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Axum Cafe
Category: Restaurants Ethiopian Ethiopian [Edit]
698 Haight St(between Steiner St & Pierce St)
San Francisco, CA 94117
Neighborhood: Lower Haight
(415) 252-7912
- Hours:
Mon-Sun 5:30 pm - 10 pm
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Dive-y, Casual
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Caters:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
321 reviews for Axum Cafe
Review Highlights
-
"Great food, awesome honey wine and fabulous prices." In 40 reviews -
"The food is authentic (the injera had enough teff." In 67 reviews -
"love love love the veggie combo." In 29 reviews
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- A Yelpy Insight: Vegetarians go nuts for this spot. See more places they like.
321 reviews in English
-
Review from Anthony H.
San Francisco, CA
My co-worker and I decided to go out to this ethiopian restaurant because it was nearby and we haven't had ethiopian in forever! I love ethiopian food and this place definitely lived up to my expectations. It's a small sit down / take out restaurant on the corner of Haight and Pierce. When we went it had a pretty quiet atmosphere.
We ordered the veggie platter for two ($17.00) and split it between us. It has samples of all 5 different veggie entrees. We finished nearly all of it and towards the end we were full but continued to eat because it was so good.
Just make sure to remember they have a credit card minimum of $10 so either use one card and spend over $10 or bring cash. My friend and I wanted to split the bill but we both didn't have cash on us and they weren't too happy about it. They said each card has to be over $10. I'll for sure go back. -
Review from Christopher R.
San Francisco, CA
4/22/2012 1 Check-in Here
Loved it!
We had the Vegetarian Plate for 2. I'm vegan and my friend is a meat eater and we were both highly satisfied. We came on my friend's recommendation and she raves that this is her favorite Ethiopian spot in the country. I have to admit, I was impressed.
The food is deceptively filling as well. When it all came out, I thought I'd be leaving menially satiated but we couldn't even finish the plate.
I didn't give a full five stars because the service was a little lacking. Water cups were empty for a good while. I appreciate not being hounded by eager waiters but this was a little to the extreme. Also, the combination of Ethiopian food with 90's country music playing in the back ground confused me (but I think I liked it). -
Review from Carolyn F.
San Francisco, CA
3/16/2012
Our group of 5 ordered 2 meat dishes, veg platter for 4, 2 pitchers of beer, and one glass of honey wine for a total bill of about $98. Pretty cheap and filling!
Note, although we ordered the meat dishes separately from the veg, everything came out on one huge platter.....so veg people breaking bread with carnivores should say something if they don't want meat juices spoiling their food.
The two meat dishes were #2 and #5 (both beef dishes). Both were a little greasy and spicy (#2 was spicier), but I liked #5 more. It seemed to have more chunks of meat while #2 was saucier and more single-noted in flavor.
The veg platter (choose for 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 people) had a sample of all 5 of their vegetarian dishes. I thought the lentils, which were creamy and spicy, were the best. The potato was also good although some of the chunks were big enough to count as a whole small potato. The mushrooms were okay in terms of flavor (spicy and a little acidic) but also pretty greasy. Chickpeas, one of the only non spicy dishes, was a good counter though otherwise nothing extraordinary.
All in all, the food was solid and pretty good. There's nothing subtle about the cooking or spices, but it's great for a filling dinner spent with friends (sharing food with your hands is fun!). The service was friendly and attentive enough. Our group walked in around 8pm on a Thurs night and was able to nab a table without a wait. -
Review from Gökçe Ç.
San Francisco, CA
4/29/2012
I love this place. Food is quick and amazing, prices are much cheaper than any other Ethiopian place. Strongly suggested.
-
Review from Marilen B.
Richmond, CA
3/2/2012
I used to come here all the time when I lived in the Haight. It was always reasonably priced and yummy. Came back last night after many years... Still pretty yummy, but they def are much better doing the veggie dishes than the meat ones.
