Ethiopian House Restaurant

I come here at least a couple of times a year, and have done so over the past four or five years. Never have I had a bad experience :)
Injera is always fresh, and food is consistently well-​seasoned and fresh. Hot foods hot, and salad freshly-​tossed and crispy.
I brought family from Spain here to eat Ethiopian and they did not know (first) what it was and (second) that they would love it so much.
I recommend coming during the winter for a filling meal and/​or trying to score an outdoor table on the front patio during the summer/​fall. If sharing (best option), I find it ideal to order half vegetarian and half meat, in order to taste more dishes.
While I don’t ever come here during a lunch hour from work or when I’m in a rush, I wonder if the individual dishes would arrive faster. I always come with a companion to sit an linger a bit — the ambiance is nice.

Charming little authentic Ethiopian restaurant. The service is super friendly and the food is delicious. We ordered the veggie platter to share along with some beef accompaniments. The food was delicious and promptly served. It was quite busy but were seated fast and no lag in service. If you like eating with your hands and trying new things, this is the place for you.

When we get visitors to the city who want to try something different, the Ethiopian House is usually on my list.
For the eclectic atmosphere, convenient location, and friendly staff, the Ethiopian House stands out. Highly recommended when you’re bringing visitors to experience Ethiopian food for the first time, since the food isn’t too spicy or too strange for most.
A good place for vegetarians and for those who want to take their guests for a communal dinner experience where plates or cutlery aren’t needed at all.

We tried both the veg and meat sampler and really enjoyed it. Nice atmosphere and small patio. It was interesting eating with our hands rather than with cutlery. Only some items are spicy, so there are flavours for everyone.

My friends and I came here and shared a meat and veggie bayanatu platter. It was neat to eat without utensils and rely on the bread to hold your food. I liked how everything was presented and I didn’t feel sleepy from food coma after having this meal. It was a nice day to sit on the patio and the service was good. It is close to work so will probably come back for lunch!

I liked this place! it was my first time trying Ethiopian food and I was impressed.
it’s a cosy little place that’s got seating up top and down on the main level.
the staff are very friendly and explain whatever it is you don’t know.
as an Indo-​Canadian, the food here reminded me of traditional Indian dishes — which is probably what made me enjoy the place more. We ordered a very platter with various types of «curried» veggies — we didn’t like the kale but the rest was delicious.
definitely will try Ethiopian cuisine again.

Food was grey, flavourless and there was hardly more than 5 small cubes of meat in my meal.
I ordered a dish which came served on their sponge bread, the sauce had a few pieces of flavourless, tough meat mixed in with the same bread in a sauce. It was served with a side of bread.
So essentially I was served bread on bread with a side of bread. All grey. All disgusting.
I will NEVER be back. What an awful experience.

I am sad to say I did not enjoy my experience here. I was excited to try something new but it was not what I had hoped for. Keep in mind this is my first Ethiopian food experience.
We order a meat and veggie platter. It took a long time to arrive and when it did I was disappointed by the portions. Very little of everything. The first time I had injera bread and it was weird. I did not like the mushy/​sponge like texture or the fact that it is served cold. I’m too used to roti and naan I guess. It did not have much flavour, I would compare it to a pancake like much others on here. I also found the prices to be expensive considering how much food you get and the quality of food. Everything is very bland. I was expecting food rich in aroma and spices.
We also ordered coffee, which takes about an hour to be prepared. I did enjoy the ceremony part and the incense. The coffee is very strong and served in little cups. It was good but not worth the hour long wait.
All in all, I would not recommend this place and would not go back and try it again.

I’m always conflicted about Ethiopian food. I love the flavours of the cuisine, but I never really enjoyed injera. This was the first place where I thought the injera was pretty good. However the dishes we got were somewhat hit or miss. One of the dishes we got was way over seasoned and we couldn’t finish it. The rest were pretty good. The host was also really nice and attentive. It was a good experience overall, but nothing spectacular.

Great place with nice décor!
It’s my first time having Ethiopian food and I’d definitely have some more! HOW MUCH I LOVE USING MY HANDS :)
The portion is a bit small though a bit more meat would be good.

the shop is cute, and well decorated. I like that its different than your typical restaurant.
but oh the food… I can’t say that I like it.
in many ways, the cuisine reminds me of indian food. the colorful blend of beans and veggie but. unlike indian cuisine, this really lacks flavor. Everything was a few levels too bland and I was not impressed about that.
and about the injera… it was ICE cold. I literally was shocked to find out that it’s so freezing cold when I touched it. What place serves their bread/​carb dish cold? I’m not used to it i guess, and it was an interesting surprise. the flavor of the injera is also probably an acquired taste. a bit sour, a bit salty, and… something else.
In general, did not enjoy my dinner here. not my thing.

Just ate here not long ago.
First time eating Ethiopian food. I figured I give it a try given the great reviews.
Extremely nice and gracious host. Place seemed friendly and warm.
Ordered the vegetarian platter with 8 dishes and a side of beef stew. Beef stew good and hearty. Vegetarian platter was barely warm. The injera bread is basically a grey pancake. So you take it and you use it to scoop up the food.
It was okay. I wasn’t blown away with the flavors. I equated it to me using a pancake scooping mush, which I guess is indeed a very Ethiopian thing to do.
If you’ve never tried Ethiopian, sure give it a shot. Maybe you will fall in love with this cuisine and be one of those die hard fans depicted in these reviews. As for me, I am closing the books on this cuisine.

