Abyssinia Authentic Ethiopian Cuisine Restaurant & Bar

First time having Ethiopian food, and what a wonderful experience it was!
I went with my friends and her family, with a total of about 11 of us. We decided to share for each table, getting the big plates of Ethiopian cuisine (which came recommended by the server). We thought we wouldn’t have enough food, but boy, were we wrong! There was such a variety of options, from lamb, butter cabbage, chicken, beef, greens and many other options! Using the bread (which does taste a lot like sourdough, in my opinion), you scoop up the delectable food and eat it that way.
It was such a fun and delicious experience! Everyone was so full and the service was excellent! He made sure we were good on drinks and taught us the proper way to eat the traditional food. Overall, this was such a unique experience and I am already planning on going back!

I’m not sure I’m well equipped to review ethnic Ethiopian food as I’ve had to experience with it other then one restaurant in town. So to say it’s not for me is probably the best way to put it. On a week night, we were the only 2 people in the restaurant. The location is downtown so I’m sure most are in their suburban nook by this time. I ordered the veggie combo which looked like a lot of food when it came out served on a giant Sombrero. When in actuality it was small dollops of the dishes which were all mostly tasty, just kind bland. The lamb dish we ordered was tiny for the price and the lamb so overdone I would call it lamb bacon. They were cut into tiny squares no bigger then a peanut and chargrilled with bell peppers and onions. Would I recommend this place, it’s an interesting place to try so give it a shot. It might be right up your alley, it just wasn’t for me.

Was there last night. What a wonderful adventure. We tried the appetizer sampler, and found nothing but great tastes. My wife tried the dori wad and was very impressed. She agreed with other reviews — the egg is a key. I had the lamb. I went mild curry but could have gone a bit spicier (my fault for not listening to the waiter). I loved the side vegies. The lamb filled me up, but as we sat and talked I kept eating more. Great food and great service. We would definitely go again!

This was my first step into Ethiopian food. Oh. My. Gosh. So good. AND AND AND… You get to eat it all with your hands. Between the five of us that were there, we shared a veggie platter for two and a meat platter for two. I honestly couldn’t tell what was what so I just kept frying everything. Veggie or meat, whatever it was I was grabbing at was flavorful and amazing. The Baklava was also AMAZING. It was fresh and flaky and still warm. I am looking forward to going back.

There is definitely a reason that this place has 4.5 stars overall!
I have walked by this place many, many times. It isn’t much too look at, inside or out. So I always passed it by. DO NOT MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE AS ME!
This was my first time having Ethiopian food, and it was high on my list of things to try for a very long time. I just needed someone to go with me. This time, some friends and I were at Meta for a post-​work drink and decided we needed some food after our cocktails. So up the street we went to Abyssinia.
Best. Decision. Ever.
We got sambusas to share. Next time… I’m going to get some… and refuse to share. And since there were 5 of us, and a few of us had never had Ethiopian before, we settled on all sharing a veggie sampler for two and a meat sampler for two. THERE WAS SO MUCH FOOD. And it was all sooooooo good. I think my favorite part was the peas (it looked like mashed potatoes but tasted better) and the beef. But really, it was all amazing. And we ended with perhaps some of the best baklava ever… but I might just feel that way because it was warm and duh-​licious!
And for how much food there was (and I left with enough leftovers for 2 more meals) and how much I ate, it wasn’t like weigh-​you-​down-​heavy kind of food.
The waiter was great, friendly and attentive. And he was able to split the check for 5 people in to three checks, without issue.
A great experience that I only wish I could have had sooner!

Great service, Awesome food, great location… In the heart of the city. They also have honey wine.

Tasty lunch Buffett with great prices! The owner is really nice and you can tell he cares about his restaurant! If you’ve never tried Ethiopian you should give this place a try!

So I went to Queen of Sheba about a week and a half prior to coming here, another authentic Ethiopian restaurant, and I wanted to compare the two. The food was good here, I got the spicy lamb tips (which actually weren’t that spicy) and my friend got the beef, also spicy/​but not quite. The presentation of his beef was a bit sloppy and difficult to put together. The beef was finely chopped like taco meat, as opposed to cubed which is how we thought it would come. My lamb was cubed though so it was easier to eat. Like I said, the food tasted good, and the atmosphere was alright. But I would personally recommend Queen of Sheba over this one. The quality is just higher there.

