Merkato Ethiopian

We finally made it to Little Ethiopia this weekend and tried Merkato on Fairfax. I hope Merkato's not the best Ethiopian in LA, because I've had better in SF. I will say that Merkato was super cheap. $10 after tax and tip for six people to have lunch, coffee, and a total of two Cokes is nothing to complain about, and the restaurant is very cute in a completely casual way.


I loved the umbrellas on the ceilings, and these little saddled chairs were a hit with some little toddlers who came in to eat with their dad.


We started offwith pastries. One's filled with lentils, the other with beef. They're kind of like Indian samosas, but needed more spice.

Injera (bread) laden with our entree choices. We had an assortment of vegetables, a cooked beef, cooked chicken (in the bowl), and innards. Everything was fine, but could have used about twice as much spice and a pinch more salt than they used. The injera wasn't as sour as at most places I've been, but it depends on the audience to determine whether that's good or bad. Personally, I like it sour.

J and I ordered coffee while we waited for our friends, but it's supposed to be served after the meal. Actually, service here was so slow that it came right before our food, when our friends had already arrived. So timing was pretty off, but we're not sticklers for that kind of thing. It's just not somewhere to go if you're in a hurry.