Mmmm...Enjera

Did something yesterday that I NEVER thought I would do - went to an Ethiopian restaurant. On purpose. We were blessed to have our friends Joel and Stephanie, as well as our Kenyan brothers, Samu and Jey, join us as we ventured to Queen Sheba at Broadway & 17th (http://www.queenshebas.com/). I knew that even if the food was horrible, we would still have a blast because Samu and Jey, with their strong African accents and dreadlocks, are a laugh a minute!

The restaurant is on the smaller side, but very welcoming. There were various pieces of Ethiopian art on the walls, and Ethiopian instrumental music playing in the background. Zion (pronounced Zee-on), the owner, showed us to our seats and kindly left us with a stack of menus. We had NO idea where to start, but were comforted by the fact that the Kenyans with us assured us that we would never be the same (in a good way) and that there was a combination platter - relieving us from much of the decision making process. So, we ordered the combination platter for six with fresh mango juice, spiced Ethiopian iced tea, Ethiopian coffee spiced with cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom, and light Ethiopian beer.

Major God thing - while waiting for the food, and after lots of prodding, we learned some of our Kenyan brother's story, not the least of which was that he was a Compassion kid! Here we had been toying with the idea of taking a side trip to Uganda to visit the boy that we have been supporting for 10 years via Compassion, and we have now been told - first hand - that being visited by your sponsor is the BEST THING EVER! That it really does make a difference! Through Compassion, he was able to go to school and have uniforms to wear to school. What a blessing and what a difference we can make in the life of a child for less than it costs to fill up your gas tank one time. For more information, please visit: http://www.compassion.com/.

Then the food arrived!! It was an unbelievable sight! Picture this folks: A family-size pizza pan from your local pizzeria lined first with a couple layers of enjera (thin crepe-like pancake with sourdough flavor) and then topped, pinwheel-style, with about 10 different dishes, which we think included:

Chicken Tibbs:
Cubes of chicken breast sauteed w/onions, turmeric, garlic, and homemade spices
w/mixed vegetables.

Lamb Tibbs:
Cubes of fresh lamb sauteed w/purified butter & seasoned with onions, garlic
& ginger.

Beef Tibbs:
Tender chunks of lean beef sauteed with onion, garlic, bell peppers, and herbed/spiced
butter.

Fish Tibbs:
Cubes of selected fresh fish sauteed w/purified butter & seasoned with
onion, garlic, spiced rosemary.

Doro Wot: Famous Ethiopian chicken dish, simmered in spice, herbs,
special red pepper, onion, garlic & ginger, served with hard-boiled
eggs.

Gomen:
Cooked spinach/collard greens with fresh tomatoes, onions, garlic, and other
Ethiopian spices.

Kik Wot:
Yellow split peas with special garlic turmeric sauce.

Vegetarian Combination: Potatoes, carrots, cabbage.

Small green salad with in-house dressing.

Everything was very "stewy", a bit on the greasy side, and NO UTENSILS WERE PROVIDED! Folks, this is when it comes in very handy to have some Kenyans tagging along. The platter was served with two baskets of enjera (the crepe-like sourdough), which was rolled up like little ACE bandages, approximately 12-14 rolls per basket, an entire basket of which Samu handled pretty much all on his own.

So, the process goes a bit like this - tear off a chunk of enjera, then, as messily as you can, scoop up some "stoop" and shove it in your mouth as fast as you can. Only the fittest survive here, friends. It was INCREDIBLE! So flavorful, colorful, and DELISH! We demolished it, including the soggy enjera at the bottom of the platter, which is kind of like the heart of the artichoke - definitely the best part. I was a little worried about having to "take a drive" (the Kenyan term for diarrhea), but no repercussions whatsoever (sorry if that's TMI for ya). And, there is nothing better than fresh mango juice to wash it down with! Absolutely incredible!

The owner's niece was kind enough to turn crank up some Ethiopian tunes with accompanying video for us, and we were all amazed at the double-jointed, spastic moves that were so impressively performed. Seriously...amazed.

Our Kenyan friends were kind enough to share with us that Ethiopian women are THE most beautiful African women...well, aside from Kenyans that is. Their hair is soft and beautiful, and the male hair is great for dreads! Woo hoo!

We were a bit disappointed to hear that had we come for dinner that night we would have been in the company of many families who have adopted children from Ethiopia and a traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony. Gonna have to make sure that we don't miss that next time.

Next time, you say? Yes, next time, and the time after that, and the time after that. We can't wait to take the girls, other friends, family...whoever is willing. We LOVED it, and it was amazing to learn more about the culture of our precious awaiting child. It will be a part of our lives from this point on, and we feel so blessed that God has introduced us to the beautifulness that is Ethiopia.

Many, many heartfelt thanks to Joel, Stephanie, Samu, and Jey. Our first taste of Ethiopia would not have been the same without you!