Lalibela Restaurant

Reviews

• Kitschy Kitchen

  My foodie mates adore this place and go into orgasmic paroxysms when they talk about(at length). I get the wooden masks, seats and the whole ethnic vibe. I like the idea of escaping from Kentish Town into a romantic noshery. It either works for you or it doesn't - perhaps I'm just not foodie enough(sniff). On the plus side the food was good - spicy meat dishes that you sop up with homemade bread. The staff, fun and friendly.

  Stantoncarlisle
  Review Date: 02/11/2008 Report review
• Ethiopian Delights

  Do the words Tibs or Doro Wot mean anything to you? If not, then you haven’t been to Lalibela. Named after a beautiful Ethiopian city this is one fine African restaurant. It’s on Fortress road and an easy walk both from Kentish Town and Tufnell Park.The decor is warm and typically east-African with a varied collection of hand-carved wooden furniture (beautiful as they are they don’t make for the most comfortable seating unfortunately). The staff are very friendly and can be a bit cheeky, but always professional. Last time we went there we did have to remind them to get the bill after waiting for about 15 minutes, but we were happy chatting away and digesting anyway. Ethiopian food is served as follows: you and you company sit around the table and a very large flat plate is placed in the middle. On it you have Injera, which is a Ethiopian sour flat bread, which also serves as your fork or spoon. The food comes in a variety of small pots and everyone places scoops on the main plate cuts out a piece of Injera (or uses some of the extra rolls they bring you) rolls or folds up and off he or she goes. If you’re the adventurous type this should make for quite a different first date experience. On second thoughts you may want to avoid that, depending on what you have in mind for later. More on that below...The food is a fun and very tasty experience. Most of the dishes are mild stews with rich flavours, with fish, lamb, chicken and goat featuring on the menu (not sure if beef is there or not). A word of warning here. The food is tasty and very moreish. The Injera is also pretty good, but I do believe that it expands slightly once in your stomach. The result is a bit similar to drinking plenty of tequila sitting down and realising that your coordination is not what it used to be half an hour ago, when you stand up. With Ethiopian food you’ll stand up try to walk and then realise that you better order one of those really tasty coffees brewed over charcoal and give yourself a bit more time before engaging in any kind of physical activity that involves anything more than sitting down.

  Sokratis
  Review Date: 10/09/2007 Report review