Perfect place for a lunch with your co-​workers. They have the veggie platter for those that are vegetarians or if you want something less protein-​heavy for lunch. Great portion-​size. I had to take my veggie platter to go. Their injera bread is to die for and it’s unlimited! :D
Their traditional coffee is pretty bitter but quite authentic. It’s served with in unbuttered popcorn, not sure about the cultural reference there. Actual coffee takes about at least 20minutes to prepare. I’d suggest you call-​in ahead of time for this order if you are running on time.
Service is kinda slow as they only had one waitress running the entire 2-​floor restaurant +patio. If you want bang for your buck and don’t really mind too much about the service, then this is the place for you.

3.4÷5
Food was quiet westernized but it worked better for me. Its shame but I’m not good with sour injura. Me and my company had timatin fit-​fit; sautéed injura pieces with tomatoes and other veggies with refreshing lemonie dressing. It taste like fresh salsa mixed with brushetta. Our main dish were gored-​gored and bayaaynatu. I can’t recall which was what since they put all our orders together on one plate. We got two chopped steak; one is simple steak and the other one is red sauced steak, and pan fried beef with vegetables. I think my favorite one was red sauced steak (I’m guessing it’s kitfo special). It was flavourful but still easy for me to enjoy. Other meats were good but im not good with sour food and other meats are either bland or too sour for me to fully enjoy.
Service was A-​OK. I had to approach three times to get napkins and water. But she was very nice when we asked for a bill.
Overall, food was not that special and service was met, but I will still revisit if I’m in neighbor and want something different.

YUM!
Saturday night, 4 of us went to Ethiopian House for the first time. We sat outside and enjoyed the people watching of the World Pride Festival. Our adorable waitress took good care of us, although we did have to track her down to get the check.
The food was awesome. I usually like my Ethiopian a bit spicier but the flavors were spot-​on. We shared a 4-​person Vegetarian Bayaaynatu; a sampler with 8 different delectable vegetarian dishes served on a large communal dish with ample and tasty injera bread to soak up the luscious flavors. Bite after bite after bite of edible happiness at a good price.
We talked about the scrumptious meal throughout the remainder of the weekend. Awesome.

Dépaysement, bière kényane et mets authentiques qui se dégustent à la main en piochant avec un bout d’injera. J’y retournerai pour le plaisir de goûter a cette cuisine que j’ignorais depuis trop longtemps.

I love the food here. The décor is very standard and can be a bit dingy in certain spots, but it’s the better of the Ethiopian restaurants.
I’m not a fan of raw beef at all; can’t stand steak tartare, but they have a raw beef kitfo dish. Coupled with injera… yum
Try their stuffed pepper to start.
Stay away from the popcorn and coffee combo.
Ask for a spoon if you’re looking for a good laugh

This is a pretty standard Ethiopian place, no better or worse, in terms of food, service or décor than you’ll find at any of the Ethiopian places in Toronto. It is a step up from Nazareth I’d say in terms of food, but just as good as Lalibela (which is my usual go to). If you find yourself near Bloor and Yonge, this place is pretty good, but I’m not making a special trip for this place.
The vegetarian dinner platter is quite a decent size and two people may have trouble finishing it (we didn’t finish it). But I also discovered that Ethiopian left overs are pretty dammed good!
I do recommend that people have the coffee (no matter which Ethiopian place you are at). It’s just a lovely way to end the meal, and always great coffee. Especially at this place.
I’ve been here a few times and always thought it was just a small downstairs space but I just discovered yesterday they have a whole upstairs seating area, that’s also where the washrooms are.
In the summer they have a small cute patio out front.

At normal menu prices ($ 14 for one serving or $ 25.25 for two of the Vegetarian Bayaaynatu platter, which is pretty much all I ever get), Ethiopian House isn’t particularly enticing. The service has NEVER earned any points from me, and the food doesn’t warrant being double the cost of, say, Nazareth.
But during lunch hours ($ 8 for the veggie platter for one), it gets about 3 stars. It’s filling, fun especially for first-​timers, and a nice change of pace if your dietary plan doesn’t usually consist of a cold spongy injera blanket with stuff on it. Honestly, I prefer the eating experience over the taste, but the green beans, potatoes and collard greens are my favourite.
As for the century-​long coffee ceremony: thick, aromatic shots with a side of burnt popcorn and incense. Maybe worth a try if you’re in a group and planning on enjoying some post-​dinner dialogue, but if you’re just popping by for lunch as I’m advising, plan on grabbing a Double Double instead.

Ok so for those of you not used to Ethiopian restaurants, let’s set the bar right — service is NOT as attentive or fast as many other places. If I was comparing against other restaurants, this place would have gotten a 3 for service. However, it’s very much in-​line with other Ethiopian restaurants I’ve been to.
The décor is not 5-​star, as with most Ethiopian places, but it’s clean and inviting. They burn incense which I could do without, but I suppose it’s probably better than the lingering scent of the various spices they regularly cook with.
Came in for lunch right as they opened at 12:00pm and got the specials — a veggie platter and a meat platter, which they combined into a large combined platter for us. The food came quite quickly — I’d say around 15 minutes after ordering, which is fast for these places. Had to ask the server for more injara and water refills, but aside from that the food was amazing (as always), and I got just what I came for. It’s my 2^nd visit here and there will definitely be more!

Good food but not the best ethiopian I’ve had. Try the special where you get the bread and a few meats/​veggies. The owner is pretty cool though, totally laid back :-) talk to him for a fun time.
Also to people who say the bread is sour… have you ever had injera bread before??? It’s supposed to be lightly sour… this bread wasn’t that sour either I had to ask for lemon to make mine more sour. And as another poster said, the injera is served cold = NO NO. It made my dining experience that much worse for having cold injera.