My one complaint is the service. It's pretty hit-or-miss depending on the waitress' mood. While I don't mind if she's watching tv in restaurant, she should still be cognizant of the fact that she's at work. After 10 mins of trying to get her attention for more water (spice totally snuck up on me), I had to pretty much holler "Excuse me." While I understand she might've thought it was rude, I also didn't think being ignored when my throat was burning like mad when the restaurant was practically empty and she was only watching tv at the moment was all that pleasant either. -
Review from Valerie W.
Fremont, CA
2/29/2012
Tastyyy!
My friend and I shared the vegetarian plate for two. The crepe-like flatbread (injera, right?) was definitely as sourdough-y as I expected. But I liked the texture and it was just for scooping up the rest of the food anyways! The lady working there had a serious face, but she was pretty hilarious once we started chatting her up. My favorites were the chickpea and the lentil dishes. They were so tasty and creamy (and don't contain any cream in it either!). I'd come back to try the meat dishes.
Extra points for letting me eat with my hands!! -
Review from carolina S.
San Francisco, CA
4/9/2012
First of all, their website is down so I can't even tell you what I ordered. Second, when I came here with my friend, it was because we lived a block away and in the Lower Haight, this was the only place to find Ethiopian cuisine. I loved the service we had from the owner's children, who seemed very friendly and wanted to make sure if we had any questions about the menu. I ordered a vegetarian option which was pretty good, but not the best. The flavors were slightly lacking (I've had much better experiences with Ethiopian in DC...), so when I do find a better spot in San Francisco, I'll review it on Yelp.
-
Review from Cynthia D.
Millbrae, CA
3/19/2012
Great food & good drinks at a reasonable price!! The vegetarian platters are amazing!! I will definitely go back soon.
-
Review from Sunni B.
3/15/2012
not the best ethiopian food ive had to date, but still pretty good.
our waitress was really great though. -
Review from Andrew P.
San Jose, CA
2/10/2012
I wanted to like this place more, but generally I can say San Jose Ethiopian restaurants are much more authentic, and better.
The Injera here was too light in color and I don't think it was gluten free, so not 100% teff.
Food otherwise was great, but having great injera makes a big difference. -
Review from Catriona C.
11/9/2011
Seriously disappointed here. Visited Lower Haight to check out another Ethiopian cafe which had sadly shutdown, so we were overjoyed to find out there was another one in Upper Haight with relatively decent Yelp reviews. Bah humbug I say, this lead me to believe the food was good (yes folks, another Yelp fairy died as a result of this finding).
The cafe was pretty busy - busy enough to keep the staff moving around. We ordered - vegetarian for me, meat for my two companions. Happily offered and served on two separate plates so no cross meat contamination. However, the food was lukewarm bordering on cold, and who likes cold injera? We hadn't waited super long, but the food clearly had seen better days. Spinach was over spicy and unpleasant, chickpea puree was decent but overall, the whole meal was absent on the enjoyment factor. The boys didn't enjoy their meat dishes either. Axum definitely isn't an option for quality Ethiopian dining, and it won't be an option for me again. -
Review from Jay D.
Savannah, GA
2/24/2012 1 Check-in Here
This place is great. We had the spicy chk and the flavor was wonderful. Great little hole in the wall place.
-
Review from Cathy Y.
7/30/2011 1 Check-in Here
Tasty, filling, and dirt cheap. Don't come here for the service or the ambiance, come for the tasty Ethiopian food that fills you up for under $10.
I had the vegetarian sampler with the chickpeas, mushrooms, and potato/cabbage. All three were good, but the potato blew the other two out of the water. Highly recommend!
You definitely have to wash your hands after - this is not a place to impress your date - but eating with the injera was quite fun. -
Review from Sunshine S.
San Francisco, CA
9/12/2011
Great food, awesome honey wine and fabulous prices!
