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Ethiopian Food
updated: Dec 06, 2012, 2:19 PM

By Edhat Subscriber

According to an ad in today's Independent, Le Petit Valentien in downtown SB is going to begin serving Ethiopian food on, I assume, an occasional basis.

Does anyone know anything more?

Comments in order of when they were received | (reverse order)

AUNTIE S.	2012-12-06 05:54 PM
Is Mollie going over there?
COMMENT 351138	2012-12-06 07:06 PM
from what I've heard, an Ethiopian restaurant in going in next door to the Granada.
COMMENT 351144P	2012-12-06 07:22 PM
I hope so! I also hope the new restaurant rumor is true! Keep an eye on John Dickson's blog "The Restaurant Guy"; there's no mention of it yet: http://www.santabarbara.com/dining/news/ Or call Le Petit Valentien. I'm off to check out the ad. (I've had a mad crush on Marcus Samuellson since I first laid eyes on him!)
COMMENT 351146	2012-12-06 07:30 PM
@144P - I also love Ethiopian food, and Marcus Samuelsson is great, but I'm pretty sure he's Sweedish and doesn't cook Ethiopian food. At least not at his restaurants.
COMMENT 351147	2012-12-06 07:35 PM
146, he doesn't cook swedish food either, not exclusively. It's really silly to think that a world class chef doesn't cook anything exotic. Ethiopian food is a hot commodity right now in the US and has been for over a decade in the UK and other parts of Europe. I'd be surprised if a European bred chef didn't cook Ethiopian food to some degree....as well as a bit of everything.
COMMENT 351151P	2012-12-06 07:47 PM
Indeed, Samuellson has a wide range, which definitely includes Ethiopain food. Google "marcus samuelsson ethiopian food" if interested. There was restaurant Merkato 55, doing African food, and his "Making Ethiopian Food for Saveur Magazine." Samuellson is Ethiopian and was adopted by Swedish parents.
COMMENT 351156	2012-12-06 07:55 PM
Guys..... There's no food in Ethiopia....we've known this for years now :(
COMMENT 351164P	2012-12-06 08:12 PM
156, we all knew someone would post what you did. You get a gold star.
COMMENT 351175	2012-12-06 08:39 PM
@146, actually his father is from Ethiopia and he's talked extensively about traveling there with his family when he was a boy growing up in Sweden. Google his name for his blog if you want to see more. He may be Swedish by birthplace, but his heritage is indeed Ethiopian, so I'm betting he makes EXCELLENT Ethiopian food.
COMMENT 351186P	2012-12-06 08:52 PM
I didn't know until recently that they had a cuisine because I had heard for decades that absolutely nothing grew there and everyone was starving and migrated to relief camps for white gruel served in shallow metal pans. Apparently, there's this whole other side to Ethiopia. I should've gone with my first instincts as a kid because if they're wearing beautiful brightly colored clothing, there's got to be food there. Anyways, I've had the cuisine and it's unbelievably delicious and wholesome.
COMMENT 351219P	2012-12-07 12:30 AM
Per Wikipedia, both his parents are Ethiopian. His mom died of TB when he was 3. His given name is Kassahun 'Joar' Tsegie. His biological father, Tsegie, is a priest and still lives in the Ethiopian village where Samuelsson was born.
SEEDLADY	2012-12-07 07:07 AM
Ethiopian food is delicious! Wonderful Mediterranean/African spice flavorings, and it's served to be eaten in a casual style. Great for sharing with others as its served 'family style' around common bowls and platters. Love the flat bread. Had it once years ago in Berkeley, at an Italian/Ethiopian restaurant. Look forward to trying it again!
COMMENT 351238	2012-12-07 07:16 AM
186, Ethiopia is a little to the East of Southern Sudan, and West of Somalia. Unlike its (in)famous neighbors, it has a wide variety of climates, soils, and altitudes. It also has a history of more stable and less intrusive governance than most of its nighbors giving it a great diversity of agricultural practices, tastes, and cuisines, the histories of which date back to biblical times and beyond. 'course I wouldn't know any of this either if I hadn't had Ethiopian coworkers and friends over the years (and leafed through the Bible). Wouldn't mind visiting there some day.
COMMENT 351242	2012-12-07 07:28 AM
My first impression of Ethiopian food was that someone cooked a table-sized pancake, then pre-chewed a variety of colorful foods so that they were all the same runny consistency, then spit them out in individual piles on the pancake, and I had to eat it all with my hands. Luckily I got past that because it was all delicious.
COMMENT 351253	2012-12-07 07:50 AM
I went to an Ethiopian restaurant before. We sat in front of empty plates for some time, then left hungry. A very authentic experience.
S.B.RON	2012-12-07 08:24 AM
I find the food tasty but don't prefer to stick my hands into a communal bowl with everyone else. One time the person across from me had a really bad cold. She kept sneezing and wiping her nose, and then cheerfully digging into the communal bowl.....not sure I can get that out of my mind.
ZIPPER101	2012-12-07 08:44 AM
The Ethiopian restaurants I've been to, in Boston and LA, served individual injera and separate sauces (wot?) to account for preferences, vegetarians etc. There's wasn't much of a communal element that I recall. As others have already pointed out to the geography- and culture-challenged, Ethiopia is not Somalia or Sudan.
COMMENT 351306P	2012-12-07 09:15 AM
All the Ethiopian restaurants I've been to (Oregon and Washington) have served a separate flatbread and plate of food to each person at the table -- no communal eating problems.
COMMENT 351326	2012-12-07 09:54 AM
Oh, PLEASE PLEASE say this is true! SB has long been in need of Ethiopian food! I have been wanting this to happen for years!
COMMENT 351464	2012-12-07 03:50 PM
Years ago I had Ethiopian food in Seattle where Mexican restaurants are so bland they're the government access channel of food. Well, the Ethiopian food there was so hot (and I liked my Thai food "Thai hot" back when I had a functional gallbladder) that the flavors consisted of screaming hot and OMG this is way too hot. That and the yak butter tea at the Tibetan restaurant in Berkeley did me in. Caveat cholecyst.
COMMENT 351822P	2012-12-08 08:44 PM
does anyone have updated info on the rumored restaurant??
COMMENT 351999	2012-12-09 05:03 PM
yes, I've spoken with the "kids" who are opening it. very sweet, but very young. I hope they succeed!

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