I love Ethiopian food & have had what most places call the "vegetarian platter" at dozens of Ethiopian places around the country.
What I had recently at Merkato was OK, but the flavoring of the ingredients just really didn't stand-out like it should have, both in terms of basic flavors as well as the spices. Almost like the various vegetables had been frozen for a long time.
Hostess was non-existent. I stood around for a couple minutes before a waitress invited me to sit wherever I wanted. But once I was seated, the waitstaff was friendly & attentive.
It was a slow, weekday night (around 7PM) & the place wasn't very busy. Perhaps as a consequence of that, I think they only had two people working there at the time -- my waitress & a cook in back.