Lalibela

After craving Ethiopian food for the past couple of weeks and making several unsuccessful attempts at cajoling friends to join me for some spongy bread (otherwise known as injera), I finally found a taker.  Thank you, Dianna (aka The Budget Babe), for making my day! 

We headed to Laliebela, my favorite little Ethiopian restaurant on Temple Street in New Haven.  I've eaten here several times for dinner and enjoyed the casual yet intimate atmosphere, attentive service, and the food.  For lunch, the setting is a little more informal as we learned there is just buffet service, but at $7.95 per person, you can really get your money's worth.  So, if you've never experienced Ethiopian food, this is a good way to get a sample, as well as an affordable and satisfying lunch. 

There were 6 vegetarian (all vegan) options and 2 meat options in separate chafing dishes, which meant that my selection was plentiful for a change.  I filled my plate with Yemisir Wat (spicy red lentil with berbere), Ater Kik (yellow split pea), Misir Alicha (green lentil), curried collard greens, Kosta (spinach and potato), and Gomen (cabbage and potato).  You could spoon a pile of white rice onto your plate, but I opted for the rolled up strips of injera, a spongy fermented flat bread made with teff flour.  This is one of the few breads I can eat since it's gluten-free, so of course, I indulged.  I'm already dreaming about my next visit.