I dined here tonight for the first time with 5 friends. I have been dying to try this place but for some reason never got around to it. It was well worth the wait. We ordered 2 veggie platters and 3 meat dishes along with 2 bottles of honey wine. The bill came out to only about $20 a person with tip. Not bad at all. I highly recommend the steak dish and lamb, but really you can't go wrong with anything on the menu.
I can't wait to go back :) -
Review from Erin C.
Oakland, CA
8/30/2011
My friend and I were in the neighborhood this past Sunday afternoon and were craving Ethiopian food, and Axum was the only place we could find that was open and close by. We were looking to try someplace where neither one of us had been, so this seemed perfect.
We walked into a fairly small, casual looking restaurant where our waiter greeted us right away and offered us menus. We decided on the vegetarian platter for two that had five different options on it including chickpeas, lentils, mushrooms, potatoes with cabbage and salad. We asked our waiter if we could also have a chicken dish, to which he replied, "No. We don't do that." Um, okay.
When our food arrived, my friend asked for a spoon because he didn't want to eat so much of the the injera. Our waiter's condescending response was, "it's finger food," but reluctantly brought him a spoon anyway, stating, "I hope this is okay, it's a tea spoon." Again...um, okay.
The platter was awfully small for $17, and we gobbled it up quickly. But not before our waiter asked us about halfway through our meal if we "knew what everything was," and did we "know what we were eating." Seriously?!?! Now, I should mention that I don't think that he was being rude, condescending and disrespectful on purpose. I think he was just a very "young" 18 year-old guy, who wasn't very worldly and didn't know any better. But I digress...back to the food...
Speaking from experience, the same platter in NYC is nearly twice the size for the same price and much tastier. The platter we had should have been an appetizer for half the price. My friend made a comment that I thought was a good point...for that price and those food choices, it should have been "all you can eat." I could ALMOST dismiss those things had the food blown my socks off. But, unfortunately, it didn't do much to my socks or my taste buds. It wasn't bad, it was just... unforgettable.
So, $17 (plus tip) later as we were walking out the door, my friend turned to me and asked, "so, where do you want to go now for dinner?" -
Review from Courtney A.
San Francisco, CA
5/18/2011 1 Check-in Here
I LOVE Ethiopian food and after passing this place frequently (I live in the upper haight) I finally made it over.
It is a bit of a hole in the wall, lights hang a little awkwardly low, and service is no frills. We got the vegetarian platter for two which I was really excited about, and it came with the two servings of Injera.
Note on the veggie platter: it's a great deal. When they brought it out, I didn't think it would be enough food, especially because I have a big appetite plus I was with a dude, but it definitely was. NOTE: injera expands in your stomach. If you eat until you feel really full, you'll want to vomit about fifteen minutes later, guaranteed. Eat slowly here. :)
The food was good! The lentil and mushroom dishes were by FAR the best in my opinion. The spinach was my least favorite. The lentil and mushroom have a really nice spice, whereas the potato and chickpea dishes are a little blander. Good, but given the choice, I'd rather have double portions of my favorites.
The salad is tiny and nothing too exciting.
Overall, good food. I'll check out a few other places in the city because there's probably a better one, but it was definitely very decent for the price. -
Review from Jeanie S.
San Francisco, CA
4/7/2011
Great value for your money, assuming you don't blow $20 on petrol trying to find a parking spot in the Haight. Seriously challenging on a Friday night. Luckily, we had good parking karma and found a spot a block away. Kara's Cupcakes' mobile cupcake van was a half block away, so dessert was a foregone conclusion :)
On with the Axum review....
Hole in the wall, complete with...yep, holes in the wall. Dress casual, and bring your appetite and a good attitude. If you've never eaten Ethiopian food before, be aware that it's served communally (everything on one large platter), and you will be eating with your hands by scooping up bite-fulls of saucy food with Injera, a spongy Ethiopian flat bread. Think the taste of sourdough and the texture of a very airy, spongy crepe.