Found this place on Unilocal while staying nearby. It’s the first time I’ve had Ethiopian food and I’ve only had it once since. So this review is based only on the fact that it tasted really, really good; and better than the Ethiopian restaurant in Chicago that I tried after enjoying this one so much. The service was good. The server’s English was just so-​so and that led to some confusion while ordering. But it was a cool place with a good vibe and absolutely delicious food. The highlight of my Louisiana trip.

I have to wonder if Abyssinia adds the word «Authentic» to their name to distinguish them from nearby Addis, which also offers «Mediterranean» items. But yeah, it’s authentic and quite good. I understand they even have a reasonably priced lunch buffet.
A group of us came here for dinner on a slower night. We had no problem getting a larger table, and we were given plenty of time to study the menu to figure out how 7 of us could most efficiently order appetizer combos, dinner for 2 combos, and extras to satisfy a large and odd number of people. Fortunately, we were given enough time to do this — which you can also translate to «casual service.» But once we ordered, the food came out reasonably fast.
We had a humorous — what I would call — faux pas during the appetizers. One of the dishes we ordered came out in a bowl, with injera, but the injera was filled with a carrot and bean mixture, so that wasn’t really what we wanted for scooping. So we pointed out to the waitress we had no way to eat what was in the bowl, and she brought us… FORKS. That was just weird and unexpected. We ordered a mix of beef, chicken, and lentil sambosas. These were quite good, only mildly spicy, but slightly smaller than what I’ve had at other restaurants. They were accompanied by a wasabi sauce, a spicier red sauce and a cinnamon (not cardamom) powder, all of which enhanced the flavors nicely.
We ordered a combination of meat and vegetarian combos and an extra portion of a lamb dish. Everything but the lamb came out on a single platter, with a large amount of injera, and more available on request. The lamb dish was awkward, because it was in a hot pot, and if you were not careful scooping it, you scalded your fingers.
Other than that our meal and overall experience were very enjoyable. Everyone was satisfied, even the folks less comfortable with this style of meal or experiencing it for the first time. I was not able to get to all the well-​recommended Ethiopian restaurants in Louisville (did not get to Queen of Sheba), but I was definitely glad to have come here.

–1 Star for not having Kitfo (raw steak tartare); on menu, but should be ordered in advance. Injera (as others mention, not 100% teff, but that means it’s finer textured than the pure versions).
But besides those minor things, this is quite decent Etrean cuisine for being as far as you can get from the ingredient sources. Spices are toned down a bit, but you can have them kick it up a notch or three, if you’re inclined (the typical level of Ethiopian «spicy» can make you think North Indian hot is domesticated).
Excellent vegetables and textures. Lentil curries are outstanding. Generous portions sound.
Desserts are more of an obligatory menu addition, being baklava (home made, though) and a cheese cake — but it’s not a usual course here anyway.
For a great coffee kick, try the «coffee experience» reminiscent of Greek or Arabian super brews (but Etrea is a cradle of coffee production going back further than South America, and they take it very seriously.) Tea is pretty fun, too — think like an Indian masala brew.
Forks are provided (if you’re incompatible with traditional hand fed eating), as is rice instead injera, for a gentile experience. But do try the real things and methods at least once; textures are part of the qualities of great cradle of civilization cuisines.
Louisville is growing global (in more ways than just shipping a lot of UPS packages.)

Very enjoyable experience. Perfect selections for vegetarians. I prefer this injera over the Queen of Sheba but the Queen has more main course options. Each dish was pleasantly prepared and good combination of flavors.
Service was typical for this type of establishment– laid back but fulfilled the needs of customers.
Price is reasonable. We will return another time for sure and have recommended it to others.

Even more so than Indian food, Ethiopian cuisine is well suited to a buffet. Since most of the dishes are stews of some sort, nothing really dries out, and the longer a dish sits the better it gets. (And unlike Indian flatbreads, which have a very short shelf life, injera doesn’t readily dry out or otherwise go stale.)
And so it goes with the lunch buffet here, which features all the dishes (and then some) that you would expect to find on a typical Ethiopian combination platter. Every item is fantastic, and the preparation here is less greasy/​salty than it is at Queen of Sheeba.
Not only that, but at only $ 8 the buffet would be a bargain at twice the price.

