Abyssinia - Rochester

We blindly chose Abyssinia because it was the only restaurant that had availability on OpenTable during the Rochester Jazz Festival. It is located in a dated strip mall, so we were a little skeptical as we drove up. We walked in the find it very empty which also made us nervous. There was only one woman hosting and serving, which was enough to cover the volume of customers. The menu was very nice and had many options. We started with an order of vegetable sambusas, which were like triangular egg rolls…can’t go wrong with fried crispy treats! We also got a bottle of Tej (honey wine) which is a traditional Ethiopian beverage but this was bottled on Seneca Lake…further reducing any skepticism. Very sweet, but helps with the spiciness of some of the food too. For the main dish, I chose the Abyssinia Special III that allowed me to sample several different options including beef, lamb and chicken because it was so hard to choose. It also came with small sides of salad and lentils. My wife ordered the Kik Alicha which was yellow split peas along with the same sides I had. Overall it was a great meal. Not very fancy and very quiet. They seem to get more takeout orders than dining in. Definitely worth a try.

Great food and great service! Not the fanciest place but very comfortable and clean.

Service was great even tho they were a server short. Food was good and meat portions were big. The veggie portions, however, were tiny and we definitely wish there had been more veggies.

Amazing food, extra nice and friendly people and ambience.

The restaurant has a modest appearance, being in a small shopping center, but the food is delicious and the service is warm and friendly. A real find.