Wass Ethiopian Restaurant — Restaurant in Hamilton

Wass Vegetarian Combo, ~ $20 (Ⓥ) (🌶️)

Presentation: ★★★★☆ - a colourful display of stews and salads layered atop a piece of flatbread, presented without garnish.

Aroma: ★★★☆☆ - the "Yemiser Wat" dominates the aroma to such a point that the entire thing smells like chili and nothing else. Too artificial for my taste, but some people might like it.

Flavour: ★★★★☆ - mundane yet complementing ingredients come together to form a wonderous taste.

Texture: ★★★★★ - everything from firm to soft, from tender to crisp packed into this single dish, the texture is truly peerless.

Service: ✓ - the host is kind and responsive. All of my requests are fulfilled within one minute.

Cleanliness: ✓ - no odour or visible stain; napkins and alcohol wipes are easily accessible and more can be supplied by request.

----* Details *----

I ordered the "Wass Vegetarian Combo" which consists a serving of Injera - a crepe-like flatbread, and an assortment of stews and salads:

The "Yemiser Wat": an aggressively spicy stew that dominates the flavour. Allegedly made from lentils, it tastes surprisingly like meat.

The "Keyser and Dinitch": beets and potatoes, this salad offers a bread-like texture that echoes that of the Injera bread.

The "Tikil Gomen": a serving of fresh cabbage that underpins the dish. Its sweet taste and firm texture stands out from the mellow stews. It is well complemented by the "Gomen Wat": soft, seasoned kale that brings about a herbal taste.

The "Misir Alicha" and the "Yekik Alicha": brown- and yellow bean stews that give substance to the dish. Though bland, they fill in gaps left

These components, though mundane, work together to produce a one-of-a-kind experience. This dish has the complexity of a Szechuan spice and the strength of...

They just opened on Friday after being closed for covid. We went there last night and had the best experience! The gentleman who welcomed us was so kind and genuinely polite! I’ve had Ethiopian food before so I am accustomed to what it should taste like.

I’m a celiac on keto so we got the meat combo platter without injera but salad with the cottage cheese instead! The guy was surprised we wanted to eat the platter without the injera lol. He was so nice enough to replace the injera with a salad instead - which also tasted so fresh! All the salad veges were cut to perfection and there was a nice vinegarette on it too! I was impressed that they even took so much effort in making something as simple as the side salad! The platter came and it looked so grand and everything was delicious! We loved the lamb Wot and the Doro Wot ans I wish there was more chicken and a boiled egg in the doro wot (it usually has a boiled egg). Other than that the tibs and kefte were delicious too. I had a spiced black tea on the side but I really wanted Ethiopian coffee. Apparently I had to get the whole $22 coffee ceremony for one cup on coffee which is way too much for two people.

Room for improvement: their debit machine was down and we had to pay with interac etransfer - maybe this will be the new thing coz of covid but it felt a little different. The menu was a little confusing with a few items marked as $0.00 and on asking about it, it was meant to convey that those items aren’t available.lol. Also, if they could have coffee by the cup, that would’ve been nice but no loss with the AMAZING food and service!!!! We will...

If I lived in Hamilton I just may eat there everyday. My husband, brought us there since he had tried it in the passed and knows how much I appreciate good food..especially Ethiopian. It's maybe been a month since we stopped in to eat there..and I am still thinking about it and realized i didn't leave a review. I have never had a reason to look forward to driving out west and now I do! This is the best Ethiopian food in Toronto and the GTA..probably Canada..but I haven't tried them all yet, still I have tried A LOT. I can certainly say that this restaurant is now my standard for Great Ethiopian Food! The hospitality was perfect, quick service, friendly and Beautiful presentation. The owner was kind enough to answer my curious questions about his accent and so on. But back to the food..Veggie and meat dishes were perfect and worth EVERY penny. I can't even remember what the price was because it doesn't even matter, the food was just that good. I am not one to leave reviews but it was my intention to do so even while I was enjoying the meal..all 3 of us spoke about leaving a review for this restaurant because of how pleased we were. Now, my plan is to have my aunt grab me some Wass to go when she makes her weekly visit to Hamilton..lol Where there is a will there is a way! Here's to good food and the people like Wass...