Empress Taytu Ethiopian

The food here was delicious! We had vegetarian and meat eaters and there was lots of options for everyone! I would strongly suggest the combination plates. Don’t let the neighborhood scare you off. Will definitely come back!

One of our top 5 restaurants in Cleveland. Order the shiro and the lamb with awaze sauce.

First time eating Ethiopian foods. It was a great experience!
I can’t really remember what the dishes were called, but what I can tell you is that we had a combination appetizer (the only combo appetizer on the menu) and we shared a meat and veggie combination meal that was more than enough for the two-​and-​a-​half of us.
The food was good, the service was good to great, and we will certainly return to try more.
Notes:
Some would consider it to be in a «bad» area but the restaurant has a dedicated parking lot that was gated when we arrived and it was no problem whatsoever, (you sissies).
Also, know that this food is eaten with your hands. Off of a shared platter. My family first thought it would be great to bring the whole tribe here when they visit. Then I started thinking about my mother in law. And what it would be like to share spit… the moral here is to teach you party how to eat, and not lick off the fingers with each bite…

Phenomenal! Delicious food and excellent service. I had braised lamb dish, veg combination platter and tried my cousin’s chicken — every single thing was great. They even offer glutine free injera.

My wife and I just moved to Cleveland from San Francisco. In San Francisco, we ate Ethiopian food at least 2 – 3 times per month, it was really a staple of our lives. We’ve travelled to Ethiopia twice as well. We were so relieved to find that this place existed and was on par with best Ethiopian food we’ve ever had. Not only that, but the experience was really wonderful. The owners were friendly. The interior is beautiful, covered in Ethiopian art work.
I imagine we will be coming back often now that we live in Cleveland (just an 8-​minute drive from here in Ohio City when you take the Shoreway). What a treat!

Wonder why this place only has 3.5 stars! It has a really sweet ambience. the food is awesome especially for vegetarians… We had the sambusa. The vegetarian platter and the shiro… Everything was really good but the highlight was the Shiro… It does not come with the platter but it is a must order!

Great food! Veggie combo was awesome. Lamb dish was heated with charcoal. Unique experience. If you dont mind eating without utensils go for it.

Amazing exotic food. Loved it! And the staff was great in explaining everything. Highly recommend.

Service was great! Food was okay. Wasn’t sure what to expect since it was my first time trying Ethiopian food. Had the veg combination platter which was nice so that we could try different things. The variety of lentils and vegetables came with bread.
Not sure I would go again but definitely a good place to go if you’re looking for something different to try.

Excellent atomosphere!

I adore this place! So underrated. Fun festive environment, traditional seating is awesome and cozy under the tiki huts and food is fabulous! Everyone I’ve ever taken has thoroughly enjoyed it much to their surprise. I recommend getting the combination appetizer and combination dinner plus the Indian beer. Share all of it with someone — it’s enough for 2. AND EAT WITH YOUR HANDS! It’s all part of the fun and experience!

Moving from NYC to Cleveland has caused for search for a great Ethiopian place. The empress feels fairly authentic especially when you see the cooks in the kitchen doing their magic and again in landlocked Cleveland ingredients need to be imported or substituted. Like Mexican food there is nothing like sitting down in Mexico to eat a meal and I believe that would be the same of Ethiopian food. I give them high marks because I see they care and are doing their best here.
The staff are friendly and when we bring our now 8 month old, he is greeted with warm smiles and waves.

Can you believe there is only one Ethiopian Restaurant in all of Cleveland? That fact would be most upsetting if Empress Taytu wasn’t so good! If you haven’t been here, you are missing out! The dal and collard greens dishes are amazing, and you have to try the ‘coffee experience.’
Empress Taytu is certainly on my Top 10 vegan-​friendly places to visit in Cleveland.

Overall, this is a decent Ethiopian dining experience. This was out first time. Ambiance was great. The food itself was good but a little blander than we like our Ethiopian. Personally, warm injera is more appealing and theirs is served cold. It’s great there’s a decent option in Ohio. Otherwise, it’s Pittsburgh.

