Damera Ethiopian is Abyssinia

The house band opened with mesmerizing guitar, resonant congas and melodic keys. Slowly, the cadences uprooted us from the corner of Broadway and Lawrence to the Horn of Africa.  This is Damera Ethiopian.

Being moderate alcoholics, and fully cognizant of the necessity to feed addiction, we clock in with some Taj (honey wine) and Tella (Ethiopian pilsner).

While we drank you get skooled:

Ethiopia is one of the worlds oldest nations and lends some of the most dated traces of humanity.  It is the only country in Africa which fought off European tyranny during the “Scramble for Africa.”  These kats even have their own calendar (called the Ge’ez) so as far as Ethiopians are concerned, its currently the year 2000.

Shout outs to the Coptics.

After the success of Chicago’s Ethiopian Diamond and Ras Dashen, seems like every northside immigrant is coming out the woodwork, having a go at mainlining traditional Abyssinian cuisine.  So many tales of Halie Selassie and Shashamane…we were hopeful that this dining experience wouldn’t go up in smoke (pun intended).

The starter is Iab; a crumbled cheese which is basically spicy Greek feta.  It is served alongside Dabo (Amharic for bread) which is used for dipping.

While I’m talking bout dabo, let me just say I love sour foods just as much as the next guy, but I just can’t get down with injera.  It’s too fermented and too close to resembling some type of sea urchin.  Since I’ve severed ties with injera, we select four dishes and tell the waitstaff to keep the bread coming.

Clockwise from 12, we got Ye-Dichina: slow cooked carrots and potato with garlic and turmeric.  Ye-Awaze Tibs: chopped prime rib, green pepper and onion sauteed in a spicy red paste.  Gomen: collard greens blended in garlic and onions.  And Ye-Bug Wot: lamb stewed in Berbere sauce.  The green salad in the middle was complimentary and made my bowels happy.

Yessir, after putting down the platter of African delicacies, we hit the buna.  There’s no excuse in travelling this far and skipping the Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony.  Juan Valdez, GET LEARNED…Don’t try and act like you thought Columbia was the birthplace of coffee.  You see that Black Lion on the porcelain?

Anywayz, the clay pot holds six shot glasses worth of the worlds finest grains.  The first cup being the sweetest, then transitioning into a robust end known as Barakaor or “The Blessing.”  Be forewarned, this shit is strong, so skip the Red Bull and Vodkas at the late night spot.

Damera was my first time eating Ethiopian food outside of Ethiopia.  The experience reminded me of dusty roads leading through mountainous terrain where food and drink is the cornerstone of the culture.  I implore you…take the journey.