T’s Place

T’s is a very mellow restaurant with tastey food. It is casual & simple with a classically elegant Ethiopian food presentation. The food is excellent with a nice variety for meat eaters and vegetatians alike. They also offer some Asian dishes since much of yhe Ethippian chef’s training was wiyh an Asian chef. Hsven’t tried these but they look good. Service was remarkably slow– not uncommon for ethnic restaurants but T’s wait time was a bit over the edge. Looked like it was a bit understaffed. Still a great place, great location– worth the wait.

I love trying new things and have never tried Ethiopian before. The Roti Prata was a good appetizer, but the Veggie Sampler was gross. I was not a fan of the soggy sponge bread, undercooked potatoes, canned beans, and other mush on the plate. Very polite server, but I will never return.

We stumbled in here one cold night after two of the other local places had no tables. I’d driven past, but was suspicious. I prefer the stronger flavors of Indian food to Ethiopian and don’t care for the bread. But we were very pleased. The dishes we ordered were great — recommended by T. There was a refreshing amount of vegetarian options. Also, the happy hour is to die for 2 for 1s from 6 to 10 pm! The service was a casual and the bathroom was a little third-​wordy, but definitely give it a try!

This was only my second attempt at Ethiopian food. I can’t speak to T’s Place’s authenticity, but I will say that the food was tasty.
The server was polite and quite willing to explain the food choices, the differences between the dishes. We decided upon the Yesomm Be’Ye’Ay’Netu, a veggie combo dish that was very tasty. Beer selection was limited, but they did have brews beyond Bud & Miller. Kudos for that!
I don’t know what the selections were, one was cabbage based, another green bean, one lentil, two some sort of mush/​thick gravy or sauce. But as I said, my non-​technical descriptions aside, it was yummy. Several were supposed to be spicy, but my pallet craves heat and I could of used a few more degrees.
The ambiance & décor was strange. One wall had a long bench. There were only a few tables. There were more bar stools than table chairs. The space was huge, but sparsely filled. Oh well…
If i get back to that neighborhood, I’ll eat there again.

If you’ve ever eaten at Fasika in St. Paul, then you know what truly delicious Ethiopian food is. T’s Place puts up a good attempt, but it fell short in a number of ways.
We got an order of sambusa which, though good in flavor, had simply been fried too long. The bottom of each of them was virtually burnt and the meat filling had started to fall out. We also ordered the veggie sampler, which took over half an hour to arrive. The main problem with this dish was that every item on the sampler was served at a different temperature, though all should have been hot. One was almost hot, several were lukewarm, and two were cold (i.e. straight out of the refrigerator). The variety of spices and flavors was quite decent, but it couldn’t distract from the haphazard composition and presentation.
All in all, T’s Place is a decent place that needs some work. As long as you know what you are getting into and can hold onto your patience, it should be an all right time. Despite the problems, I would give them another shot.

We tried the «yummy rice noodles» which had a good smoky flavor to it and was filling but not too heavy. The beef sambusas were delicious, especially with the dipping sauce (which had a spicy kick — seriously, I can handle spice and this left a burning sensation for awhile, in a good way).
We were there for a live music event for a friend, and joined a table of two people who had already ordered their food and said they had been waiting awhile for it. But, the server didn’t mind that we just seated ourselves, and she took our order fairly promptly and the wait for our food wasn’t too long at all. You don’t really go to this kind of place to get great service anyway, and the food was good. Our friends also enjoyed their curry dish and injera.

This is a great African/​Restaurant in S. Minneapolis. My husband loves their chicken curry and I am a big fan of the samosas and the noodle bowl with chicken and egg. The service while kind, was inattentive and the food was slow in coming out. For a non-​busy Monday night during a snow storm, service could have been much better.
We agreed next time to do take out.

I have a mixed review: The food is EXCELLENT. Had the Smoked chicken, noodles and fried rice. They DO NOT answer the phone, so you must come and order and wait in person. The service is extremely SLOW, but the bartender was very nice. T was also nice. the ambiance was non-​existant, it is not a place that you would want to sit down and have a meal, it is too loud, it started out loud when I arrived and then they turned up the rap music even louder. You wouldn’t be able to hold a conversation there if you wanted to dine. Now, If you like rap and great curry, then by all means, stop by! I’m not trying to being unkind, I’m trying to make sure that this matches what you want and be honest about what to expect.

I really like T’s. However, it can be a bit inconsistent. Their injera is very good. Sometimes meats are a bit overdone. Also, it is sometimes closed when it is supposed to be open and the service is often pretty slow. Also, sometimes there are people messing around with the PA system (setting up for shows or whatever) which can be distracting.
The menu is a mix of Ethiopian and Asian dishes. Most of it is really good if you order it on a good day. The restaurant interior looks more like a bar and is usually not very crowded. They seem to have live music on certain nights but I haven’t been there when they’ve had it.
In short, it’s possible to go to T’s and have a great experience but it’s also possible to go and have a less than good experience. I think it’s worth checking out though.