Went back here again today. This time had the shambousa, misi, chicken tib, yellow split pea and collard greens. This is such a nice little restaurant. I enjoy trying new dishes and I recommend it to others.

Wonderful experience!!! The food was authentic and delicious, our server was from Ethiopia and was very nice and friendly, the environment was authentic, and the coffee service was great! I highly recommend this restaurant. It takes a little time, as many good things do, and it is worth it. I also suggest you try the traditional tables.

Simple food with different flavors. A place to eat what tastes like home cooked food in a cozy, unique atmosphere.
For those of you who have never had Ethiopian food, the meal typically consists of a spongy, slightly sour bread which is rolled out like a pizza on a tray. Small portions of either vegetables, beans, lentils, or meat are spread out on the tray. You eat with your hands — warm towels are provided before you eat. Then you rip off a piece of the bread and then scoop up whatever combination of meat and vegetables you want.
Portions are filling and you can get more bread if you want. The three star rating is only in comparison to other Ethiopian restaurants that I’ve been to. I thought the last few times I went, the food was a little bit on the bland side. An exception is the chicken drumstick, which I thought was really tasty. But this is a place to consider if you have never eaten Ethiopian food and would like to experience it.

Every year I pick a new-​to-​me restaurant to dine at for my birthday. This year (last week), it was Empress. As a former west coaster, I am used to having several Ethiopian restaurants to choose from, so having only one in Cleveland made me curious and a little suspect.
Thankfully, Empress came through for us. Many other reviewers complained about slow service. I warned the three friends I was with that the service would be slow. Granted, we weren’t in a hurry, but I can honestly say our service was excellent. Our server’s name was Carolyn and she was lovely. And we sat in a hut (!).
Our food was mostly delicious, minus the bland vegetables. I recommend the lentil sambusa as an appetizer and one of the yetesenega karyas, if you dare. We ordered a variety of meats and vegetables, but it was the segawat and dorowat that were the stand out dishes. The injera bread was a milder flavor than we were used to, but the texture was perfect and we stuffed ourselves silly. A glass of their honey wine washed it all down nicely.
Next time, we plan on ending our meal with the traditional coffee ceremony.

Total Clip joint. Stay away.
Very rare for me to give one star. This place sucks. Everything about my meal just plain sucked. I got the meat and veggie combo. It should have been called the «this meat and veggie combo sucks».
The chicken was maybe 2 ounces of meat and it was not even hot. Flavor was OK. Then some type of ground beef that was barely a dollop and was not even hot.
The cabbage was not even cooked and it was cold also. The refried red bean were just average with out much flavor, and again it was luke warm, the chickpea was bland and cold as well. Lastly, one of the veggie items was a sorry excuse, it was just some spring mix lettuce in the middle of the plate.
The sponge bread was cold as well.
Well that’s my review cuz this place really sucks. Such a rip off.
Oh yeah the service, I asked if my food could be spicy and the waitress said no, I asked if the food was precooked and she said it was not. OK so why can’t you make it spicy? So I asked for some hot sauce and the waitress said they did not have any. Finally the bus boy who overheard me and saw that I wanted to kill the server brought me some.
Oh the best part was adding 20% tip on the whole amount of the check including the tax. Screw this place. If I was not with a big party I would have have just left, not even bother to complain.

Insta-​meh as soon as we walked in the door.
With all the build up about this place, I couldn’t believe how disappointed I was with Empress Taytu. It was completely empty inside when we arrived, so I’m not entirely sure why 1) our dinner took 2 ½ hours and 2) we were the first people there, but the last to leave.
I will say that maybe I’m just not a big fan of Ethiopian cuisine, but typically I can forgive lack luster food when the ambiance and service are amazing. This was not the case tonight. Although, since this was my first experience I’m not ready to judge all Ethiopian off this visit.
Also, we did have a pretty tasted appetizer that was similar to an Indian samosa. I just wish I was as pleased with the rest of my meal. My bill was really high and I barely touched my food. The «womp» elf has definitely struck.