Awash Ethiopian Restaurant — Restaurant in New York

I've dined at Awash (East Village location, only) numerous times and have always enjoyed the experience as both the food and the service have always been terrific - until now - and after last night's experience, I don't think we will be returning. Upon entering, we stood at the front of the restaurant waiting to be seated for at least 5 minutes while the only server/hostess/busboy was busy at the "bar." Once seated, we realized quickly that the menu had changed, especially the combination platter we usually ordered, I was wondering if this was a sign of new management or a new chef? Instead of being a set menu, the combination plate now allows you to chose what items you would like, however, you are given less items than were previously included (it used to be one beef, one lamb and one chicken dish, but now the combo only includes 2 meats). In addition, your options are on the back of the menu, not with English descriptions, so you have to flip the menu back and forth to figure out what you want. More than 10 minutes passed before the waitress came to take our orders and bring water. She asked if we were ready and I told her yes, I believe so - but when I looked up, she was gone and took another 10 minutes to return. Once the order was placed it was almost 30 minutes before it came out of the kitchen, and when it did arrive, it wasn't good. The special kitfo (which we ordered in addition to the meat combo) was flavorless mush. The meat felt as if someone smashed it into burger patties and forgot to season it. The lamb stew (Beg Alicha) was incredibly tough, chewy and also lacking in flavor. The red lentils (Misir Wat) were under cooked (i.e., still hard) and had only a hint of flavor. The collard greens (Gomen), which is usually one of my favorite vegetarian Ethiopian dishes, was another disappointment. It was dull and flat without the freshness and bright flavors I was expecting. The Special Tibs (beef) was the only dish with any flavor, but even that felt like it was missing "something." Nothing that was supposed to be spicy was spicy. Things (like the special kitfo) that usually have visible jalapenos (like it should) had tiny minuscule chopped up bits, instead, which meant none of the befits of flavor, texture or heat from the peppers. It was a fight to get our water glasses refilled and another to get the check and then more waiting to get the check picked up and returned to us. We were there for over 2 hours, but only spent about 20 minutes of that time eating. No, I don't think we will...

Personally, I love to try different foods from around the world. A friend took me to Awash for a late lunch/early dinner before seeing Blue Man Group for my birthday. I don't understand how more people are not aware of Ethiopian food. It is beyond delicious!! I relied on my friend for suggestions, because I am not familiar with the way food is served there. You pick your meat, and a side, and then prepare yourself for an amazing experience. They offer a hot drink, Barbajada, which is the most amazing combination of coffee, milk and chocolate. I can not even describe how smooth and yummy it is. It isn't sweet, but it isn't bitter, and honestly, writing this review, I wish I had one of those drinks right now. The food is served on a large plate, and everyone eats from the plate. Now, culturally I believe you eat with your right hand,(I asked my friend, so I did not offend) but they do offer a fork at every seating when the food is brought to your table. My friend suggested Awash Chicken. Each large plate comes with potato, carrot and onion sort of stew, a lentil side which is spicy, but not hot spicy, more like a warmth that spreads slowly over your palate like a blanket on a cool fall evening, and chopped kale which is strategically placed in two locations on the plate, seasoned in a way to cleanse and refresh your senses as you eat. Your vegetable side is placed on your platter at your table on two sides, and your protein goes right in the middle. Then you take a roll of bread place it on your side plate, and use pieces of that to take the food and eat. This dinner encourages conversation and an opportunity to connect with the person or people you are dining with. The seasonings are amazing, the food is beyond delicious. The only drawback were the restrooms. They are small, and I did not use them (the ladies room was not in service). Also, you must go down a few stairs so it may be very difficult for anyone with mobility issues, and it is not...

Second time trying Ethiopian food and the injera (the Ethiopian flatbread) blew my mind again! Absolutely love the soft, elastic (almost rubbery), porous texture and the mildly sour taste. The injera adds an additional flavor to the bites.

For such a big portion of food and all the samplers the total was only $26 each person with tip! Very decent price for east village.

We ordered: Meat Sampler For 2 with Beg Alicha, Doro Wat, Key Sir Alicha, Gomen Beg Alicha(lamb in the middle) More like a curry-style dish. The lamb stew was so well seasoned and the meat was easy to chew. Although it was well-seasoned the flavors were more earthy and weren’t too strong (not spicy)👍🏼 Loved the turmeric and ginger seasoning Doro Wat (red chicken) Favorite sampler out of all 4! The chicken thigh was so juicy and tender, and the flavors were nothing like I tried before. The stew was so rich and thick, yet not heavy. The rich flavors of the Ethiopian bebere spice blend (that contains ground fenugreek, chiles, paprika, ginger, onion powder, cardamom, coriander, nutmeg, garlic, cloves, and cinnamon) really stood out! No wonder it was praised in a food article Key Sir Alicha Beets and carrots with red onion. Definitely a very light dish. The sampler didn’t go that well with the injera because the chunks were so big so it was harder to wrap. The dish was slightly sweet but overall wasn’t that interesting. Gomen The collard greens were well seasoned with ginger and garlic. But overall wasn’t really interesting either, reminded me of home cooked Chinese stir-fried chopped veggies

Restaurant itself has a very nice and quiet atmosphere. The set up is quite sophisticated...