We had the Tibse lamb and the vegetarian sampler platter for two: Alicha , Alicha Atar, Hamli, Kintishara, and Tumtumo. The platter came with 2 servings of Injera, plus the server brought an extra dish of Injera (nice!). The lamb was slightly gamy, but it didn't detract from the flavor at all. Deliciously spiced. The five vegetarian items were all tasty...each had a different main ingredient: potatoes, chickpeas, spinach, mushrooms, and lentils, respectively.
Other Yelpers mentioned the dishes were spicy. I thought items were nicely spiced, with a little bit of heat, but certainly not "spicy." Of course, I order "Thai spicy" heat at the local Thai restaurant, so you can draw your own conclusions as to the degree of fireproofing on my tastebuds.
Someone described the beer as "Ethiopian Budweiser." I think that's pretty accurate.
Wonderful meal. Will return again with an appetite and hopefully with good parking karma. -
Review from Kailyn G.
San Francisco, CA
8/7/2011
Not an expert on Ethiopian food, but I thought Axum was quite tasty. I came with some friends, one of which was vegetarian. This restaurant had a good number of choices for everyone.
I ended up getting the Tibsie beef, and the boyfriend got the zighine. Our friends got the vegetarian platter for two. I thought both the beef dishes were good (though they both became a bit too spicy for me after a while). They give you a significant amount of injera to eat it all with. If you've never had Ethiopian - you don't get silverware and you eat the food with injera. It gets a little messy, but it's fun.
Out of the vegetarian dishes, my friends did not like the spinach at all. And the mushroom one tastes very strongly of mushroom. But they said the others were all pretty good.
I'd also suggest the ethiopian beer - it's a bit on the sweet side. But forgo the honey wine - which is just too sweet.
Environment: not too much decoration, but it doesn't feel crowded and the noise isn't terrible. They do have a TV, which is distracting.
Service: it's one woman, not very friendly. I wouldn't expect much from the service when you come here. -
Review from Jack S.
Palo Alto, CA
1/8/2012
Axum just falls short when compared to South Bay Ethiopian cuisine luminaries such as Gojo and Zeni, .
The injera is too soggy and doesn't have much flavor, and the dishes do not have anywhere near the depth of flavor found in the better Ethiopian restaurants. Cusine-wise, Axum is just phoning it in. -
Review from HeartBeat Radio F. M.
Berkeley, CA
4/10/2011
Cafe Axum Haiku:
U eat with ur handz
O! Delicious injera
Soaked in mushy foods. -
Review from monica c.
1/5/2011
It's hard for me to hate on a place in my hood, but sadly Axum left my tummy feeling sad and lonely.
Despite friendly service and decent prices, the food quality just wasn't there. Maybe I got the wrong dishes, but the spinach was a watery, flavorless mess. The honey wine really just seemed like a super sweet glass of wine. No depth of flavor and none of the citrusy or floral notes that I had hoped for. -
Review from Kia B.
San Francisco, CA
3/16/2011 1 Check-in Here
A cozy low key spot to break bread with friends.
Get the combo.
Enjoy the Tej.
The owner is very warm and welcoming.
The food is hearty and satisfying. . . -
Review from Adriana V.
Berkeley, CA
5/30/2011
My dining partner and I ordered the vegetarian combination plate for two. It was plenty of food. My injera was a little on the dry side on one edge.
The spinach was watery and didn't taste like much (and I usually love spinach.) The mushrooms were really tasty, though. The other items seemed pretty standard for Ethiopian restaurants. I really liked the mushrooms.
It took a while for them to pick up our credit cards (they split the bill on our cards with no problem), but to be fair, we did sit and talk for a while after getting the bill (to their credit, they didn't rush us at all.)
I think I'm biased: I live in the East Bay, and I think the Ethiopian offerings on my side of the Bay are better (this is the second Ethiopian place I've tried in SF.) Axum wasn't bad, though; I'd go back if I were in the neighborhood with a friend who had a hankering for Ethiopian. Did I mention that I liked the mushrooms? -
Review from reyz a.
