Ginevra Cafe

My first experience with Somali cuisine. Chicken Suqaar was phenomenal. Beef samosa are delicious as well. Excellent presentation of the dish.

I was too busy for a lunch break the other day, but my colleague went out and got Ginevra’s and made the entire cubicle row smell of fragrant saffron to the point that I couldn’t stand it. I had to go and pick up dinner!
I ordered the chicken suqaar, which is served with a side salad, a side of lentil soup, and a bottle of water. I also ordered a sambusa, a piece of halwa, and a soda. Of course, I had the joy of meeting the owner Ginevra, who had to have a bit of fun at my expense — he told me my total was $ 89! I laughed, and asked if it was because I was white, which he found hilarious. I asked if he could give me a better price, and he said yes, let’s do $ 15 instead. I said I could do $ 15 for all of that food!
It was more than enough to make three meals out of – plenty for my boyfriend and I to have a hearty dinner plus just enough for me to have for lunch the next day. I ate the sambusa on the way home. It was easily the best sambusa I have had (if not the best savory parcel I’ve ever had, and I am a huge fan of samosas): it was big, it was full, it was flaky and it was spicy. The chicken suqaar was delicious, though I could have used a little more heat. Next time I will be sure to ask for more spice! There will definitely be a next time. I am certain that I will be going back to Ginevra’s and recommending it to my friends!

Columbus is home to the second largest Somali population in the U.S., and
I went here the other day and ordered the Osso buco, and got a bag of kac kac and halwa. Unfortunately, by the time I got there (around 7 on Sunday), they were out of lamb.
With osso buco, you get several pieces of tender beef, some soft potatoes and large carrot chunks. You also get a few fresh vegetables on the side. It came with a huge container of delicious rice (seasoned with saffron, I think). This was at about 11 bucks, which is a pretty good value.
This dish wasn’t anything super special, but it was good and substantive.
The bag of kac kac, which are soft, tasty Somali-​style biscuits/​cookies/​donuts, was 2 dollars, and the bag of halwa, a sticky, gooey, fruity-​tasting treat — similar to Chinese niangao (sticky rice cake) or Turkish delight — was 1 dollar.
The kac kac were very delicious, and the halwa, although a small piece, was phenomenal. The osso buco was pretty good and tender, and I liked the rice a lot.
All of this also came with a nice banana on top.
Although I got take-​out, the actual restaurant was nice, and they have a bookshelf full of interesting books about community empowerment (among other things — I saw a book about cardinals) right by the front door. Great atmosphere, and a friendly and helpful staff.
If you live in Columbus and have been wondering where to find Somalian food, come here, and then come back to Morse road for more.
Morse road is a treasure trove of ethnic food, and it’s a shame to look past it.
OVERALL: Great food, Lots of rice, Tasty, Cheap. Somali Food, nice atmosphere.

We were brought to Ginevra by my uncle’s invitation while vacationing in the city. He proclaimed it as the best Somali restaurant in the city and after trying the juicy and tender Sumuni and Ossobicco we were believers. The tea is also amazing with the right mix of spice and sugar. We were brought here again on a separate breakfast invitation where we tried the liver and beef suqaar, again we were blown away. Place is modestly decorated but clean and the staff friendly. Defiantly worth a try.

I feel bad giving this such a bad rating, but how can I properly rate a restaurant when they refuse to seat us, serve us, and just stare at us like we don’t belong. I’ve tried a handful of various food all over Columbus, including other Somali places and never was treated so poorly. Even my hubby who is Arab was looked at funny and shunned by the owner/server/waiter/cook…we don’t know, they wouldn’t acknowledge us even when he politely asked if it was seat yourself. We even went over to the «family» section since I am a woman to be respectful of the custom variance. but still, nothing. Too bad as I grew up in the area and was ready to support a new local company. guess my money is of more value elsewhere.

The food here is special. I have never tasted rice like I did at Genevra. The prices and portions are excellent. When I’m in the mood for a drive to columbus, I make sure to pick up dinner from Genevra. Excellent somali food.

The Lady that waited on us and the owner were Knowledgeable and the food was great. I had soup, a wonderful treat, goat, rice, salad. and Somali Chai tea. Really great people and food. You will not be disappointed.

Great goat meat for lunch and hefty portion. People are nice and ambience is OK for the type of food. Overall great experience and will come back again to try other dish.

Fantastic. Huge portions, attentive staff, delicious food. The beef suqaar is especially good.

What a fantastic place. The owner, Ginvera, is was so hospitable.
I went to lunch here yesterday with some clients and co-​workers. We told Ginvera, «Just feed us what your family would like to eat, and keep it under $ 12 per person.»
What a feast. Goat, lamb, chicken, fish, rice, spaghetti, injera, Somali chai… everything was delicious, and we felt like we were dining at Ginvera’s home.
I thank God for the Somali community and for the way immigrants have saved the Northland corridor. Have lunch or dinner at Ginvera, and thank him warmly for being a part of something really good.

This is yet another Somali restaurant in this little corner of Morse Road. And compared to the others that I’ve tried, the food here is pretty good. But first the service. The woman who waited on me was as nice as she could be. Really, really nice.
They didn’t have a huge selection on the menu (on the wall behind the counter) so I chose the penne (definitely not Somalian). It came with a small salad and some small cubes of beef. The penne was okay but the beef was cooked almost to the point of being dried out. It was edible though and well spiced.
The bill for the meal was $ 8.00. That’s pretty darned good and if I’m ever in the mood for this type of food, you can bet I’ll be back.