| There’s a new Ethiopian restaurant in Calgary and, unlike its predecessors, Blue Nile and Marathon, this eatery is not in Kensington.
After renovating a former computer shop, husband and wife Zerfu and Azeb Mekonnen opened Queen of Sheba (239 - 12th Ave. S.W.; phone 234-7075) two months ago. When asked how their business will fare against its well-established brethren, Zerfu answers: "One day the people will drink from me and eat from the others, and the next day the people will drink from the others and eat from me." Could this be an old Ethiopian proverb?
The Queen of Sheba was sovereign of Abyssinia, or Saba, the ancient name of the kingdom in the vicinity of modern-day Ethiopia and Yemen. The most popular story tells of her visit to Israel’s King Solomon to test his legendary wisdom and the luxurious gifts she gave him for successfully answering her riddles. According to legend, the queen returned to Sheba and bore a son by Solomon, Menelik I, who became the first king of Ethiopia.
The first thing I noticed about this Queen of Sheba is its sparse interior. I’d like to cut them some slack since they’ve only been open a short while, but it’s a little disheartening to walk into a restaurant and not have a table dressed for your arrival. There isn’t glassware, napkins, a vase of flowers or even an Ethiopian curio on the navy-blue tablecloths. As well, the restaurant isn’t fully stocked, offering only one kind of juice and two kinds of beer (it’s working on importing some Ethiopian labels).
Ethiopian scenes painted on sheepskin canvases grace the walls and a traditional coffee bar is on display in the corner. Here, under a large palm frond, are all the ingredients for the sacred coffee ceremony – incense, coffee beans, espresso-style cups, low-set wooden seats and a mesob (a colourful wicker hourglass-shaped table). The restaurant roasts and brews its own blend of coffee. During my visit Ethiopian music played softly in the background, later changing to a soundtrack of birds chirping.
But what Queen of Sheba lacks in atmosphere and décor, Zerfu makes up for in personality and hospitality. Throughout the evening he makes his rounds, chatting to his patrons and happily answering questions about the cuisine of his country. Azeb is the cook.
A traditional menu includes beef, lamb and chicken, prepared in a wot, or thick stew. Many Ethiopians refrain from eating meat on Wednesdays and Fridays, so there’s a large repertoire of vegetarian dishes prepared with collards, cabbage, chickpeas, beans, split peas and lentils.
If you’re unfamiliar with Ethiopian food, it’s best to order one of the combination meals so you can try a number of dishes. We ordered the meat and vegetable dinner for two ($33); the same meal can be prepared for up to five people.
The different dishes are arranged in little piles on a large ceramic platter and served atop injera, the flat, spongy, pancake-like bread indigenous to Ethiopia. Injera, about 50 centimetres in diameter, is made from an African grain called teff and takes about eight hours to prepare. The meal included another piece of injera, which you tear into small pieces to scoop up bite-sized portions of food.
The meat dishes were comprised of lega tibs, tender cubes of leg of lamb marinated and sautéed with white wine and kibe – a clarified butter flavoured with as many as 30 different herbs, some of which are included in the hot sauce berbere (made up of a multitude of spices and herbs); keye wot, finely chopped pieces of lean beef seared on a hot skillet then slow-cooked in a hot berbere stew; and yebeg alicha, a mild stew of diced and on-the-bone lamb. The best and most well spiced dish was the kitfo – beef tartar seasoned with herbed butter sauce and mitmita (powdered chili peppers).
The vegetarian dishes consist of misir wot, split lentil stewed with onion, garlic and a blend of mild Ethiopian spices; gomen wot, collard greens; ater kik alicha, yellow split peas simmered in a mild sauce of onions, garlic and turmeric; and shiro, puréed split peas cooked with berbere, herbs and onions.
The restaurant features a weekday lunch buffet for $7. Queen of Sheba is a casual, homey eatery and the place to go if you’re craving Ethiopian cuisine and don’t want to make a big production out of your dining experience. |
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