1/9/2011
It is amazing how much range the ratings are for this place. Sad because I don't think it's about the food but about the about service (the lack of).
Let's start off with the food. I've never tried Ethiopian food, so it was time to explore! My friend tried the honey wine (Tej) and as implied, it was as sweet as honey. Too much of this stuff and it is guaranteed that you will be driving the porcelain truck. I had a light beer, Meta Beer Export Lager from Ethiopia, and we were excited to start gorging. It was downhill from here.
Being a neophyte at Eastern African cuisine, I naturally needed help. The waitress was a bit short on describing anything Ethiopian for us. OK, let this one go, maybe she was just having a bad night.
We went ahead and ordered the three veggie combo and a Tibsie lamb. The veggies and Tibsie lamb were served on a sour-doe like bread. In our case we'd ordered the alecha, hindi, kimitishira with our meat dish.
Now, you eat with your fingers. Ethiopian food is spicy,this spiciness is offset by tearing a piece of the porous sour doe like bread (Injera or Ethiopian crepe, flat bread) with sponge-like texture and scooping up one of your entrees with your right hand; this is followed by a swig of your beer (that's us). Note the word "porous", it means you need to wash your hands after or you need plenty of Wet Ones to wipe down. At this point, I'm getting full from sponge-like absorption properties of the flat bread. I could feel every oz. of my Meta Beer being sucked up by this bread. The waitress does not come by to see how we are doing.
We're getting weird vibes at this point, not from the meal and but from the aloof, OK I'll say it, rude service.
The Tibsie lamb was a bit gamy for me. It was spicy, the meat was tender, and the "handful" combinations of peppers, garlic and other ingredients squished evenly in my mouth. The kimitishira is a mushroom dish that is so finely chopped that it almost looked Tumtumo or lentil-like texture. The alecha had lots of tasty chunkie potatoes, tomatoes and carrots. I liked the hindi, which is a semi-puree spinach veggie dish--yum. All in all, Ethiopian food is an acquired taste for me.
I do not finish, and it's time to meet up with darth vader. "We don't take credit cards", and walks away. I'm sure the Yelpers who rated this place as 4 stars must have had someone else working.
I would have given this place 2.5 stars, and I may have come back to get used to the cuisine, but because of the cold service (as cold as the January San Francisco temperature outside), I give it a *. -
Review from azuré i.
Long Beach, CA
9/21/2010
One of the few places where I don't feel like a trog for eating without utensils.
To-the-point service. No frills interior. Good Ethiopian food. Easy on the pocketbook. They also have an espresso bar (if you need caffeine) and a decent beer selection.
Your best bet is to go with one of the platters. My friends and I usually order the veggie platter for 3. It's a great assortment of vegetables. I believe the 3-person platter comes with about 6 different items.
I typically come here to redeem myself from the guilt I gain elsewhere from shoving my face full of bacon.
P.s. I noticed a photo of Marilyn Monroe behind the cash register. Must be real good if homegirl ate here. -
Review from Rolf H.
Moss Beach, CA
5/31/2011
Love this place - tried several places in the past 18months but this truly is my favorite. I have Ethiopian friends who used to invite me and for me the taste was quiet similar. However, I am not an expert!
Always order the meat combination, always family style. Don't try to impress a date with the great looks of this place - it's not pretty!! But service (I once forgot shopping bags there - they kept them for me) and quality of food really got me!
Enjoy! -
Review from Nathan M.
10/31/2010 1 Check-in Here
I have never eaten Ethiopian food before so, i was really excited to try this place. This place is not super well lit inside, and also outside so, you should be knowledgeable of the area or have the Yelp iPhone app.
I made the mistake of asking if i could get rice, and lady was offended i would ask such a question, but the answer was "no". The food comes out quickly, and is on a pretty good size plate. It also comes this traditional "bread" type of material to eat the food with. My group all ordered separately, but it all came on one plate not sure if that is normal, but thats something you should remember if you don't want your food mixing (i.e. vegetarians). Food is good, and will come back every so, often to try something out of the norm. -
Review from Chelsey G.
