The Abyssinian Restaurant — Restaurant in Melbourne

This is the second Ethiopian restaurant we are trying in the city, and already had an idea of how the food is served. We were greeted by a very friendly staff, who took our order, the Chef’s Platters - Meat, Vegetarian, Poultry & Fish, for 2 People ($50.0), which is served with 4 vegetarian dishes, 2 meat dishes, 1 chicken dish & 1 fish dish…

So this is what was included in our platter:

Tumtummo - Lentils cooked slowly in flavourful light sauce with a blend of African spices.

Ades - Green lentils and spices cooked into a slightly hot dish.

Foul Medames - An original Sudanese dish; slow-cooked lava beans, lemon and ghee mixed up with spices into a hot pan.

Hoswas - Mixed in-season vegetables, sautéed on oil, garlic and caramelised onions, with a splash of mixed spices at the end.

Dorho Kulwha - Strips of chicken thighs, marinated and sautéed to perfection on Ghee and African spices, topped with fresh tomato puree, and finally simmered in a light Turmeric sauce.

Lamb Aletcha - Cubes of prime lamb, in season vegetables, tomato puree and spices slowly cooked into a casserole dish.

Goat - Slowly cooked on a tangy sauce, made up of Lemon, Cardamom, Cloves and Cinnamon.

Asa Kulwha - Nile Perch fish fillet cubed and sautéed with onion, Spiced Ghee and Berberé, topped with fresh tomatoes and green chillies.

Everything was served in a flat pan topped with a fresh Injera bread. The food was just divine!!! Perfectly cooked, well spiced, and a great varities that allows you to try as much from their menu as possible, keeping the portions small so that you get to eat the rest that is served on the platter. You can order an additional Injera for $2 if you want to. You will need to use your hands to dig in, and trust me its an amazing experience!

We came back another time to try their Shiro Bozena - Topside Lamb cubes grilled on a hot pan mixed in a finely grounded chickpeas sauce simmered with oil and chopped garlic. It was perfectly cooked, but we still preferred the other lamb dishes more.

Loved this place for their authenticity, service, and great food.

Place gets packed very quickly, so it helps to book a table in advance. And the food takes around 30-40 minutes to be served, so keep that in mind. Order their local Ethiopian beers, St...

📍The Abyssinian Restaurant, Kensington -4.7 ⭐️ out 5.

Absolutely exceptional Ethiopian restaurant that everyone should visit.

We had the: ➖Meat, vegetarian, poultry and fish platter for 3 people which comes with main dishes on a bed of injera ($90) ➖Set of all entrees ($36)

All the food is bursting in flavour and I loved the variety we got with the platter. All the mains are slow cooked, with the meats being extremely tender. It was such a generous serving as well, with the four us being unable to finish all the food. The mains come on a bed of injera, which is a traditional Ethiopian flat bread that is spongy and has a slight sour hint (it makes me think of a savoury flat crumpet texture). The injera perfectly absorbs the flavour of the main meals.

I also loved the mix of entrees, with the cubed eggplant with garlic and chilli being my favourite of the 4 (only by a tad, they’re all delicious).

All the meals are served without cutlery so that you eat with your hands (cutlery can be requested) and designed to be shared. Eating from the same plate is an ethos of the restaurant that stems from the cultural belief that those you share a plate with will not betray you and are inherently trustworthy. I think this is so beautiful and a great and fun dining experience.

The staff here were lovely, and the restaurant is decorated in traditional Ethiopian prints.

Overall 4.7...

Been a while since we’ve been here, still very busy.

We opted for a set of all entrees. The entrees looked small on the huge platter it arrived in but it was enough for the 4 of us. Particularly liked the zucchini which had a touch of spice, others liked the eggplant and fava beans.

For mains, we got 2 x 2 of the Meat, Vegetarian, Poultry and Fish platter. The variety allowed us to sample the dishes on the menu. The lamb was a little dry but the gravy was good and the fish was cooked to perfection. If you like goat or not, there were no “goaty notes” and was very tasty.

The injera was great with all dishes and soaked up all the sauces. You can request for cutlery but use your fingers to get the full experience. There are hand sanitisers at the table or bring your own wipes.

Service was friendly and accommodating. Food arrived promptly despite being a full house. We stayed to very near closing time and they did not attempt to rush us. BYO wine only.

Some would say portion per price point may not be worth it but it is money well spent for something a...