Ethiopian Restaurant in Bangkok: The Ultimate Mixed Plate
Ethiopian restaurant in Bangkok
Apart from Thai food, Ethiopian food has long been one of my favorite cuisines in the world.
I vividly remember my first bite of Ethiopian food, a home cooked meal that was prepared by some Ethiopian friends of mine while I was living in Nairobi, Kenya.
My eyes closed and I cherished that bite like it was gold… until swallowing and taking another bite… and another bite until I was so stuffed the only thing I could physically do was take a nap.
Ok, enough of my love for Ethiopian food and on to the new Ethiopian restaurant in Bangkok, and it’s simply Ethiopian Restaurant.
Ultimate combo at Ethiopian Restaurant in Bangkok
In 2009, I had read that there was an Ethiopian restaurant in Bangkok, in the Nana area on Sukhumvit Soi 3.
So years ago, I decided to explore the region and search for the restaurant. Three hours later, and after asking numerous business owners in the vicinity if they had any clue where it was, I came home with an empty stomach (ok, well not really, I just ate Thai food instead).
I was disappointed. The Ethiopian restaurant no longer existed.
I had to wait until returning back to Africa where I stuffed my face at The Smart Village in Nairobi about eight times in the course of two weeks to get my fill before coming back to Bangkok.
Doro Wot – famous Ethiopian stewed chicken and eggs
Having given up hope for any Ethiopian food in Bangkok, I wasn’t expecting to hear about a new one in the near future.
But fellow Ethiopian food connoisseur Kevin Revolinski, heard about a new spot, checked it out and we all decided to try it for first time.
The menu includes most of the Ethiopian food classics: kitfo, doro wot, tibs, shiro wot, alicha wot, and the glorious realm of different side dishes.
We chose, the mixed ultimate plate – a 700 THB platter of everything you see in the photos. Mixed vegetarian sides, a generous bowl of raw hamburger kitfo paired with paneer like cheese, and a centerpiece of famous doro wot, chicken stew simmered in berbere spices.
While the vegetarian dishes were a little on the mild side, both the kitfo and the doro wot were superb!
Kitfo – raw minced beef mixed with spices and Ethiopian butter
So go get some Ethiopian food in Bangkok now!
It’s located in an ex-club, so the entrance is kind of dark and night club like, but once you get inside it’s a normal looking Ethiopian restaurant with dim lights and a stage set-up for a live band – but not sure at all when that goes down.
The Bottom Line
With great Korean food, Japanese food and Lebanese food in Bangkok, it’s great to finally add Ethiopian food to the array of international restaurants.
Ethiopian Restaurant served delicious food, the injera was wonderful as well as the doro wot and the kitfo. The vegetables dishes could have been a bit stronger spiced.
Overall, excellent food and the staff were all very friendly and eager to have customers!
Ethiopian Restaurant in Bangkok
Address: Sukhumvit Soi 3, less than 100 meters down the road on the left hand side.
Hours: 11 am – 10 pm daily
Phone: 089 798 1307
Prices: The mixed ultimate platter costs 700 THB and that fed 3 of us. There is aslo, I think a 17% addition for tax and tips. You’ll likely spend 300 – 400 THB per person.
How To Get There:
Take the BTS Skytrain to either Nana or Phloen Chit station. Walk to Sukhumvit Soi 3 and walk down on your left side about 100 meters until you see the green, yellow and red sign that reads Ethiopian Restaurant.
When we went, the yellow shutter gate was closed, making it look like the restaurant was shut, but in reality it’s open. Go to the right of the shutter.
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Anwar Wahab
9 years ago
Hey Mark!
First of all, thanks for posting this. Is the food really enough to feed 3 people or even 2? The portions look quite small compared to other Ethiopian restaurants I’ve tried in the States.
Please let me know, I eat A LOT!
Anwar
Mark Wiens
9 years ago
Hey Anwar, I think it was about big enough for 2, but this was a few years ago, I’m not sure if they’ve changed, and I think the prices may have gone up. If I go again, I’ll try to update this post. Thanks!
Deedo
10 years ago
I’ve never had Ethiopian food, but am now drooling! I have to get some of this magical bread in my life :)
Mark Wiens
10 years ago
Hey Deedo, great to hear from you, hope you can try some Ethiopian food!
July Ronder
10 years ago
I have spent my honeymoon in Bangkok and was just researching as we plan to visit this part of world for our vacation this time! I love trying new customs in other countries and specially new food recipes. As a matter of fact, in Thailand I have tried some of the best deserts! We have also Ethiopian restaurant in Diani beach, but is very run down so I gues I will it give it a try on my vacation.
Mark Wiens
10 years ago
Hey July, good to hear from you, glad you like Bangkok. Hope you enjoy your vacation!
Ann
10 years ago
I’m visiting Thailand in December, I need to purchase some African ( mainly Nigerian ) foodstuff; is there anywhere I can buy them?
