Meskel -- Darn Tasty Ethiopian Food

I have eaten Meskel's veggie combo at least twenty times in the last year.

Dear readers, Meskel is on 26th and E Cherry in Leschi, and if you'd like to dip your toes in the water with Ethiopian cuisine or even if you've tried a number of them on E. Cherry and E. John streets you won't be disappointed.

I love the concept of the veggie combo... you get a little bit of everything. Before I extol the virtues of each part of the veggie combo, I must note that there are plenty of delightful meat options for my omniverous friends.

Now, let us proceed with the goods -- here is a picture of the Veggie Combo in all its glory.

Going around the dish counterclockwise (starting at 11:45) are the lentils. These are like a spicy, thick lentil soup, and you scoop it up with the injira, which (according to Mr. Wiki) is a pancake-like bread made out of teff flour. There are also lentils in the center in the picture.

The mixed salad has onions, tomatoes, lettuce and a light dressing and is a good complement to the spice of the beans.

Then we have the tomato fitfit, which is like injira and tomatoes mashed together and is one of the highlights. A friend of ours will often order a side of fitfit in addition to a veggie combo b/c she is fitfit crazy.

Then there is the cheese which is like a dry cottage cheese and is homemade.

The split peas(?), the yellow piece is not as spicy as the lentils and is very hearty.

The greens are cooked chard finely chopped, and they remind me a bit of what Popeye would eat and probably explain my ripped physique. No, that's not me, the bicep is far too small.

Finally, the warm potato and cabbage(?) salad with baby carrots. I must admin I pick out the baby carrots. Don't like 'em.

There you go. And it's $10. Wow. Go eat it.

Their web site is also very detailed. Despite what the home page says, you will not need reservations. Meskel can be pretty full, but I would not expect you to ever be turned away. There is outdoor dining in the summer.

Also there is apparently a wine bar downstairs? Wine bar may be stretching it, but it always seemed like there was a party going on down there and I 've never checked it out. Based on the picture, I think I may need to have a pre-dinner beverage down there sometime (and Meskel has a nice selection of Ethiopian beers plus Red Hook and I think Bud Heavy.)

[where: 98122]