Being new to Ethiopian food (and to African food in general) I was very excited to try the highly-​yelped T’s Place in South Minneapolis yesterday evening. And considering two members of our party were vegetarians, Ethiopian food was absolutely perfect.
The restaurant itself isn’t much to look at… just a bar with a half-​dozen tables relegated to or near the front window. Awful 90s slow jams were audible during our entire visit, although it looked as if someone was setting up for live music. With that said, the owner of the place (Mister T) made the experience wonderful, especially considering he was everything from waiter to bartender to chef. The food was excellent, and they manage to have a nice selection of tap and bottled beer. Everything is very affordable, and normally the portions are such that there will be leftovers. I had the chicken curry entrée and it was delicious. Just enough spice and flavor without going overboard. The meat was tender and perfectly cooked. And Mister T, although not being a native English speaker, provided a warm welcome on our first visit to his restaurant.
We will definitely be back!

would’ve never knew about this place in a million years if it weren’t for Unilocal!Came here with a friend, and we almost missed it since it looked like a bar. It was pretty sketchy, both outside and inside but the food was amazing.
We both ordered the chicken curry that was made with 27 spices and it lived up to it’s standards! Everything balanced out so well; sweet, a little spicy, salty. I could definitely taste the coriander and some kind of spice that made it taste truly «Ethiopian» and not Indian. The price was pretty reasonable for the quality and amount of food you get.
Would definitely come back here, just not when it’s too dark outside…

Great African food with a decent African beer selection. The few times I’ve eaten here I’ve allowed «T» to make me his specialties and keep the different beers coming to allow us to try. This place is great and I hope it sticks around for a while.

i ate this food and it was really really good

The one visit was already too much. It was a miserable experience.
The food was greasy and flavorless. The meat was tough. Music was loud and it got a lot louder when the band started warming up. (We had the furthest seats from the stage.)

Very laid back and super friendly service. If you are a vegetarian you will find many fine dishes here and an attentive ear to listen to your culinary travails. T treated me to the vegetarian sampler plate and taught me how to eat it like an Ethiopian. Love it!

I’ll keep it short and sweet –
I’ve lived for a year and a half in the cities and am leaving to the West Coast next week. Stopped by T’s Place last night to get my usual Veggie platter (which is a perfect meal for 2) and decided I had to try T’s special curry before I leave. I gotta say this curry dish is by far the best curry I’ve had in my life and the best tasting dish I’ve had in the Twin Cities. Next level. Incredible. Really the most rich, flavorful, aromatic curry you will find.

Any restaurant that asks a mom with a baby in her arms if she’d like another beer gets 3 stars already in my book. Very easy-​going (slow service), laid-​back (inattentive service) that is somewhat unpredictable (menu unreliable — see other reviews) and always delicious. We’ve gone as early as 2pm for beers and snacks on their summer-​time Lake St sidewalk tables, and as late as midnight for dinner and Thang Thursdays «If you have ovaries you are in absolutely free until 11pm.» Yes, with asian-​ethiopian food. It’s the 2010s, baby!
Roti — excellent.
Mixed drinks — pass on them. Also, get a table in the back on cold nights because the door is not well covered. It gets freezing in there!

If you are looking for a curry unlike any other you can find in the Twin Cities, this is the place. Using 28 different spices, T himself crafts a curry for the ages.
But, as with any secretly awesome place, there are tricks:
1. You have to call ahead and make sure that T will be there, otherwise the curry will not be available– he makes the curry himself. If you’re lucky, he’ll come to your table to talk to you about his dishes. He’s a spectacular host, and one of the nicest men around.
2. If you are a vegetarian, and you are sweet and adorable, he will craft a vegetarian curry especially for you.
3. There are also a few nights a week when women get to drink Ethiopian wine for free. Uh-​HUH.
Check it out.

T’s Place is a great substitute to the better-​known places that surround it on a busy night. Granted, you might want to bring a book, because the service is slllllloooow. We normally get a big platter to share, plus the Yesiga Sambusa to start. When they say spicy, they are not kidding. It’s not Minnesota Spicy, it’s real spicy.
The menu is probably one of the more unique in Minneapolis, and the food is quite exotic to the typical midwester’s palette.

T’s place has great atmosphere with lots of space and a bar and live music on some nights. Also, their food is tasty and unusual, particularly the vegan dishes like «yesawir wot,» which feature wonderfully-​spiced and flavored lentils, alongside a big, fluffy, spongy rice pancake. It reminded me of South Indian food, but had distinctly different flavors and a hearty, home-​cooked feel. It’s not often that one gets to eat Ethiopian food. The food here is not oily or greasy or heavy; it fills lightly and you feel satisfied. Their spicy tofu was also delicious.
My only complaints are with the service and the menu — the online menu features only some of the vegan dishes they offer (they’re labeled online), but their actual, in-​restaurant menu doesn’t label what’s vegan and what’s not (many of the dishes are lacto-​vegetarian). So unless you’ve memorized the online menu, you’re out of luck if you’re vegan. Similarly, when I asked the waitress about ingredients, she didn’t seem to know. The food comes out quickly, but service is otherwise slow and inattentive. Also, the first time I went, the main cook was unavailable, so I couldn’t order half the menu. The next time I went, the cook was available, but the restaurant was mysteriously «half-​open» and they kept the door locked, forcing people to knock on the window to gain entrance. All in all, the service and menu have much room to improve, but the food is unusual, tasty and lovingly-​prepared.