San Francisco, CA
8/10/2010
Maybe it is because I have not had Ethiopian food in a while but I got the worse stomach ache after this. I mean it was tasty while I was eating it (veg platter split between my bf and I) But my tummy hurt the next morning and just stoped hurting today.
): -
Review from Jenna I.
Brooklyn, NY
9/21/2010
Axum is my favorite Ethiopian food in San Francisco! A bit out of the way all around (unless you live by Duboce I suppose) but worth the trip. The food is authentic (the injera had enough teff!) and SPICY- all I ever need in Ethiopian food. The honey wine was pretty good too. I was only a bit disappointed in that when you order a dish, you get only that dish... usually there's some extra lentils or something on the side...
When I first came in here there was some party of about 20 people from what looked like a yoga retreat, getting drunk as hell and yelling and posing for photos with their track pants all up in my space... but the waiter (there was only one guy in there!) was apologetic and despite the ruckus (it's a fairly small place), still managed to go out of his way to make sure we didn't feel too ignored.
That said, the prices were fair, the service was fast, and most of all, the food was solid. Good job, Axum! -
Review from Lauren F.
Oakland, CA
5/7/2008
As I sit here writing reviews, starving, and waiting to eat, I am reminded of my recent trip to Ethiopian food.
Here is the breakdown. I ain't an expert on the Ethiopian food, but the what i like to call "Nerf pancake" was good. The entree choices for the top of the Nerf were better than Waziema. The food was above standard fare, in my opinion.
If you want a happening bar, go to Wazeima. If you are in it for the food...come to Axum.
And...know, if you have never had Ethiopian food, they don't believe in silverware. Your fingers are your utensils, and unless you don't mind getting messy in front of your date, don't come. I always think its a good litmus test though. If you cant get messy during dinner with someone you hope to get messy with later....whats the point -
Review from Sammy S.
Alameda, CA
6/7/2007
Did you ever play with those bath toys that start out as little capsules encased in plastic that expand into spongy dinosaurs or another animal of your liking when they hit water?
Well I did. I was a total bath dork when I was little. Just me...naked...with about 25 boats, 40 sponge dinosaurs, swimming Barbies and once and a while a water-logged book. I also was equipped with quite the singing voice. You don't believe me? Just ask my older sister. She tape recorded me singing in the bathtub when I was 6-years-old and played it for all her friends. Ya, total bitch, right? I'll get her back someday...The old sleeping hair cut or a finger slam in the car door. Who knows? But it'll be good.
Anyhoo, back on topic. The Injera bread that acts as a utensil to scoop your food with is a sneaky mother fucker. It tastes light and a little lemony, but once it's been in your stomach with beer, water and food for 20 minutes it begins to expand, like yeast or the Marshmallow Man. And after those 20 minutes of blissful face-stuffing, you sit back and realize you can't breath because this damn sponge shit is cutting off your ventilation or whatever (ie pants are usually the culprit).
Axum was good....it wasn't great. My girlfriend, who is notoriously picky kept saying "it's different." Which is what my grandparents said when they saw I dyed my hair black. "ooooh, now that's interesting."
The food was flavorful, but nothing spectacular, and the server wasn't the friendliest chap in town.
Sadly, Axum paled in comparison to Addis in Berkeley, which is where I had my first Ethiopian food experience when my pregnant sister called me up with crazy hormonal cravings demanding that I drive her to the East Bay for some finger-food.
I didn't even ask if they had that crumbly white cheese I loved so much at Addis because our waiter gave me the stink eye one too many times after I tried to order four kinds of beer they didn't have, even though they were listed on the menu.
I'm most likely gonna haul my mushy-food lovin' ass over to another Ethiopian joint in the city before I come back here....although it's a bonus that this place is within walking distance of my apartment...and murderville USA. -
Review from Lisa L.
