A & N Cafe

Coming from California and having a plethora of restaurants to choose from we were highly disappointed when moving to town. This is the only Ethiopian restaurant in the area. It does not compare, and is no where near my top 10 favorite I’ve tried. The restaurant is located in what appears to be an office building, in the parking lot of a strip mall. The food was bland, the cultural atmosphere was lacking, and the customer service was typical for the area (nonexistent). And on top of all that, pretty pricey. They had the typical dishes that most Ethiopian restaurants do but serving sizes were small and injera was cold. Will we eat here again, probably not. I’d rather travel north a couple hours to see what they have to offer up there.

Fantastic Ethiopian food, we were really happy with this place.

If you are looking for a pleasant atmosphere and a splash of culture on your tongue this is the place ! I didn’t eat inside of the restaurant but the great customer service started as soon as I walked through the door. I was ushered to sit down at a table even though the server knew I was ordering out lol. I ordered the lamb tibs which are are so good. Just the right amount of spices and herbs and onions and peppers. Mixed with the injera bread. Also I had the shrimp sautéed with onions, tomato, spinach, garlic, and Ethiopian butter (butter seasoned with spices and herbs). This is THEE Ethiopian experience. My Ethiopian friend recommended this and I was not disappointed! The prices are reasonable and the helpings can serve at least two people!

Love it !! Did a wonderful job catering my son’s birthday party. Food was delicious!

Best Ethiopian food in the area! Can’t go wrong! If you like spicy food and the best coffee on the planet this is the place to go!
For those people negatively rating the place for chicken nuggets… Well that’s just stupid, why would you order nuggets… Did you expect to get Ethiopian-​style nuggets? If you want nuggets go to McDonald’s…And those rating the place below average because someone don’t speak English the way you do… well… I’d be upset if someone spoke English like a native and question the authenticity of the place. So for those individuals rating the place for things that are not applicable to what the place advertises, I wouldn’t take those ratings seriously.
THIS IS A GREAT RESTAURANT!

We went here once & it was amazing & we couldn’t wait to go back. The second time we decided to go was the Wednesday before Thanksgiving so we called to make sure they were open & they were. Stoked.
We arranged to meet friends there, drove 40 minutes to get there, walk in and the woman says they are closed. It was 6:15 & their closing time is 8.
I understand it’s the day before Thanksgiving & many places are closed. That’s why we called before driving 40 minutes with 3 starving kids.
Now we’re in an area we’re unfamiliar with, 3 kids DYING because they’re so hungry, and we have no idea what is nearby & vegetarian. Totally bummed.
We ended up at Y Not Pizza, which was very tasty, but not really what we were in the mood to eat.
I’d love to eat here again, but probably won’t bother unless we happen to be close by.

How can you not be happy not using utensils?
First time eating Ethiopian food and it was fantastic AND fun.
My server was pleasant and walked me through the options, I elected for a the Lamb tips, because I love lamb! I went with the medium spice level. If you have ANY tolerance for spicy food, this is a good starting point, I was personally a little let down, I wish I had gone hotter!
Dish was served with two veggies including a cooked cabage/​carrot dish that was the closest thing I’ve ever had to compare to my grandfathers Pennsylvania Dutch version. Delish.
The dish is served with a sponge like sourdough flat bread called Injera. You get plenty, plus the plate is lined with it. So when I ran out, I dove into my plate stocks. You basically make injera hotpockets with every bite.
The restaurant was a little Spartan, posters tacked to the walls and bright posters under the glass table mats.
Overall the meal was good, and the experience was great. A & N is definitely worth your time.

The place is clean, the bathroom too… the food taste good. 1^st time eat in here, definitely will be back again.
The only downsize is the AC wasn’t that cool… maybe it’s too hot outside.

Came in last night to try This style of food for first time. Highlights are: very clean dining area, nothing fancy. Was greeted by a nice older lady. We got the chai it was delicious and I loved how it was served in unique cups and had s nice stainless pot. Dinner was different be advised they don’t use utensils so you will eat with hands. No complaints with this food bc I’ve never had it before so I don’t know any different. What I can say is it was delicious and had unique flavors.

Very authentic Ethiopean. Delicious, Friendly, and no forks… just the way it should be.

This was a nice find! I eyed the sign a while ago when I was still living in the area and it caught my interest. I always wanted to try Nile in my Richmond days but never got a chance and never expected to see an Ethiopian restaurant in VB. I happened to be in the area again and decided to pick some up for my grandmother for lunch. We both love trying new food so this was right up our alley.
To sum it up, the food was delicious and they were very patient with me being in a rush and scatter brained when trying to figure out what I wanted. It was also a lot of food and I couldn’t finish it all in one sitting. Left some leftovers for my mom and she reported back later on that she too thought it was delicious. Please give this place a try, the location seems to be cursed and I don’t recall businesses lasting very long there over the years. Let’s encourage more places like this in Hampton Roads!

