Henry K. wrote: >I know of two restaurants in S.F. >One is on Haight Street btwn Masonic and Ashbury (or maybe Clayton). I do >not know exactly what African cuisine they specialize in. This restaurant is called Massawa and has been one of my all-time favorites since I moved out here in September '89. They specialize in East African cuisine, which is variously called Ethiopian or Eritrean, depending on one's political leanings. I can't comment knowledgably about their flesh offerings, but the veggie fare is consistently yummy. My SO and I generally get Mantikka (sp?), a spicy mushroom stew, and the Vegetarian Combination Birsen, which includes 2 kinds of lentil stew (one where the lentils are still distinct, the other where they are hulled and thus more like a thick sauce), zuchinni, spinach, okra, potatoes, and salad served on and with injera (a springy pancake-like bread; for those who haven't sampled this cuisine yet, half the fun is scooping the food up with pieces of injera and popping it in your mouth--no utensils!). We often get their crisp and spicy veggie sambussas as appetizers. This is a whole lot of food for two people for ~$25, including tax & tip. > >Also, there's an Ethiopian food/jazz club on the corner of Divisidero and >California (lower Pacific Heights Area). It's called Rassales. I heard >that place is pretty good. I've never eaten there but caught a good jazz >show one night over a few beers. Very mellow, yuppiesque atmosphere. Not familiar with this one. There is also (or was 6 months ago) an East African restaurant called Horn of Africa in San Jose (I think off the Alameda, but I can't remember) It was good, but a bit more starchy and more lightly (blandly) spiced than the food at Massawa. But it was much easier to park ;-) --Janet Stemwedel [email removed] Stanford disavows all knowledge of me and of my opinions every chance it gets.
San Jose, CA