Abyssinia

This was my first experience eating Ethiopian food, so I didn’t really know what to expect, but I was pretty excited because everything looked good from photos I had seen. I went with a big group of people so we ordered a huge sharing platter and I got to a try a bit of everything. I don’t eat meat at the moment, so I basically only got to try the injera with the different selections of vegetables. Honestly, everything was good but I wasn’t particularly impressed by anything. Maybe this isn’t a fair review since I didn’t get to try the meat, but I would say this restaurant is just okay. The service was also incredibly slow– it took us like 20 minutes just to get water. I would come back, but I’m not crazy about this place!

This was my first time eating Ethiopian food and I have to say that the food was pretty good. I had the combination dish that included curried lamb, chicken, beef and vegetables. The service was very slow; there were only two very patient and friendly ladies serving the entire dining area and they were packed. The meal overall was good.
Now the bad. After we paid the check I made my way to the restroom. This is why I will not dine at this restaurant again. In my opinion it is as important, if not more, that a restaurant has a clean restroom. Patrons see the restroom so you would think restaurateurs would at minimum keep a tidy bathroom. When they obviously could care less, that gives me concern about the kitchen’s condition. This bathroom was filthy! There was shaved hair on the sink that had obviously been there for some time, the toilet paper holder had no cover, the paper towels were on the sink getting soaked and there was a holder above the sink, maybe it was broke too. Worst of all the toilet seat was HORRIBLE! The pictures speak for themselves.
The food was good, but I can not look pass the cleanliness issues.

Abyssinia is the Ethiopian spot I go to if I’m not BYOBing and I’m looking for an excuse to go to Fiume. From the injera to lentils, the food is the usual Ethiopian fare. But I should also mention that the service is slower. I also feel like their liquor license isn’t used well. They used to offer Tej, an Ethiopian honey wine, but no longer. The only white wine option is white zinfandel.
I should also mention that sound carries in is place. You can hear the conversations of anyone dining on the other side of the room. They have a sound system for performances. My suggestion would be to use it to play background music.
I really wished Abyssinia would get back to their roots and offer more interesting Ethiopian drink options and local music playing in the background.

Wandered upon this place on a late dare search for food and it was such an unexpected gem.
Food was delicious, inexpensive and generous serving sizes.
The waitress was more than pleasant and very helpful navigating through the menu (I got the meat combo platter to sample a variety)
Very nice date vibe. Quiet music, dimly lit (but not dark), cheap drinks. Overall had a great time.
Definitely will be back.

Some real authentic Ethiopian food and ambience. Really liked the food and cozy place. Must try the veggie special

Best Ethiopian food in the neighborhood. Service can be a bit slow but it’s worth it for the delicious food that eventually appears!

We called to ask if the injera was gluten free and were told that it was, so we booked a reservation for 8 of us. The place has bright florescent lights and is generally not very attractive, but we didn’t really care and went ahead and ordered.
When I took a bite of the appetizer, made with injera, my daughter, who was speaking with the waitress, shouted over not to eat it — that it had gluten! Too late! Luckily my allergy is not so strong that it sent me to the hospital — but for someone else it easily could have become a serious situation.
I spoke to the owner/​manager and they tried to explain how they make the injera and would have needed us to tell them days ahead so they could have made it — but it took him a long time to understand that even a small bit of wheat contains enough gluten to matter. They did not offer to comp a meal or do anything special. We found another place to eat.

Abyssinia is a nice, reasonably-​priced Ethiopian restaurant. The place is clean, lit just dimly enough to not be dingy, and is quiet enough to allow a pleasant over-​dinner conversation. The food is fantastic! My friends got the platters so that they could sample multiple options and I got the ‘Doro Wot’ — a spicy chicken which tasted a lot like chicken cooked Indian-​style — and all of us loved our food.
The service is friendly, but very slow. If you’re ravenous, the abyss-​in-​your stomach is going to remain with you a while, and your food is likely to arrive just about when you’ve managed to gnaw through your side of the table. But if you’d like to spend an hour (or more) on dinner and enjoy some great food, it’s a good choice.

