2008 Woodie Awards
Addis Ababa Café
Food Review 1809 W 39th St.
Ashley Lindemann
Issue date: 1/17/06 Section: Culture
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Entering Addis Ababa Ethiopian Café on a sunny-yet nippy-day this week, I observed the restaurant's warm, orange walls and variety of African decorations lent to the "13 Months of Sunshine" aura they advertise on their menus.
Only a spattering of the wooden tables were filled with diners in the post-lunch rush time slot, but judging by the easy banter and laughter between them and the man taking orders and delivering food, most appeared to be regulars.
Recommended to me multiple times as a great restaurant for vegetarians, Addis Ababa didn't fail to impress as I perused the decently-proportioned menu offering a pleasant variety of both veggie and meat-lover appetizers, entrees, soups, salads and pasta.
No lunch portions existed on the menu, but their Web site (www.addisababacafe.com) advertises a special lunch offering involving an all-you-can-eat sample platter of either the veggie or the meat selections for a very reasonable price ($6.95) from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays.
My friend and I ordered one of each, plus a hot spiced tea ($1.75) infused with cinnamon and mildly flavored enough to not require sweetening.
The platters each offered five to seven different samplings, including gomen (collard greens), atiklett watt (cabbage, carrots, potatoes, garlic and ginger), fosolia beans (green beans, carrots, onions, garlic and ginger), and a few meat choices for the meat platter.
The most interesting (and dare I say, entertaining?) food item was the side of roll bread that serves as a utensil at Addis Ababa.
That's right: you won't find forks or spoons next to your napkin when you sit down. Following the traditions of all the best summertime foods, Ethiopian cuisine is a hands-on experience that takes a few minutes to get used to.
Tortilla-like in function and crepe-like in texture, the springy, grayish roll bread with a lemony aftertaste is meant to be torn into large chunks and then used to scoop up portions of your entree.
While I awkwardly fiddled with the bread without much success at the beginning - and, admittedly, became rather distracted eating it a la carte - within a short time I was a pro at gathering the warm, mildly spiced food into the bread and eating without making a mess of things.
Though each of the offerings differed enough in flavor and texture to give its own distinct impression, it would be hard to pick out a favorite. I'm not sure I adored any particular dish enough to crave an entire platter of that one item only.
The sample platter was a perfect introduction to the variety of entrees Addis Ababa has to offer, and the price is impossible to beat-just one plate was enough to stuff me for the rest of the afternoon-but for the heartier of appetite there is the promise of seconds.
Our accommodating server kept up with my incessant need for water refills (a truly impressive feat) and introduced himself as Mekedem or "Mark," the owner of both the Kansas City and the Lawrence Addis Ababa Cafés.
Mark explained the Kansas City location has been open for four years. And anyone interested in a field trip to Lawrence will find that location transformed into a Spanish-style tapas restaurant with nightly themes such as Salsa Night and Martini Night.
The hospitable Addis Ababa Café offers a short reprieve from the dullness of Kansas City's winter with a brief yet tasty sojourn into a little piece of Ethiopia.
Hours
Mon-Thurs 11 a.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Fri-Sat 11 a.m. - 10 p.m.
Sunday 11 a.m. - 9 p.m.
Dinner entrée prices range from $7.95-$12.95 for most dishes; full bar available.
alindemann@unews.com
