Slog
News & ArtsFriday, June 15, 2012
Chow Altaye Ethiopian Restaurant: Good, Cheap, Friendly, Rainier Valley Eats
Posted by Goldy on Fri, Jun 15, 2012 at 9:59 PM
- Our dinner tonight at Altaye Ethiopian Restaurant on Rainier Ave.
I don't really mean this to be a chow review, but my daughter and I just got back from Altaye Ethiopian Restaurant (8135 Rainier Ave S, 206-353-5157), and I just had to give our favorite neighborhood Ethiopian spot a plug. The food is good, the prices a bargain ($3 beers, $7 to $13 entrees), the atmosphere simple but welcoming, and the owners are the nicest people in the world. But tonight we had the place to ourselves again, and it was breaking my heart.
So if you're in the neighborhood, give it try. And if you're not in the neighborhood, there's plenty of parking on and off Rainier, it's right across the street from a bus stop, and it's less than a mile from the Othello light rail station. And if you don't trust my recommendation, check out Yelp; the reviews are almost unanimously positive.
3
Goldy.
Do they serve Doro Wat (red-sauced spicy chicken with a hard boiled egg)? That's my family's fave but not all Ethiopian restaurants serve it.
Do they serve Doro Wat (red-sauced spicy chicken with a hard boiled egg)? That's my family's fave but not all Ethiopian restaurants serve it.
5
@3: Hmm. I don't know that I've seen it with the egg. To be honest, my daughter and I always share the combo plate.
FYI, others rave about their kitfo, which is a kind of raw chopped beef tartare.
FYI, others rave about their kitfo, which is a kind of raw chopped beef tartare.
6
i wish i could still eat ethiopian spices. and thai red curries. my digestive tract says no, and it makes me sad.
7
@6
Would eating yogurt help? I was recently told to start having some (I do on occasion, but not always) because it will put some good bacteria in your stomach. Maybe that would help with the digestion.
Would eating yogurt help? I was recently told to start having some (I do on occasion, but not always) because it will put some good bacteria in your stomach. Maybe that would help with the digestion.
9
I think a True Blue Patriotic American with Jesus in mind would say, "why them portions so small?" I dare say no one will get fat eating that food, which looks highly unprocessed and not laden with sodium, fat, nor corn sweetener. Darn it ain't good old American food.
10
@9 I'm guess that's actually a pretty large platter and not an individual-sized plate. It's usually "family" style.
11
@9: It's a big plate, with some very filling stuff on it, plus two injira on the side. Plenty for my daughter and I to share.
16
Ok, I'm not up on Ethiopian food, but everything on the plate looks like baby food. Why is this? Is this a special kind of dipping plate or do they only serve pate consistency stuff, with a little bit of lettuce?
It doesn't look very appetizing to me. I like flavor but I also like texture. Can someone explain?
It doesn't look very appetizing to me. I like flavor but I also like texture. Can someone explain?
17
Altaye is great! And they are unbelievably nice there. They do have doro wot on the menu, but I've not ordered it there. So not sure if it has the egg.
18
@16, Ethipoian food is generally eaten not with utensils but with a kind of spongy bread. You pull pieces of bread off and use your fingers to pick up bite sized bits of food and eat bite by bite. So most of the veggie or meat mains are in a kind of stew/curry consistency. Making it easy to grab between two or three fingers and a bit of spongy bread. It's tasty but to be really enjoyed you should be open to eating with your hands. And not being squeemish about others eating from the same plate with their hands.
@3, I've never had Doro Wat with egg. And I've eaten Ethipoian in several restaurants in a few different cities. Now it's possible that every place I've eaten has done it in a non-traditional way. I'm no expert on Ethopoia or the cuisine but I'm not sure I'd ever expect to see egg with my Doro Wat.
@3, I've never had Doro Wat with egg. And I've eaten Ethipoian in several restaurants in a few different cities. Now it's possible that every place I've eaten has done it in a non-traditional way. I'm no expert on Ethopoia or the cuisine but I'm not sure I'd ever expect to see egg with my Doro Wat.
19
That does look really good. Though it would probably be better with proper teff injera.
Ethiopian food is actually quite high in fat, as a lot of oil or clarified butter is used, but it is also extremely filling and delicious and the foods cooked in all that oil tend to be extremely low in fat and calories themselves (lentils, kale, etc.). It is very wholesome food.
Ethiopian food is actually quite high in fat, as a lot of oil or clarified butter is used, but it is also extremely filling and delicious and the foods cooked in all that oil tend to be extremely low in fat and calories themselves (lentils, kale, etc.). It is very wholesome food.
20
@17 & @18
I see. Hmmm, I guess we most often go to Kokeb; the Doro Wat has a chicken leg and one hard boiled egg, both swimming in that deep dark spicy red sauce. I've been going there since I was a kid, I may have just (falsely?) assumed that was the standard way. Thank you both for responding, I guess I'll have to check it out for myself!
I see. Hmmm, I guess we most often go to Kokeb; the Doro Wat has a chicken leg and one hard boiled egg, both swimming in that deep dark spicy red sauce. I've been going there since I was a kid, I may have just (falsely?) assumed that was the standard way. Thank you both for responding, I guess I'll have to check it out for myself!
21
We have been going to the same Ethiopian restaurant in Minneapolis for at least 25 years. The food is wonderful! Oddly the big family meal looks almost identical to your picture.
I'll second that we have never seen the Doro Wat without a hard boiled egg. And the injura has a nice acidic tang to it that I think highlights the flavors on the plate - scooping food up with the bread is the only way to eat it!
Can't recommend this stuff highly enough.
I'll second that we have never seen the Doro Wat without a hard boiled egg. And the injura has a nice acidic tang to it that I think highlights the flavors on the plate - scooping food up with the bread is the only way to eat it!
Can't recommend this stuff highly enough.
22
That place is delicious, and the folks working there are very nice. About twice a year we make the pilgrimage from way up North of Seattle to dine at our favorite Ethiopian spot.
Advertisement
Most Commented on Slog
-
Portland Voters Are Stoopid by Goldy
-
An I-5 Bridge Over the Skagit River Has Collapsed by Paul Constant
-
Why They Break Windows by Unpaid Intern
-
Usually When I'm Sent a Photoshopped Image of a Gun Pointed At Me... by Dan Savage
-
Did You Steal Our Unpaid Intern's Camera? by Goldy
-
Tornado Truthers by Dan Savage
-
The Only Thing More Tragic than a Bridge Collapse Would Be a 10 Cent a Gallon Increase in the Gas Tax by Goldy
-
Star Trek Releases Deleted Scene of Benedict Cumberbatch Showering to Counter Claims of Sexism by Cienna Madrid
-
Boy Scouts Lift Ban on Gay Members by Paul Constant
-
SL Letter of the Day: Not A Prude... And Not Just Not That... by Dan Savage
Stranger Personals
The Stranger
RSSSeattle Art & Performance Quarterly
A complete guide to Seattle's current art, film, dance, and theater season.
Facebook
Twitter
Comments (22) RSS