Maybe it was the nostalgia of walking through the first Philadelphia neighborhood I called home. Or maybe it was the fact that I had forgotten just how good the food is. But I can’t walk away from my recent visit leaving a three star review in my wake.
Nothing about the interior has changed. I still feel like I might fall through the stairs on my way up to the bathroom. The downstairs bar is as no frills as it gets. The molding on the walls shows which direction the house has settled over the years, and the furniture and wall art looks worn around the edges. The prices are still absurdly low. With all the new shiny restaurants popping up all over Philly, Abyssinia brings more charm than ever.
I must have been there on an off night because the staff was pleasant and smiling. Even if they weren’t, I would still upgrade my review. And I look forward to coming back the next time I’m reminiscing in the neighborhood.

I went here for 3 reasons.
1. I wanted to see my old neighborhhood again. I lived at 48^th & Hazel until 1978.
2. My lunch companion is a vegetarian and she’s never had Ethiopian food.
3. I am nuts about good Ethiopian food.
The place is shabby, dingy and very large. It’s an old converted house and it is not inviting inside. At lunch time on a Friday, we were the only 2 diners there in the enormous dining room. 2 men sat at the bar in the front room/​bar watching television at a moderate volume.
We ordered the family style vegetarian lunch and it came out with a basket of the usual pile of folded injera bread. Everything tasted the same. I could see that we had different things, carrots, boiled potatoes, lentils, beans and so on and a salad arrangement in the middle of the plate, but whatever I scooped up with my injera tasted just like my last scoop-​warm, soft, slightly sour and vegetal in a rooty kind of way. The portions were adequate but not large. Let me add that while I am a carnivore, I have greatly enjoyed vegetarian food at other Ethiopian restaurants.
We finished lunch and sat for a good 20 minutes, waiting for the check. I finally went on a search for our server. I gave her a credit card and waited another 15 minutes before she reappeared with the receipt for me to sign.
I left with 3 conclusions.
1. West Philly is still beautiful. My old block has been heavily gentrified.
2. My companion said she was not in a hurry to eat Ethiopian food again and I am not in a hurry to return to Abyssinia.
3. I will continue to look for **good** Ethiopian food.

Abyssinia is an old school Ethiopian restaurant in west philly, one that has survived some changes in the area that continue to make it more and more a college neighborhood. But this place remains an ethnic middle class eatery.
On the upside: it’s inexpensive, the food is varied and flavorful, you can usually get a table and its friendly.
We ate the vegetarian combo platter and enjoyed every mouthful. I’m not a vegetarian kind of guy by nature, except in India where the veg food is to die for. However the food here comes for two on a single plate on this big Ethiopian bread thing, so since my sweetheart doesn’t eat poultry or red meat we went veggie. A couple of beers and sampling 6 dishes for two came to $ 30, which is tough to beat.
You can sit at traditional low Ethiopian wicker tables or at basic kitchen style tables. The décor is a little tired, but this isn’t center city!
On the downside the service is relaxed which if you are in a rush could drive you nuts. There is a bar where you can sit and have a pre dinner drink with one or two other folks. But I wouldn’t hang there, it only ever seems to have one or two Ethiopian ex-​pats listening to loud African music and watching soccer on an old tv.
Why 4 stars? Because the real reason you come here, the only reason in fact, is to put in some good ballast before you go upstairs to Fiume. ..

My friend and I came here because Ethio café was closed. We got the gored gored. We ordered it medium rare, swear that it came out straight rare. It was very spicy, and the portion was a bit smaller than I expected. Qey wot is pretty delicious, would probably opt for that if I came here again. Tonight, there was one server for a banquet lol, not sure why the staffing was so low. Very slow service. In terms of other Ethiopian places in the area, I recommend Queen of Sheba (don’t let the outside fool you) or Dahlak. Both are a lot tastier.

I’m a bit torn because the food was delicious here but the service is horrendous! And I’ve been twice and both times have had shotty service.
The first time I went in the afternoon on a Saturday, so I assumed because they weren’t very busy the server was slacking a little bit. We told the server what we’d like and she said she didn’t have any of those options, so we asked her what she did have and she responded with what do you want? We told her already what we wanted so we were confused by the response. Ended up getting a veggie combo and some lamb thing. All delicious of course. The injera was a bit dry, but I contribute that to being there early on a Saturday.
The 2^nd time I went I got take out. I got a veggie combo and beef tibs. Food was amazing and I wish I could eat it for every meal of my life but again, awful service! I had to wait for about ten minutes to pick up my food and then the server immediately walked away after I signed my credit card and did not return for a minute or two. So I assumed the bag of take out, which had my order receipt resting on top of it, was mine. So I took this and walked out. I was almost home (which mind you, took about 20 minutes) when I get a call saying that’s not your food, turn around. Talking to my mom later I should have just said I already started eating it and left. But damn it, I wanted my food!
But bad service aside, the food is realllyyyyyy amazing! So flavorful and the injera was much better the 2^nd time around. Definitely going to come back despite the crappy serivce.

