Muzita Abyssinian Bistro — Restaurant in San Diego

I normally would have emailed management directly, but since there is no contact email listed on Muzita Abyssinian Bistro’s website, I’m leaving this review instead. Our experience on August 30 around 12:30 p.m. was extremely disappointing. It took nearly 15 minutes before the server, who was also bartending, even brought water or took our order. On a hot day, the waters had no ice, and I eventually had to get up multiple times to refill them myself. When I asked to leave a pitcher at our table, I was told they only pour drinks for guests, which set the tone for the rest of the visit.

Service remained inattentive throughout. We waited over 45 minutes for our food, had to ask multiple times for plates and utensils (and were only given four for a party of six), and even waited far too long for berbere sauce we requested early on. Someone in our group ordered a Coke that was flat, and when we mentioned it, the server argued it was fine. In my experience, restaurants usually don’t change CO₂ tanks proactively, only after customers complain, and serving a flat soda simply reinforced how little care was given.

When the food arrived, it was wrong and poorly prepared. We had specifically asked for no mushrooms due to a severe allergy, but mushrooms were in the Zigni Siga (see photo). This is a serious food safety concern. We also asked for the dish to be mild so children could eat it, but it came out extremely spicy and the beef was very tough. On top of that, $6 for about two tablespoons of rice and $5 for the same amount of cucumber yogurt felt unreasonable.

Finally, when we raised these issues, the server’s response came across as dismissive and condescending. We even asked early on for the automatic gratuity for six people to be removed, yet it was still charged. Between the poor service, food safety mistakes, dismissive attitude, and unreasonable pricing, this was one of the worst dining experiences we’ve had in San Diego. I hope management takes this feedback seriously and improves training, because guests...

The mushroom and spaghetti squash appetizer was good and unlike other Ethiopian food I've had. The fried bits of injera were a nice textural touch. I liked the beet and potato salad for its tartness, though it's a bit small (about a cup of beets and potatoes) for the $10 price. We had the beef + shiro (chickpeas) entree which was good, though a little hard to eat because there's not a lot of firmness to the stew which makes it hard to grasp with the injera. (TBH, I'm not sure if this is the nature of the shiro, the beef, or the combination of the two.) Possibly the best thing on the plate was the timtimo (red lentil) side dish. Definitely not to be missed. The lowlight of the evening was the dessert of creme brulee. It wasn't very cold which just felt wrong for creme brulee, the texture was a little less smooth than ideal, and the flavor was muted. At $9 (we didn't know the price when we ordered) that was a disappointment. Still, overall we really enjoyed our meal and are looking forward to returning and trying some new things.

Update after next visit: I love the mushroom and spaghetti squash app even more than before; it was the highlight of our visit. The timtimo was good but not as amazing as I'd remembered and we ultimately regretted choosing it for both of our sides. The chicken with garlic and white wine was pretty good; it was oddly reminiscent of chicken Cacciatore (which was fine, just unexpected for Ethiopian food). The other lesson of the night is that I'm really not that into Shiro. We tried the Shiro by itself (i.e., no other items mixed with it) and it's fine, but the texture is too thin and overall I'd rather skip it next time and try something new instead.

Update 2021. Had an awesome meal here. Mushroom and spaghetti squash appetizer, sambusa trio (replaced collard greens and spinach with a second chicken, though TBH the veggie one was even better), and siga kiwa beef entree with red lentils. Everything was awesome. 10/10 would order the same...

Unfortunately the food and service were not as good as in the past. My husband's fish was burnt and covered up with the sauce to hide it. My potatoes were also burnt and so was the sauce that was used in the dish. It was my milestone birthday celebration and our friends and god-sons traveled up from Rosarito to join us. They had never had Ethiopian before. Unfortunately they probably won't ever again. I was embarrassed. We should have tried one of the other Ethiopian restaurants in the area. Our in-laws are from Eritrea & Ethiopia and have taken us to some amazing restaurants in the Bay area that would have been a better experience with better food and more authenticity of ambiance to introduce our friends to. Of course after you have had authentic Ethiopian food home cooked for you and you love it so much it is disappointing when you can't share that with others. They were out of tea and my friend really wanted to try the Ethiopian coffee I raved about but they were out of that too. Some positives are the mushroom appetizers everyone enjoyed and the Birsn Korosho is always delicious, love the crispy injera. Also the Sambusas were a favorite of our friends. We ordered way more food than we could all eat. The portions are very generous. The injera was great and plenty of it. I personally liked the Caulo and Alitcha Atakilti, no one else ate the caulo and our friend didn't like the alitcha. Also, I said the service was not AS good as in the past but she did try. They were kind of busy with larger parties and she was by herself. The kitchen messed up our appetizer order and she had it corrected right away. All-in-all it was Okay. We may or may not go back. I love Ethiopian food so much so if we were in the area again we may try the other two restaurants first and then decide which is...