Vision Cafe

Their coffee drinks are amazing. Friendly environment and the awner is extremely nice. Try their café latte and sambussa. Don’t be uncomfortable if it seems that most people there know eachother… family environment. You can also order cold beer/wine…Heineken (my fav) and just sit outside and relax. I like small family owned businesses, so I love this place.

I drive by this place on my way home from work and it has always piqued my curiosity so decided to stop by this afternoon to check it out. I like the place’s hole-​in-​the-​wall charm and the fact that people just seem to come there to hang out. Picked up some lentil sambussas and a coffee, both were delicious. I’ll definitely be coming back here!

They have the best hookha and coffee. Price is really reasonable. Very friendly people.

My boyfriend and I stopped in here tonight for a couple coffees after dinner. The man who greeted us was really nice, but it wasn’t until after we ordered that we were told the machine was broken and they were only accepting cash. There was an ATM inside so i tried to withdraw some cash, but after waiting a couple minutes for my transaction to process, the machine gave the message that it wasn’t working. So I had to walk all the way down to the liquor store on the corner to use their ATM, and I was charged $ 2.75 extra there. That wasn’t really Vision Café’s fault, but if either of their machines had been working I would not have had to leave to find an ATM. After all that, the coffee was good, not great. So unfortunately I probably will not be back, even though the guys were nice as can be.

Can’t speak for the food since I’ve never eaten here, but five stars for cheap, tasty coffee and the super nice dude who’s always behind the counter. I no longer lament the lack of a Starbucks in my neighborhood.

On Obama’s inauguration day, I watched the speeches live that morning in the North Park Theater, and we went to another neighborhood party that night to see a replay. But my favorite memory that day might be that we tried to eat lunch someplace, found it to be closed, and ended up here.
I’m not a regular here, but despite the very mainstream feel of the décor, it otherwise takes on the characteristics of a standard Ethiopian café: a lot of Ethiopian men hanging around, Ethiopian goods on the otherwise sparse shelves, no menus to read (you have to ask), and a big-​screen television, so I guess that paints a picture. But the clientele weren’t watching Ethiopian television, which I suspect is the standard choice. They were glued to the CNN inauguration hype.
We asked what they could give us to eat (since nothing is posted), and we were offered sandwiches, so we ate sandwiches. Two solid All-​American sandwiches. White bread & everything. I think we got turkey and roast beef. Mustard, tomatoes, lettuce. I kinda felt like saying the pledge of allegiance and drinking milk from a tiny carton. And so I ate my white-​bread sandwich and watched the parade.

Still no menu… Had the «Beef Special». It was OK, but not my thing. Real nice people working here.

I dropped in last week and they were still working on the menu so they were only semi-​opened. They said they’d have it ready this week, so I’ll drop in again, probably Thursday.
Had one of their samosas (lentil, they also had a meat one). Very good, moderately spicy, different than the Indian variety. One of the guys there had me taste a spice mix they’re working on (and will be selling in their market section). Very hot, but flavorful. Not sure what else they’ll have available in their market section.
There’s an Etrerian market a few blocks from here on El Cajon Blvd. called Awash Market that has a lot of spices, lentils, etc. if you’re impatient for Vision to be ready.

If this were just any café or market, I might be tempted to give it 4 stars — just because it lacks a bit in ambiance. But seriously, this is an Ethiopian café, and it’s come right to the heart of gentrification central. Hello Mr. Mike (gushingly nice, Ethiopian proprietor with the cute Hitler-​mustache), you are most welcome to the ‘hood.
Yes, the Horn of Africa has gone mainstream, and none of us is happier to see it than I. From Café Cabaret, which has long sported an East African clientele in its peaceful courtyard, to Asmara Restaurant, which takes Eritrean food upscale (for Eritrean food), we finally have a café that’s just that, a café — notable as Ethiopian only from the lively Amharic banter around the tables and a familiar red-​yellow-​green trim around the sign above the door.
But walk in and delight in the now-​more-​local-​than-​ever stacks of still-​steaming injera on the shelves to the less-​greasy-​and-​fluffier-​than-​usual samosas behind the counter. For $ 1.50 each, the beef and lentil samosas were a special treat — and a nice teaser for the sandwiches that Mike says are coming to the menu soon.
Also ‘coming soon’ will be me and potential hoards of admiring fans. A place like this — and a cuisine like this — is not likely to remain a secret for long.