Skip your morning joe at one of the big name coffee houses and head to Gojo Café where owner Atkilt Asefa Meshesha will serve you coffee in the traditional Ethiopian way. The Ethiopian coffee ceremony is a hallmark of that country’s culture, and it’s a tie to home Atkilt wanted to maintain at Gojo Café when he took it over in 2012.
“We offer the full service, which can seat up to eight or nine people,” he explains. “The full ceremony has popcorn and incense…and the coffee is roasted fresh. It’s organic from back home in Ethiopia - we have green beans. We roast it in front of our customers…but they can smell it before we grind it.”
All dishew served with injera
Gojo veggie special Combo
Cabbage, green beans and carrot, miser wat spinach & kik aliche
Gojo special veggie
Green been carrots, peppers & onions sauteed in garlic and tomato, spinach and cabbage
Mesir Wot
Spilt red lentils cooked in berebere (Ethiopian paprika) served with injera
Keke Alecha
Chickepeas sauteed with onions, garlic, ginger and turmeric
Yeshiro wet
Chickpeas flour sauteed with onions and garlic with salad
Side order shiro wet
Gojo veggie and meat special combo
Gojo veggie special combo with yesega wot (Cubed beef stew simmered (slowly cokked) with onion ginger, garlic, ethiopian spicy paprika sauce
Fish goulash (house special)
Gojo special fish goulash (spiced with owate, onion, G.pepper, garlik tomato
All dishes served with injera
Doto Tibs
Boneless and skinless chicken breast sauteed in clarified butter with onions, red green bell peppers and garlic, ginger with swaze (hot pepper)
Doro Alicha
Boneless and skinless chicken breast seasoned with ginger, rosemary, red green, bell peppers sauteed in clarified butter sauce
Beef Tibs (Awaze or neche)
Tender beef sauteed with rosemary, garlic, ginger red, green bell peppers in clarified butter with awaze sauce
Lamb tibs (Awaze or neche)
Tender lamb sauteed with rosemary garlic ginger, red green bell peppers in clarified butter with awaze sauce
Gomen be siga
Sauteed beef, collard greens, onions and papers, spiced with peppercoms and cardamom
Yesiga wat
Cubed beef gently cooked in berebere (Ethiopian paprika) sauce until tender
Kitfo
Lean tender beef seasoned with mitmited, cardamom and clarified butter with cheese on the side
Goko firfir
Cubed beef and vegetables in butter sauce mixed with injera
Lamb kikil
Braised lamb very slowly cooked and seasoned with ginger, rosemary, and a touch of jalapeno pepper in butter sauce
Doro wat
Chicken breast gventy cooked in berebere (ethiopian paprika) sauce until tender and served with a hard boiled egg
Bozena shiro
Chickpeas flour and beef simmmered in (Ethiopian paprika) sauce
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For truly attentive service without being overbearing and for a taste of house-made tej (honey wine) head to Gojo Café on Commercial Drive just south of 12th. All the usual offerings are here, with the vegetarian portions occasionally being on the small side. But the variety should satisfy and the warm, spicy meat dishes are sure to satiate that craving for Ethiopian. And be sure to finish the meal with their traditional coffee ceremony — a welcome authentic touch.
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