Bekafa
11 years ago
AN ETHIOPIAN SURPRISE IN BANGKOK
BY: BEKAFA ADELA
MARCH 31, 2013
Food as Ambassador
Perhaps the best ambassador a nation can offer to the people of other countries is that nation’s food. No protocol, no bowing, no high-sounding words are needed, just good and honest taste. To know what a nation savors on its tables is to gain great insight regarding the heart and soul of that nation’s people.
So, imagine my surprise when some Australian and Sudanese colleagues from the United Nations outpost joined me to a delightful little Ethiopian restaurant in the heart of Bangkok, Thailand. I’m sure they were trying to be kind since I am of Ethiopian heritage. Well, they were far more than kind. I wound up eating some of the best Ethiopian cuisine I have experienced outside of the motherland itself.
World Class Partners
As I said, the restaurant is small: Seven tables. And it is very, very clean – an Ethiopian requirement. A very cozy and quaint place, the pleasing art, the great fixture accents, and the strong colors make it warm and inviting. Making it even more inviting is the especially friendly and gracious service. The restaurant is owned by two Ethiopians – Ambese who came to Bangkok via Virginia, U.S.A. and Taye Berhanu – who came to Bangkok direct from Ethiopia. Taye who served us is probably in his mid-twenties and very gracious and polite.
Ambese and Taye have brought their strong sense of Ethiopian etiquette and hospitality to this Asian capital where they serve the local members of the various African communities. Among them are folk from Ghana, Sudan, Nigeria, Ethiopia (of course), and Cameroon. Americans, Australians, and Canadians, previously exposed to Ethiopian cuisine, are welcome guests at Ethiopia Restaurant as well when they get a hankering for Bozena Shiro, Awaze Tibes, or some other Ethiopian delicacy.
Menu from the Motherland
The menu at Ethiopia Restaurant could bring tears to the eyes (in more ways than one) to an Ethiopian starving for a taste from the motherland. That evening we began with the special Kittfo Ethiopian Beef Tartar. It was exquisite beef, very lean and finally chopped. It was served with mitmita, a spiced chili powder. What makes it so special is another spice that is especially prepared for Kittfo and made up of organic spices imported from Ethiopia. Since the beef and spice are served as is, or raw, it’s a perfect test for the skill of the kitchen. Ethiopia Restaurant passed with flying colors.
Bozeno Shiro was our next dish. A stew made primarily of ground chickpeas or broad beans, it is prepared with minced onions and garlic. Depending on regional variations, ginger, chopped tomatoes, and chili peppers can be thrown into the sauce. The chickpeas, along with cubes of lean beef, are simmered in a berbere sauce, which could best be characterized as an African barbecue sauce made up of cumin seeds, cloves, cardamom pods, and allspice, among other ingredients. The delightful dish was cooked and served on traditional Ethiopian clay dishes.
Awaze Tibes followed and I do believe it is the best I have ever had, with all apologies to cooks in the Ethiopian motherland. The dish consists of small cuts of lamb that have been marinated in herbs from the vast Ethiopian spice cabinet. It is then cooked with tomatoes, garlic, berbere sauce, and onion. The way it was served was fantastic.
An Exquisite Ethiopian Ending
Ambese and Taye prepared an exquisite ending to our Ethiopian feast – the coffee ceremony. My heart was touched at how Taye carefully followed all the traditions necessary to keep the practice alive. He obviously cares deeply about Ethiopian tradition and that included the burning of traditional frankincense and gum Arabic over a tiny charcoal stove as he prepared the brew. Of course, he prepared the coffee in the traditional Jabena pottery boiling pot, with its spherical base, long neck, and pouring spout, its long handle connecting to the base and the neck. The rich coffee was poured into cups of a kind you would find in any good Ethiopian coffee shop.
Needless to say, I left Ethiopia Restaurant feeling a little bit homesick. On the other hand, it was delightful to have discovered a place, however small, so deeply connected to Ethiopia and its foods and traditions. The sprawling Asian capital of Bangkok is known for its diversity; it’s nice to know that the diversity includes Ethiopia. Through Ethiopia Restaurant, Ethiopia is offering its wonderful food as an ambassador to the peoples of the Orient.
AN ETHIOPIAN SURPRISE IN BANGKOK
BY: BEKAFA ADELA
MARCH 31, 2013
Ethiopia Restaurant
1/22 SUKHUMVIT SOI 3 (NANA NUEA) SUKHUMVIT RODE
KLONGTOEY NUEA, WATTANA
BANGKOK, 10110 THAILAND
Tel: +66-849-303250
Open Daily
Mark Wiens
11 years ago
Wow Bekafa, thanks so much for sharing!
Maria
11 years ago
Now that really is the ultimate combo plate! There’s a tiny Ethiopian place a few blocks from my current apartment and I’ve fallen head over heals for the Doro Wott.
Mark Wiens
11 years ago
Hey Maria, glad you like Ethiopian food too!