I’ve never had Ethiopian cuisine and this place made my first experience worth it. I had the beef, spicy.
Don’t be in a rush when you come here. The food is prepped fresh. I highly recommend this place.

Very good Ethiopian food! I used to drive to Richmond to get Ethiopian food so I’m excited there’s a good restaurant here in the 757. Very nice people that run the place as well.

Do not miss eating here! An adventure in culture and food. Very small 7 table top venue with perfectly cooked to order authentic cuisine.
They’re not in a rush in Ethiopia when they eat/​dine, so don’t be in a rush when you come to experience A&N for dinner. That said, I had my lunch sitting in front of me in less than 6 minutes!
Few local kid’s palates under 10 – 12 will appreciate the complexities that this rich eat-​with-​your-​hands feast has to offer. That said, few adults from around here have been so fortunate to experience this sort of a gastronomic treat!
Very kind and conscientious staff.
Comfortable clean surroundings.
Third time here (first for lunch) and can’t say enough good about it except — Go, you’ll be so glad that you did. Revel in the experience!!!

So happy that Ethiopian is back in Hampton Roads and close by!
We went on a Saturday with another couple. The atmosphere was nice and we were the only people in the place when we first sat down.
Our friends went totally vegan– we had a couple of the meat dishes. Everything was really good. Injera was great. Our favs were the tibbs and the cabbage. There wasn’t anything that we did not like, so there I don’t have any «avoid this» tips.
The waitress and cook were both very friendly. At the end of the meal, the cook came out and talked with us, asking us how it was. She was very nice. Yes, the wait was a little longer than, say, Panera but 20 – 30 minute wait for such a great meal was more than worth it.
Just an FYI: it is in a weird, unassuming two story shopping strip that faces into the parking lot and not the street that it is on.

Lovely. Just lovely. Don’t expect some super fancy place with world class service. Think a hole in the wall, a two women show and some stellar food. After all, where else can you get Ethiopian food around here?
Everything there is cooked to order. You get pros and cons with this. If you’re rolling two deep I think it would be great. If it’s a party of 5+, like mine was, you’re going to have a few folks watching others eat. Yeah, that gets a bit awkward. Service on this visit was really whacked out. Some sort of ordering process needs to be in place on their end because orders were getting mixed up.
Beef tips, #3, was a great dish. Delicious with a nice spice (not spicy as in hot) flavor.
Top tip: Best to go on a cold day because it is hot as hell inside.

I’ve never had Ethiopian food before. But from what I tasted, everything was amazing. It wasn’t oily or greasy. Everything was cooked fresh. I loved the texture of the spongy injera. The presentation was awesome as well. It felt very authentic. The lamb tibs are a must! The waitress was also really nice. She even gave us some extra injera and tea on the house. The prices are really fair. Our meal was about $ 27 which included 2 entrees and 4 sides. That’s really good considering we couldn’t even finish half our meal. Lots of leftovers! My new go to Ethiopian spot!

So glad we stopped by. 11 – 6 M thru F and 11 –8 Saturday and Sundays. The Bunno, coffee is strong and yummy. We had the chicken and beef tips with all four veggies. The chicken was excellent as was the cabbage. The rest was very good, just not as good as the two I mentioned. We will be back!

I first off want to thank you Unilocalers for sending me to this place ! I conveniently saw a groupon and bought it after reading the reviews. I’m going to try to make this simple, easy to follow and straight to the major points starting with the food.
*** The FOOD ***
The food was downright, mouth wateringly, amazingly, freshly made, delicious.
Ok now that I got that out of the way, I really wanted to capitalize on the fact that the food is some of the best food south of DC I’ve had. I’m a fan of ethiopian food and this was no let down. I will say that you should expect to sit for 30 minutes before you receive your food, but all is fine and well as long as you know this up front, and understand that they make everything fresh !
** The Servers ***
I’d say the service was a little slow. Overall the smiles from the waitresses and the care they took to each individual table was great. It is frustrating though when you want to catch one of them on their way back to the kitchen so they don’t have to make an extra stop and you can’t. Maureen was my waitress and she was amazing ! I felt very cared about as a customer, and her recommendations based on what I told her I tended to like were spot on !!!
*** The appearance ***
Overall the place is very simple and minimalist. Its a great family place with a few chairs and all. This is not elegant by any means, which was ok with me, as the food is the most important part. I had this feeling while sitting that I was in someone’s personal living room, and I think that with the music and the ambiance worked together.
** FINAL SAY ****
I will definitely be returning, and I’d recommend the big platter with the Lamb tibs and the chicken !!! It was amazing, fresh, vibrant, and delicious !!! I hope this helps

What? An (and ahem ahem the only) Ethiopian restaurant in VB/​HRs, enough said.
The veg platter is a vegan paradise. Ethio joints are famous for being a bit slow so it’s best to give yourself plenty of time when dining in. Plus you get to enjoy the best food the world has to offer.
Ethiopian food is #1. No dispute. Go there now.