Oakland, CA
12/13/2007
Met up with some lovely ladies (and one of their very nice husbands) here for a late dinner. By the time I got here I was starving, so it worked out very nicely that the food came out within a few minutes of us ordering.
I hadn't had Ethiopian food in some time, but I had fond memories of it. This definitely lived up to them. The bread was especially good - not too sour, not too thick. We ordered some vegetarian dishes along with 2 or 3 meat dishes, and with 5 people that was just about perfect. This has got to be the ultimate comfort food, really - even though the night was freezing cold (for San Francisco, OK?!) I instantly felt better.
We also ordered a bottle of honey wine, which went very well with the food. Our hosts for the dinner are regulars at this place, so the owner of the restaurant came over to talk to us for some time. His whole family is in Ethiopia right now, including all his kids. He said that his wife sent him off to work and that Ethiopian restaurants in the homeland generally cut corners and that his food is much better. Fair enough...
Compliments on the food - delicious and very, very reasonably priced and compliments to my charming and entertaining dining companions. -
Review from Jenny W.
Brooklyn, NY
4/5/2009
I HAVE A NEW FAVORITE TYPE OF FOOD NOW! Ethiopian. OMG, the deliciousness level was wayyyy better than I expected.
I met a girlfriend here for dinner and had reservations about some of the photos and someone's review who said their entree looked like baby poo.
I obviously told the waiter I'd never had Ethiopian food before and that we would love some suggestions on how/what to order. He told us that we should get the veggie combo and one meat entree, so that's what we did. Ordered a spinach dish, a chopped mushroom dish, a cauliflower/potato mix, and a super spicy lamb.
The lamb was to die for. My only complaint is that it could've been a bit more tender. My other favorite was potato/cauliflower veggie. The flavors were outstanding. I guess I would compare it to Indian food maybe?! I don't know, but it was awesome.
Environment was friendly and clean and the food was fabulous. I can't wait to try another Ethiopian restaurant! Yums. -
Review from LaSha G.
Oakland, CA
12/15/2007
Looks like it's back to back Ethiopian food reviews for me. In this corner of the ring we have Upper Haight's Massawa and in the other corner, we have Lower Haight's Axum Cafe.
(insert theme music from Rocky here).
First of all, I have to admit that Axum Cafe cured me of my dislike for Injera bread. It turns out that Massawa's bread was just overly sour for my delicate taste buds. However, I'd have to say that Massawa's dishes had a bit more complexity of flavor when compared to Axum. My lamb dish at Massawa had carrots, potatoes, and bell peppers and the chicken there was oh-so savory. The flavors of the chicken/lamb/vegetarian dishes at Axum were good but unfortunately they were a bit flat, as they lacked spices and pizazz (for lack of a better term).
Once again, Ethiopian dining appeals to me because I think the fact that the food is served in a communal/ family style fashion is endearing and it also makes the restaurant a good option for group dinners. The prices at Axum are relatively cheap, since dinner and "honey" wine for our party of 5 only came to $80 with tax. Also the servers were personable and even came to sit and talk with us during our dinner.
So. If you're wondering who won the Ethiopian restaurant battle, I'd have to say it's a toss up between the two places. If good Injera is important to you, go to Axum, but if you're looking for more savory dishes, I would go to Massawa. Next stop for me: Club WaziemaListed in: Lower Haight
-
Review from Van Ness D.
Alameda, CA
10/25/2006
Low-key place, but the food is yummm. If you've never had Ethiopian, you should try it - hey, you just might like it (RIGHT JT??! See - trust me...). I don't joke about food, mmmkay?
You eat with your hands, and as an Ex once called it: "Creature Features" - because the consistency of some of the vegetarian dishes are like baby food and you just feel like a toddler getting it all over your fingers.
The last time I went, I ordered what was apparently the "man beer", and the waitress told me, "Oh no, no. Too strong. You get the other one. Better for woman." I thought that was funny - She OBVIOUSLY didn't know who she was talkin' to... "Man Beer"? Puhleeeze.
