Real Habesha Restaurant — Restaurant in Bristol

Date: 27th September 2024 Cost: £75 for three

“Have we got somewhere for dinner?” Mich asked, as we succumbed to the allure of the drinks trolley on the cross-country train to visit Jez, longtime friend, mediumtime Bristolian and, as it turned out, part-time local pub and restaurant guru and guide.

“Jez mentioned something about Ethiopian, I’m not sure if he’s booked or anything.” “Well text him! I want to look at the menu.” So I did. The images that appeared upon completion of our search displayed an unassuming exterior perhaps more given to a late-night takeaway, but the inside gave off the impression of eating in someone’s house - cosy, snug and intimate.

Stapleton Road was bustling with other East African restaurants, late-night cafes full of people chatting over tea, and butchers, barbers and shops crammed with rugs and floor-to-ceiling stacks of crates of Miranda that all seemed to function more as meeting and gathering points than anything else. But it was quiet in the Real Habesha. And by quiet I mean we were the only ones there. It was by no means an issue that the only atmosphere was the sounds of our own laughter and gossip echoing back off the walls, but I can’t imagine it being an ideal spot for a first date, say.

We ordered beers and the incredibly sweet honey wine that still gives me phantom tooth fuzz if I think about it too much, as well as the medium combination chosen on the train: a selection of veggie curries, stews, salads and, well, vegetables with a choice of meats, all served on a giant edible plate of injera. We went for keyh tshebi - beef cubes in a tomato/onion/garlic base - and added on a portion of dorho wot for good measure - chicken legs and boiled egg in a spicy gravy. This arrived in its own dish-atop-a-dish, elevated above the combination as the star of the show that it turned out to be.

Spoiler alert! Sorry. Let me rewind to a few confessions: firstly, I was hungry. Not starving, but definitely in the right kind of headspace and tummyspace to put away a fair bit of food. And secondly, I don’t really like injera. It’s fine. It’s just a bit bland and sits quite heavily. Give me rice over any kind of bread with curries and stews every day of the week. But each to their own. Anyway, when the food arrived, as described above but in - to my stomach’s eye - little portions, with an additional basketful of hundreds of injera rolls to top up our overall calories-per-pound, I paradoxically felt a slight disappointment but dived in fingers first.

The combination was all nice. It was all nice. But I couldn’t decipher much of a difference between the chickpea one, the lentil one, the other lentil one and actually even the beef one, except for by look and by texture. There was a serving of cabbage and green beans here and a spoonful of rice there, and it all went pretty quickly, but I wasn’t bouncing around the room at any of it.

In the dorho wot, therefore, lay my last hope. Out of uncertainty how to share two drumsticks and a whole boiled egg between three without cutlery, it had stayed off to one side until we couldn’t put it off any longer, when we just tipped it into the shrinking injera plate. It was comfortably the highlight. I can remember what it tasted like, for a start: rich, as though the legs had been stewing in the same pot as all the fattier, tastier bits of the chicken, their goodness seeping oozily into into the gravy, and gently spiced with the warmth of a mix containing things like clove and nutmeg and paprika over anything more overtly hot. The meat itself was tender, and the egg was fun to eat - like everything else - using our hands.

I was full and satisfied afterwards, but I do think a therapist would read into my gnawing of the leftover drumsticks as indicative of a lack of that of that elusive comestible bliss I was seeking. It’s worth pointing out that the others were both singing the praises of the food, and it would be remiss of me to mark the Real Habesha down for personal preferences, but it was probably the least impressive of anywhere we ate...

Wallahi may God bless this restaurant for real👀 The customer service is above and beyond expectations. I am so so grateful to them for being so patient with me even though the mistake was very clearly my fault.

Can you readers imagine I tried to order Ethiopian food and it took four hours to finally get it🤦🏽‍♀️. Here is the story:

Firstly, the deliveroo app was not working properly and uber eats didn't have what I specifically wanted from this restaurant. So I called the restaurant directly to see if they would deliver which they agreed.They delivered very quickly. Quicker than on any of the deliver apps. So quickly that I missed them before I could even withdraw money from a cash point. Cause I knew they would want cash when they drop off. So I missed that delivery. And I carelessly left my phone at home while withdrawing money. Then I missed their phone calls twice more again because my phone was on bedtime mode so calls were silent😭😭.

Despite all of this, they still delivered to my house on the forth attempt. I did not even expect them to deliver again after the first time I messed up. I am so grateful and very sorry for all the...

Very good, authentic food at this Ethiopian restaurant. Don't be put off by the rather scuzzy area (my car was fine parked just around the corner). Staff (what appeared to be father and son) were very friendly and helpful although it's important to be aware that the card machine is not working atm - so you may need to nip to the cash machine next door (fortunately it's free). We ordered a range of food from shiro, mesir and Real Habesha Special and tibs - all were really good - one of the best shiros I've tasted. The injera was really nice too. On Friday night the place was popular with a mix of people and, tbh, was only let down by the hand washing facilities - essential for eating injera - which could be a bit better -...