Hello foodies out there! Did you wash your hands yet? Well, you better do because for today, we are going communal as I share you my Ethiopian cuisine dining experience ;)
Ethiopian cuisine consists of spicy vegetables and meat dishes usually in the form of a thick stew called wat (or wot) and served over a sourdough flatbread called injera. Ethiopians practice an act of friendship (goorsha), wherein during a meal, a person may strip off a piece of injera, roll it in the wat, and then put the rolled injera into a friend's mouth. The larger the goorsha, the stronger the friendship. Also notable in Ethiopian dining is its coffee ceremony. When serving coffee, the preparer roasts the coffee beans in a clay pot, and then walks around the room for others to sample the scent of coffee. A complete ceremony has three rounds of coffee, and is accompanied by the burning of frankincense.
The Ethiopian cuisine is the most exotic among all the many cuisines I have tried so far. Thanks to a couple of friends who share the same adventurous palate as mine that in December 2009, I got to know the Queen of Sheba - an Ethiopian restaurant located in Bloor Street West, Toronto. Although the name depicts some kind of royalty - don't be fooled - because the place is far from being fancy.
My delightful experience began when the platter pictured on the right was served to us. Of course, we needed to consume it the Ethiopian way, meaning we had to eat with our hands using the injera to pick up bits and pieces of the entree. What's more interesting is that we literally had to share this platter - no serving utensils or plates - communal in its true sense.
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| i miss you, guys ! |
And yes, we didn't miss out the fun of a coffee ceremony! As you can see in the picture on the left, some sort of incense was burning, and my friend was pouring coffee from a clay pot (partially seen). I cannot tell what kind of coffee it was, as I'm really not a coffee person, however, it was pretty strong and dark, it sort of reminded me of the famous Kapeng Barako from the Philippines :)
I haven't gone back to any Ethiopian restaurant since then. Not that I didn't like the strong flavored stew and veggies I had at the Queen of Sheba. Let's just say, it's a cuisine that I won't mind having every once in a while, but not the kind I would crave every now and then. If you do get tired of the usual Chinese, Japanese, American or Italian cuisine, by all means, try Ethiopian for a change ;)
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meron bang euthopian dish dito..? ng ma try din. haha
ReplyDeleteOoooh yes, I tried Ethiopian cuisine for the first time about... wow, like, four years ago. My best friend was in Ottawa at the time, studying at Carleton University, and she took us to a place near her apartment - holy yum, Batman! I loved the food, but I was a bit daunted by the whole no-utensils thing because I'm so clutzy. True to form, I ended up with a big glop of food on my jeans! Sigh... ;-)
ReplyDelete@ PS: Not sure but if you find one, you should try it, girl ! ;)
ReplyDelete@ Crystal: That's the most fun part of it - eating sans utensils... or I guess, it was a challenge on your part eh? ;)
Naglalaway mode nako dito, hahaha! First time I've ever heard of the Ethiopian cuisine, KM. Thanks for the introduction, hehe!
ReplyDelete@ Lainy, medyo matapang yung flavor :D
ReplyDeleteWow that is just amazing! It's really great when we can "travel the world" through food. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for lin king up.
Kahit hindi ko pa natitikman yang food mo bumabalik para sa YS sis!
ReplyDeleteSa iyo ako nahawa sa kaka join ng meme tuloy nag eenjoy ako... Hehehe...
Thankie! Hugs!
yum, looks delicious and sweet moment of the two of you together :-) visiting for YS, hope that you can visit me back too
ReplyDeletehttp://www.tropical7107islands.com/2011/10/weekend-fun-with-my-kids-at-the-chuck-e-cheese.html
@ Jenn, so true :)
ReplyDelete@ Rovie, join lang ng join ;)
@ Wifetoalineman, thanks for the visit :) Left you a comment in your blog ^^
the coffee ceremony looks fun.
ReplyDeletethe aroma of coffee mixed with frankincense should be intoxicating. the bread-feeding sounds fun.:p
ReplyDeletethanks for the meme visits :)
ReplyDeleteBack in Canada, I wasn't brave enough to try any African resto.
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting way to eat food. I don't think there's an Ethiopian restaurant near our place, so it will really take a while before I can finally have a taste of Ethiopian dishes. Happy FTF! Here's my entry: http://www.delightmyappetite.com/2011/12/food-trip-friday-cajun-red-rock/
ReplyDeletethanks for the comments :)
ReplyDeletesounds interesting. never had euthopian dish
ReplyDeleteheres my share for the weekend
PS:
sorry for the late visit, i need to be onto something since saturday (dec 17)
collectively im visiting thru Food Friday; Food Trip Friday and Yummy Sunday
thank you for visiting and/or commentimng on my entry
an exotic food to try to experience a new taste :-) Visiting late for FTF, hope that you can return the favor too.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.tropical7107islands.com/2011/12/my-son%E2%80%99s-dessert-at-filipino-american-party.html