Awash Ethiopian Restaurant

Awash was a lovely 5 star place, with delicious food and wonderful friendly staff. Sadly, they are now CLOSED, and I am sad.

Just get it all. Get everything on the menu and enjoy everything. Everything is great. You eat with your hands, so don’t be a dummy, go wash your hands. And then get everything on the menu and enjoy everything.

A first time Ethiopian diner, so let’s get that out front. Tried to order the #11 and was told I really wanted the 10. I took his, we’ll be nice and call it advice, for I was a first timer as i said. I’ve googled pics of Ethiopian dishes afterwards and can find nothing anywere close to what I was served. The lamb was bland and full of nonchewable pieces. Bland is not what Ethiopian food is said to be about. I took a picture and wish I could load it up here. Beside the lamb I got the cottage chees and injera as was discribed. Nothing else came with it and it clearly had vegetables listed. The Plate was quite dirty below the injera the meal was served on.

I really would come here every day just about if I lived close enough! The food is amazing, the environment mellow and warm.

I’ve had a couple of wonderful experiences here. Delicious food and wine and a charming hostess. I would highly recommend it.

–1 star due to smaller portions.
We placed a large take out order (1 special combo, 1 veggie, and 1 lamb tibs). It was about $ 50 which isn’t bad considering that 1 combo can feed 3−4ppl.
It was disappointing. The veggie combo was extremely light, lacking heft and quantity. The lamb tibs amount was just ok, could have done for more spice and chopped jalapeño. The special combo was of medium heft but was jammed packed with flavor (which is always the case with the meat dishes). Loved the chicken drumstick and hardboiled egg. But still, 3 meals barely fed 4 hungry adults and 2 children. I mean, for the price point, it’s still a good deal, but comparing to how we knew things used to be, this was a bit hard to swallow.
This is in parallel to an eat-​in experience with 4 adults and 2 combos a few months prior. In addition to the smaller portions, service was well meaning, but not fulfilled. I had asked for small plates for us all instead of using napkins to rest our injera on (or the edge of the large saucer plates) and received one small bowl. When I repeated my request, the bowl was taken away and one small plate appeared. By then it was about halfway through our meal so I gave up.
I will continue to have a soft spot for Awash as my very first Ethiopian experience, but seeing as I have a few closer good contenders, we probably won’t be visiting Awash for a while. Thanks for the memories!

Without exaggeration the worst customer service I’ve ever received at a restaurant.
I just returned from a dinner at Awash where I attempted to use a
certificate that I bought a year or so ago. These certificates do not expire, no matter what restaurant you bought them for.
When I attempted to ask what our bill was to make sure I was meeting the criteria of the Restau​rant​.com certificate (the certificate was for $ 25 but we had to spend $ 35 for it to be valid), the waitress said she would not accept it and brought in the owner.
When he came out he proceeded to argue with me for well over five minutes, in front of my friends and the other patrons of the restaurant, about how he was no longer accepting Restaurant.com’s certificates. This was news to me, as it is clearly marked on the certificate that there is no expiration date. He blamed me for not using it earlier, despite the clear marking that it would not expire. He refused to honor it, even after I told him that despite living walking distance away that I would not return to his restaurant if he continued to blame me for using the certificate.
I told him that paying the full bill would be a huge shock to my budget as I am unemployed and had so looked forward to taking my friends out to eat for once. He then relented and said he would contribute. He only contributed $ 10, $ 15 short of the $ 25 I was expecting. By that point, however, I wanted to leave very badly so as not to lose whatever cool I had left, so we paid in cash and got out of there.
I will absolutely never return to Awash. It ruined my night, my husband’s night, and that of my friends. It’s really too bad as we walked there tonight and the food is good, but I will never risk the chance of spending my night arguing (and being upset about it) again.

If you like spice…

Mediocre food & service. Short staffed. Nice waitress. Inexpensive.

Great vegetarian combination (also vegan) — good service — moderate prices.
The only downside is that the room is heavily incensed and you definitely smell like incense and ethiopian food afterwards!

I love Awash. My friend & I had our 2^nd date there nearly a year to the date of my 2^nd time dining there last Sunday so I was already fond of the establishment.
Although our food took a little longer than I would have like to arrive, once it did it was on. We shared the #18, which had lamb, beef, and chicken alongside various veggie dishes served on a huge round plate. I love going to town on the various dishes using nothing but my hands. The waitress was kind and attentive. I look forward to going again.

Really not-​so– great experience here last time; dirty tableware, lukewarm food, really slow service…
I’ve tried it a few times, and honestly, though I really want to like it, I think you could do much better, even within the neighborhood.

