Abyssinia Restaurant

Just went here with my family for my birthday. Totally awesome experience. It smelled great when we walked inside, the decor is pretty minimal but cute. Good music in the background.

The whole vegetarian menu is vegan, so there are a lot of options. We got the veggie combo + an order of the Tikel Gomen (my favorite, the potatoes and cabbage were off the hook) + the Miser We't + the veggie sambusa appetizer. Everything rocked.

I thought the price value was really great too, when I first looked at the menu I thought it looked a little on the expensive side, with $11ish vegan entrees. But the portions are huge! I eat SO MUCH FOOD (6'7", 220lb), and one of those entrees might actually be enough for me, I usually have to order a couple entrees at restaurants. And extra injeera is cheap and plentiful.

I wish I'd gone here years ago! The vegan food is definitely 5 stars for me. The ONLY reason I'm giving it 4 stars and not 5 is that they serve meat. There are no all-vegan Ethiopian places in the Bay Area that I know of though, so there's that.

I called in my Takeout order to Wodi, the owner, on the phone. I like the way she asked me when I would arrive, "So it will be [cooked] fresh when you get here." I told her which parking lot I was leaving from and she quickly told me, "that's about 10 minutes" and she was right... even though my Garmin GPS told me 5 minutes. Yep, the locals always know...
I ordered the Vegetarian Combo for 2 which Wodi said was "$19.99 before tax." When I got there at about 11:15am, I put a dime in the parking meter for "6 minutes," snapped a couple of quick pictures and went inside. She had my order packed ready to go... and I gasped as I took a quick 360° around me... at the most adorable surroundings (Yes, more snapshots!)
Wodi has an amusing personality, maybe not for everyone, but I quite like her fastidious qualities. But, no matter because the food is quite delicious AND it is Vegetarian and some are Vegan too. So, pay her the money and eat the FOOD. It's so delicious!

Just open the door and you are welcomed by the wonderful aroma which serves to turn on your appetite immediately. The vegetarian combo for two is a fine dish to introduce you to the restaurant's abyssinian food. The service at lunch today was excellent. The combo provides a salad and several deliciously seasoned vegetables all served on fresh injera. No dessert was needed with the dish being a perfect size for my wife and me.

The restaurant was newly painted with a rich, warm color. Somehow they managed to eliminate any paint odor to mess with your dining experience. The walls are decorated with ethnic art and photos. Most tables are for two and most of those were filled for this Thursday lunch.