If you haven’t eaten here, and have had the chance… then you are blowing it. This place is excellent. Perfectly free of crowds just one block from 4^th Street Live.
The food is great. The service was kind and quick. And I left full on a $ 10 dinner. Not to mention that it was the best dining experience that I have had all year.
I am not a vegetarian but I had the vegetarian combo; excellent!
Do yourself a favor and eat here.

Five stars for an underpriced family restaurant — to get better décor, you’d have to increase the prices by double. You can’t do better than this in the genre. We ate here twice during four days in Louisville. It was just so good we had to go back.
Teff is the major portion of the meal. It is the grain from which Ethiopians make injira, the bread that serves as both platter and spoon. We had an injira salad which was chopped vegetables and olive oil with chopped injira. It was a meal in itself. But then we had chicken with kale and sweet peppers and the vegetarian combo, which included red lentils, regular lentils and collard greens. Potatoes and cabbage came along for the ride, though they weren’t mentioned in the menu. Two large pieces of injira each to go along with the injira on which these dishes were served completed the meal, though I added some of the hot spices served on the side out of deference to my wife’s tender palate. For those who like red meat there is more red meat than chicken on this menu. We got all this plus a glass of wine and a beer for $ 33 before the tip. Which had to be generous given the friendly and efficient service.
Listen to me: eat here. It’s good stuff.

Yum absolutely delicious! Friendly service, affordable, excellent and authentic food. Definitely returning to this buffet:) Injera bread wrap it with chicken and lentils yum spice kick! Happy belly.

This place is a gem! Dined for the first time and ordered the meat combo x 2… served in a giant wicker basket on injera. the lamb was sooooooo tender, the beef was sweet and spicy and the red lentils were superb… been driving by this place daily for two years… thrilled I finally stopped… wonderful staff… ridiculously low prices and AMAZING food… my new favorite place!

Tasty food, really friendly staff! Really low-​key on the Thursday night my friends and I went, and a very comforting setting. I think I’d prefer eating here anytime spring to summer to fall, but for winter time, I wanted hotter food for a warmer belly upon leaving; but that’s more my personal preference and not a complaint. I got the chicken and mustard greens dish (spicy) and liked it, but my brother got the meat combination plate, and the lamb was so good that I’ll be ordering that the next time I go. Good food, great people, and a lovely experience overall!

Surprisingly good Ethiopian food in Louisville.
I had to be in Louisville for business, and I was so excited to learn that I could get well-​yelped Ethiopian food two blocks from my hotel.
I tried Abyssinia for dinner. I was the sole patron (they must do more lunch or weekend business), but the waitress was very attentive, and the food tasted fresh and good.
I had the gomen besiga, and it was seasoned as well as I’ve ever had. The beef wasn’t especially tender, but the spices were right on. The injera was perfect — the right amount of tartness and the perfect texture. The side salad was blah, and the accompanying vegetables were fine but nothing great.
I also had a fruit smoothie, and at least one of the fruits tasted a little past due date. I wish they served Ethiopian mead or at least some wine other than Gallo.

Outstanding Ethiopian in Louisville, again! Of all places!
So, Abyssinia and Queen of Sheba both get five stars in my book. I give Abyssinia a slight edge, however, due to the following:
1) More authentic plating — they serve the combo platters in a tray on a whicker basket, which I take as more traditional
2) Spice sides — they provide additional spices if you’re so interested on the side, I think it’s berbere, tumeric, and wasabi.
The food is excellent, and they are very serious about teas and coffees. They even have a tea that comes with incense, which was awesome.
The injera is very good with a good sense of sponginess to it, and not too sour. This is because it’s not 100% teff. They do not have a gluten-​free injera option.
Service is decent for Ethiopian restaurants, in that the servers seem pleasant and not bored/​annoyed. It’s still a bit slow, but if you’re in a rush they have a lunch buffet which locals seem to enjoy. I’d say the crowd is somewhat sophisticated with a mix of business folks, hipster types, and locals dining at the bar.
They don’t take AMEX, but that’s only a minor annoyance.