Still very good. Nice employees and good food. We had a feast: Vegetarian Platter, Chicken Alicha, Yedoro Tibs and Beef. Everyone liked the food, even a friend who never tried Ethiopian liked everything.

Good food, quiet atmosphere (if you go between 3 and 6) The food is fresh and filling. 12 – 15 bucks for 2 people is a great deal if you’re looking for a quick and good eat with some cultural flair. My favorite is the tour of Ethiopia combo. It does the job. Sure it’s not the most glamorous looking place but it’s authentic, clean, and homely. I like if that way.
Is the service fast? No.
Don’t go when it’s busy. Period.
There’s one waitress. What do you expect?
It’s more of a «bar with a restaurant». It’s a go «stop and grub» spot. Period.

While passing through Philly, I stopped by this place to try the highly rated atmosphere. I grew up in Ethiopia and cook Ethiopian cuisine very well, so my expectations were very high to this restaurant.
The restaurant feels like an old funeral home in a third world country. The building is falling apart. The chairs are worn out, broken and tables are not stable. The curtains and table clothes have not been washed in a long time. You can spot food stains as well as dirt. Old carpet, peeling wall papers and unclean restrooms. I am surprised that the Department of Health has not cited this restaurant. This place would not make it in NYC or SF.
Major food ingredients are of very cheap quality. The chicken legs were not cleaned properly. Food lacked basic and appropriate spices. No garlic or ginger. The salad, lentils and stew dishes did not taste fresh. Again, I am impressed how this place continued to sell substandard quality ‘authentic’ food.
Plastic cups and plates to serve drinks and foods detract from the experience.
Never again. If you had similar experiences, please call the Department of Health to report this restaurant. The place is a public health hazard.

Ideally, I’d give them 2.5 stars but because of the lack of this functionality, I am giving them 3. I’ve been thoroughly unimpressed with Ethiopian food in Philly and this place did little to change that. That said, the food here was definitely better than at Almaz or ERA. Although, none of these three would be able to hold their own against the much better Ethiopian restaurants in NY, DC & Chicago.
I ordered the veggie combo. It was reasonably priced and the quantity was definitely sufficient. As with all Ethiopian restaurants in this city, the food lacked seasoning. The depth of their menu isn’t great either. Ethiopian places elsewhere usually have a lot of vegetarian options. Anyway, since this the only decent Ethiopian food I’ve had in Philly, I might return, not very willingly though!
Advice for Philly folks: if you haven’t had Ethiopian outside of this city, please do me a favor and try Awash in NYC or Ras Dashen in Chicago or one of the good Ethiopian places in DC. Maybe then you’ll realize how misplaced a 4 star rating is for a restaurant like Almaz.

Delicious Ethiopian food and at a bargain price. This is a little gem tucked away somewhere where UCity meets West Philly. Service is quick and very nice. Also if you’re checking out Fiume upstairs they’ll bring it to you at the bar.

As soon as you step in you are not 100% sure what to do. Do you wait? do you seat yourself? it’s all a little unclear. The hostess wasn’t super helpful but she did end up seating us without a wait (we went at a time where it was pretty empty.)
We ended up getting a non veg combo platter and it was pretty good. it definitely satisfied the Ethiopian craving but I wouldn’t say it was the best I’ve had.
the reason I mostly liked it was because the portions were big enough for two and were very reasonably priced.

Food was very good but it took 55 minutes to appear. Drinks were a bit quicker, only 20 minutes to show. Definitely will check out their neighbors next time.
My review would have been 4 stars if the server had informed us upfront that they were short staffed in the kitchen. They informed us AFTER the meal. The entire meal took us 2 hours and 45 minutes.
My suggestion would be to try the vegetarian and non-​vegetarian fare separately. I got Combo #1, which had both.
To summarize:
Food was 5 star for sure.
Wait (without being informed in advance) was frustrating.