I have to start by saying that I have never eaten Ethiopian food before.
HOWEVER, after today I am a FAN! I shared the vegetarian combination and there was so much that a third of the food remained. The food is very well priced; including tax and tip the cost was $ 13 for two people for lunch.
The lunch combination had three different lentil dishes, okra, collared greens, a cabbage and potato mixture, as well as a salad. The food was served on a warm roti-​like bread – I would describe it as a sourdough crêpe of sorts, with an additional two more on the side.
The combination was wonderful because it offered so many different flavors and was vegetarian-​friendly to boot! The service was good; although we were the only patrons present today…
I look forward to eating at Awash again and again, and plan to bring more friends and family!

This restaurant was okay. We had a combination platter. I think if you’ve never had Ethiopian food before, this place may be a good spot for you.
Food: Not very spicy. The Tibs was less than average because lacked the bold flavors I’ve had at other restaurants. The Doro Wat was pretty good. I think the berbere to meat ratio was a little high but still tasty. They gave two generous sized chicken legs. The veggies were good, of the Ethio lentils I’ve had, this is by far my favorite. The injera was really thick, the texture was stiff and the flavor was a little too mild for me.
Service: Service was pretty good. The waitress was friendly. Usually when I go to an Ethiopian restaurant, I’m there for at least 90 minutes — usually closer to two hours. This whole process only took us about an hour.
Conclusion: Not my favorite Ethio restaurant, I probably wouldn’t come there just for myself, but I would definitely take my parents/​grandma because everything seemed to have more mild flavors than I’m used to-​my parents have had the injera before and they didn’t like it because it tasted too strong. I think they would appreciate Awash’s more mild flavor.

This place taught me that when I go out for Ethiopian, I need to get the combination platter. It is delicious and is fun/​perfect to share with some friends. The other thing I learned was that the food should be eaten right away because it tastes kind of weird the next morning (after the sauces have soaked into that amazing bread…)
As for the atmosphere… I’m not sure what to think. It was bustling only one of the times I’ve been there. The rest of the times I was getting take-​out and would find the place empty except for a couple of men sitting at the bar. I do remember them being open later than a lot of the businesses, though, and THAT was a big plus.

This is a true Ethiopian gem in Columbia City (on Rainier Ave. S). I recommend the lentils with saffron and hand-​made crepes. The lamb was a bit tough, but flavorful. There aren’t any utensils, so you also get the added fun of using your hands!

I went here on a spur-​of-​the-​moment trip with a person who was knowledgeable about Seattle’s Ethiopian cuisine. She says it’s one of the best, most authentic places to eat Ethiopian food in Seattle. She says that it gets really fun around 11 on Friday nights. We went in the early evening on a Wednesday. It’s a hole-​in-​the-​wall place with drab décor. We ordered the combination plate and shared. I liked mixing the red and green stuff together as well as the lamb. It was a ton of food, and we had quite a bit leftover between us. It was my first Ethiopian cuisine experience, so I have a hard time comparing it to anything substantive. The food was good and plentiful, the prices cheap, and the service reasonable given where you are and what you’re eating.

I want to love you Awash, because I am your neighbor and your server is such a nice woman. However, the quality of your food continues to degrade. In fact, the last time I ordered your vegetarian platter (an old staple), your yellow lentils were so watered down that we would have rather you left them off the plate entirely. Additionally, other items were old and cold – one even tasted like it came in contact with cleaning supplies. Perhaps you are more interested in your nightlife, which I can understand because I’m sure it pays better.
I want to support you, truly I do, but Café Ibex is not much further away, is much more consistent, and has far better flavor profiles.

It had been many years since I had Ethiopian food until I came here recently. I enjoyed the food and thankfully, my body seemed to be ok with it as well.
So, the food was quite good. My pal and I ordered the meat plate. For me, it was some of the best Ethiopian food I’ve ever had. In part, I think it was because it was blander than most so keep that in mind if you like it really spicy. I particularly liked the okra portion. I had not had that before.
It seems like in all Ethiopian restaurants service is slower than other kinds of places. This was no exception. However, for an Ethiopian restaurant, it was the fast!
The décor? Well, not much has changed in this place. It used to be called Fasica and they still have some of the posters up that were up then! However, they do have some very pretty glass lamps that help it look more pretty.
One complaint? My soda arrived in a warm can and a glass half filled with ice and pool of water in the bottom off the glass. More ice! Less water! Colder soda! Please!
I think if you like Ethiopian food you will enjoy this place. And this might even be a good place to start for those wanting an introduction to it. Just order the meat or vegetarian combo and have fun! (The combo can feed 2 – 4 people depending on appetites.)

My most favorite Ethiopian restaurant in Seattle.
Wonderful vegetarian plate (vegan) that is plenty for two for $ 9.99.
Great for groups of friends or family (kids included).
Comfortable atmosphere and open late on the weekends being that they have a dj playing music, world beats and reggae with a small dance floor.
Service is slow but the food is worth it. Just order a Hakim stout and bring a friend to chat with while you wait.