Messob — Restaurant in Lyon

The first thing I want to say is that the food here is amazing. So delicious and unique. If you've never had injera bread, you're definitely in for a treat. The texture and flavor of injera bread is so different from other breads. The large variety of foods to choose from on the menu here is amazing and can be overwhelming. But I guess that means it's a good excuse to have to come back several times to try everything.

So now the bad news. During my visit here, we waited just over an hour from the time we ordered until our food arrived. The problem is that the kitchen at this restaurant (which is completely open and in full view of the customers) is run like a home kitchen. There was one person cooking the whole time, and unfortunately for me and my friends, there were two large parties that came in before us. With only one person in the kitchen, this resulted in an extremely long wait. For comparison, a group that walked in about 30 minutes after us received their food about 10 or 15 minutes after we did. The service wasn't bad by any means. They just need to figure out a better way to manage their kitchen operation when there are large parties.

Another negative about this place is that they don't provide silverware. I get the whole idea about having an authentic African dining experience, but if I'm expected to eat with my hands, I would have hoped there would be substantial napkins. Unfortunately, this is not the case. The lack of silverware also resulted in a lot of wasted food. As you can see in the photo I've attached, the center of our plate of food went to waste because it was impossible (and gross) to eat it with our hands. The texture of the food in the middle of the dish was too mushy to pick up using one's fingers. A fork or spoon would have been great, especially to reduce food waste.

I will go back and give this restaurant another chance in the near future. I'm just hoping I don't have to wait an hour again for my food to arrive. And I'm going to bring my own silverware...

My very first experience with Ethiopian cuisine: the food was okay despite the fact that we had a hard time identifying the plate elements, but it was a fun experience as a whole.

The interesting part is that the restaurant doesn’t only offer Ethiopian food, but also a glimpse into their culture with the decor, presentation, etc..

The tray of food we ordered serves up to 5 people, and is served with a specific crêpe-like bread. I also tried the Ethiopian Coffee, it’s pretty similar to Turkish Coffee but less bitter.

Unless you’re adventurous and wouldn’t mind such an experience, I would recommend visiting it with an Ethiopian or someone who is familiar with...

Nous avons trouvé les plats plutôt bons . Mais nous avons surtout été déçus par le service. En effet, nous avons commandé un menu dégustation pour 4 mais aucune information sur les spécialités ne nous a été donnée, alors même que nous étions avec nos enfants et que tout ce que nous avons mangé était extrêmement épicé. Ma femme avait dîné un an auparavant au Messob et la personne qui l'avait servie avait justement fait beaucoup de recommandations et avait proposé des plats moins épicés aux clients qui craignaient cela.Donc peut-être une fausse note ce soir-là au niveau du service qui, espérons le, ne se produit pas régulièrement. D'autre part, nous avons redemandé une fois de ces sortes de crêpes qui accompagnent les mets et nous avons eu l'impression que cette requête n'était pas très bien accueillie, comme si elle était déplacée. Ce n'est pas très grave mais cela ajoute à notre réserve quant au service. Enfin, alors même que c'était l'anniversaire de ma femme, ils le savaient , et que nous avons réglé plus de cent euros (tickets resto non acceptés), nous ne nous sommes même pas vus offrir le seul café que nous avions commandé. Nous ne sommes évidemment pas à un café près mais ce sont ces petits gestes, qui se font malheureusement rares, qui font le petit + des commerçants qui savent prendre soin de leur clientèle . Histoire de pouvoir penser que ces moments-là ne se résument pas à une...