recommendation.

P.S. Sorry for the crooked ratings, but we've never had 5 injeras before! and we have to go run to catch the real election results..


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Dahlak Restaurant

www.dahlakrestauranttoronto.com

- Christopher Tuckwood

For our first review of 2011, we returned to the West End and visited Dahlak Restaurant (840 Bloor Street West) just east of Ossington Avenue. Our dinner was on a cold night and the first thing that struck us upon arriving at Dahlak was just how welcoming its interior was. The space seemed open and yet cozy with the overall decor being dominated by warm earthtones and moderate lighting. The reddish-brown walls created an atmosphere reminiscent of East Africa despite the absence of the distinctly African decorations so often found in other Ethiopian restaurants. The furnishings were comfortable, particularly the spacious booth by the front window where we settled down, which was ideal for a group as it seemed to encourage conversation and socializing.

Our server was friendly and attentive, bringing out two platters of food (our ever-growing group had welcomed yet another guest this evening) for us not long after we ordered them. The only complaint - and it is a minor one - was a delay of a few minutes between the platters but this was likely due to the size of our order and was not enough of a problem to cause any annoyance. As an interesting aside, a friend of this blog recently explained from Hawarya that the reason Ethiopians eat from a common platter is that those who dine together are believed to be less likely to fight against each other. Fortunately, we were able to avoid any major conflict at our table and remain a united group of restaurant reviewers despite having our food divided in two.

As for the food itself, Dahlak provides an impressive offering. As usual, we ordered the vegetarian combo, which was attractively presented with a single generous helping of each dish distributed around the platter and separated by tightly rolled cylinders of injera. Most of the standard dishes were offered and warmed to just the right temperature at the time of serving. The only exception here was a cold injera-based dish made with a mild vinegary seasoning similar to the dressing on the lettuce salad which accompanies every Ethiopian meal. This was a welcome addition since Ethiopian platters generally tend to have have similar offerings at different restaurants so any increase in variety is highly welcome.

All of the standard dishes were delicious and the only possible complaint is that the kik alicha (yellow split-pea stew) was a bit blander than usual. Additional spice would definitely have been welcome. The tikil gomen (a stew of cabbage, potatoes, and carrots), which is always a favourite of mine no matter where I go, was particularly good, as was the misir wat (red lentil stew). One member of our group commented that the latter had significant kick to it but, while it was probably the spiciest dish on offering that day, it shouldn't be too much for most people.

Overall, Dahlak stands out from the crowd and is easily one of the best restaurants that we've visited so far. Its comfortable atmosphere and delicious food will be sure to please both new visitors and experienced aficionados of Ethiopian cuisine.

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Our latest Ethiopian outing included a new addition to the team, Tessa Jones. As part of her inaugural dinner (and paying her dues for joining our elite band of restaurant critics), Tessa wrote the following review.

The walia ibex is an endangered species of wild goat indigenous to the mountains of Ethiopia and the inspiration for the name of a particular Ethiopian eatery on Toronto's Danforth Avenue. Toronto's two main hubs for Ethiopian dining are found on opposite ends of the city – one near Bloor and Ossington, the other on the Danforth. This presents an opportunity for any foodie to develop bias towards restaurants based on location. I for one, while making the trip from the west end out to the Danforth, realized that Ibex was going to have to leave a lasting impression in order to convince me that this commute for food was worth my while. The decor and ambiance is basic and inoffensive, being reminiscent of a casual lounge (much like the west end's Nazareth). Certainly the pictures of Ethiopian historical figures and celebrities found on the walls helped to lend the venue authenticity.

We ordered the vegetarian platter for four. The highlight of the dish was a tomato-based misir wot which was fantastically spiced with berbere. I found the other elements of the plate to be lacklustre in comparison. Other than this specific wot, the other dishes seemed to be spiced very mildly and somewhat indistinguishable.

I've always wondered why Ethiopian food is served with Italian salad. My fellow food critics informed me that Italian food, especially pasta, is rather popular in Ethiopia. I don't imagine, however, that I am the first person to realize that Italian spices do not mix well with those of Ethiopia. I find the oregano flavour taints the palette making it difficult to experience the subtleties of the Ethiopian spices. In fact, hours after the meal I still tasted oregano.

Our dinner came to $14 per person with tax and tip. This is not a terrible price, but it did seem a bit on the high end. Overall, the service was excellent and the food was good, but at this price it isn’t worth leaving the west end.

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