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| - Lovely authentic Ethiopian restaurant located in an unassuming strip mall near downtown Tempe. While Cafe Lalibela does serve meat, they were voted Best Vegetarian Restaurant by Arizona Republic, and rightfully so! Their menu has an entirely vegetarian section, with almost every option being vegan. They also have a great selection of Ethiopian beer and wine. The interior is casual yet elegant and immaculately clean, with beautiful authentic decor, and even a small marketplace containing dry goods and to-go items.
Eager to try a variety of their vegan dishes, I went with the Vegetarian Combination platter ($16). An enormous sheet of injera is covered with heaps of plant based Ethiopian classics, as well as a fresh green salad. A basket of additional injera is provided, making the platters ideal for sharing (or scarfing down solo, like I did). The highlight of my platter was the Misr Wat, a richly spiced red lentil dish. I also greatly enjoyed their rendition of Fosolia, made with fresh green beans simmered in a light, herbal tomato sauce. The rest of the dishes were edible, but not good. The Tikl Gomen and collards were both severely lacking in flavor, as was the injera, which was too airy and lacked the subtle sour flavor that good injera should have.
While my Vegetarian Combination was hit and miss, I appreciate the use of fresh ingredients, and felt that this was a truly healthy meal. It is evident that they incorporate minimal salt and oil in their cooking, which left me feeling nourished without being overstuffed. I would come back here the next time I am in Tempe, and just order the Misr Wat and Fosolia.
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