The boys in the yard - I'd teach them, but I'd have to charge.Listed in: Sucka Free Fo' Life!
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Review from Alice S.
San Francisco, CA
2/10/2007
I ate so much injera last night that I couldn't drag myself out of bed to go to yoga this morning. It was delicious and worth it, but be forewarned that the injera expands in your stomach and makes you sluggish and tired.
Good for soaking up vodka.
Bad for would be yogis.
We ordered the lovely Tibsie chicken and the 3 Veggie combo for one person with lentils, a spicy cabbage/potato dish and a pureed (no accents? what's up yelp?) something or other. Plenty of food for two people.
I took off a star because one of the purees was a little bland...but I feel like this was my own fault for not ordering something more savory. I prefer the mushrooms and spinach: both of these dishes deliver the flavor.
The thing that I get most excited about when eating Ethiopian food is that when the injera on my plate is gone, I can dig into the injera on the platter. After the goodies have been sitting on the bread for a while, it soaks up the sauce and gets all messy. Eating this with your fingers brings back all the good memories of being a kid.
I didn't need to keep stuffing myself but I couldn't help it. That's how yummy it is.
The bill came to $18.
Spend less money on food so that I can spend more money on sexy shoes and nerdy computer stuff? YES -
Review from T-Bone L.
San Francisco, CA
5/2/2005
Oh how I miss the Polk Street location. Try the spiced tea.
Axum rocks! -
Review from Shelley H.
Kaneohe, HI
9/11/2008
The first time I had Ethiopian was a few years ago in D.C. I don't know what I ate but the combination of being on vacation and eating exotic food made me love it. However, as I approached Axum I wasn't sure if my love of injera had been a lie. Ok, not so much a lie as a mirage. Something that sounds and look goods from faraway but is slightly less enchanting close up. I don't know what they eat in Africa and who knows what was going through my head when I thought Ethiopian food was good. I mean, isn't there always a famine there?
The sampler platter was awesome. Slowly simmered legumes swam through their respective opaque sauces. I'm a devoted meat eater (see Patio Filipino review http://www.yelp.com/bi...) but I didn't miss the meat in the least. How does a handful of garbanzos and lentils fill a person up so much? They don't really but the skin-like bread sure did. It started to expand before it reached my stomach and stayed there for days, like chewing gum stuck to the insides of your intestines.
The only thing I didn't like about this meal was the lack of utensils. I've never thought of myself as a princess before but if not wanting to eat with my fingers makes me a princess, then I am. Yes, I'm slightly embarrassed of that fact but I'm a person not an animal. I know others love pretending to be wild and forsaking all utensils but I could pass on that. I've found other places than restaurants to be primitive. *wink wink* Next time I'm bringing at least a spork. -
Review from S F.
San Francisco, CA
10/17/2008
I love eating food with my fingers, and I dig Ethiopian...I do, however, hate that the other person eating dinner with me ALSO has to eat with their fingers. I'm bringing a fork next time I eat Ethiopian.
The atmosphere was quiet and laid back. The service was also fine- the server was sweet, our water was filled twice, and the food came out quickly.
The food was just okay. The injera was thinner and saltier than at Waziema, which I didn't like. We ordered a chicken dish and the 5-veggie combo for two. The chicken and all of the vegetables just weren't up to par-everything was bland and tasted...like...americanized Ethiopian food. There was a pickled, gingered taste to everything.
I'll stick to the spicy fare and fun atmosphere of Club Waziema. -
Review from Nir B.
San Francisco, CA
1/2/2011
Ended up for dinner here after a few other places in the area were packed. The place is pretty good. I just didn't think it was all that and I had better Ethiopian food before. The Honey Wine also was just not my thing and the Ethiopian beer tastes like budweiser to me. The staff was friendly..what was odd to me is that they did not have many wine glasses so it took them about 10 min. to try to get us 2 more after they only gave us 2.
At least I learned the the word "INJERA" by going there :)
