Abyssinian

so, tonight wasn't exactly part of our New Year's Revolution, per se. mr zebra and I have enjoyed Ethiopian together in the past. the admiral and conductor, however, not so. they are both what i would call.. living inside of a box. and they like it there. but, that kind of thing is nearly impossible when i'm around. and so, in celebration of my last day inside of the orange box, we celebrated with Ethiopian at the Abyssinian in the West End of Hartford. And, due to the fact that we all must be up early, please don't expect this entry to be filled with quite the.. explanation.. of the last. Essentially, everyone had to leave as soon as I got their basic opinion of the experience.

Sadly, I was a complete idiot and forgot to take a picture of the sign, but this is where it should have gone.
This is also where I was going to put and amusing video of the Admiral in it's place, but I can't seem to figure how to get it off of my camera yet.
So, instead, check out my spiffy new shoes. I got them on clearance and intend on wearing them to my new job. Often. (I got a pair of blue ones, too.)

Now, Ethiopian is a very.. communal dinner. You are served one large, round platter covered in a piece of bread called Injera (please congratulate me for knowing that!). Basically, it's a large, bland, flabby pancake. "it felt like I was eating a sponge!" "it was porous! that's what it was!" The Admiral and Conductor were both surprised to find that, when the meal said it was served with a salad, the salad actually came in small, individual piles on the platter spaced with what may be been spinach piles and bean-like piles (similar to hummus).

Along side the platter were small plates of more of the same bread and each meal was served in a small bowl with a large spoon.

I had Yebeg Alcha. Lamb, simmered in mild sauce of butter, onions, ginger and turmeric. I'm not going to lie. I played it safe. I start a new job tomorrow.. adventurous may not always be the best option in such a case.

The Admiral enjoyed Yesege Alicha Be-Denish. Beef chunks and potatoes cooked with vegetable oil, garlic, carrots, onions, and green peppers. "it was.. interesting. it was good. it had the foreign taste to it. i don't know how to describe it. it had that ::snap, snap:: non American taste to it." and there, we have the Admiral at his finest.

Ah, and Mr Zebra. Happily, he did not get what he had last time! Although, it was completely similar to the Admiral's.  Yesega Wot Be-Denish. Beef chunks and potatoes simmered in red pepper sauce with ginger root, garlic, onions, carrots and cardamon. "i don't know how to do push ups! it was fantastic. it had great flavor! i enjoyed it much more than the last time we went."

Lastly, Conductor. He's a pretty pessimistic SOB recently, not gonna lie. Yesega Wot - Beef simmered in red pepper sauce (Berbere), seasoned with green pepper, ginger root, garlic, onions, and cardamon. "it was the kind of food you knew was going to give you diarrhea later. eh. i got nothing for ya." For the record, Conductor is an ass and that is a complete lie. We all grabbed at everyone else's and it was all delicious.

Speaking of being grabbed at.. you didn't think you ate off the giant spoon, didja? Like Admiral, would you see yourself shoveling it into your mouth with a large utensil? No, actually you shovel it into your mouth with your hands. Would it be wrong to say "What else would you expect from Ehtiopea? You thought they could afford spoons?" when typical responses from people when I mention my love for this place are 'I've always wanted to go to an air bar!' or 'what do they serve? malnourishment?' Really, now.

Basically, you spoon your dinner choice on to the large platter along with everyone else's and using pieces of the bread you tore from the piles, you scoop/grab/pinch it and do your best to get it in your mouth.

It's a lot of fun! And, since everyone is grabbing from the same giant platter, you can mix, grab and try what ever you'd like in all sorts of interesting ways, ie, grab the lamb and the beef and some of that spinach stuff. Or substitute any of the above for the bean pile/salad/etc. Just the act of it all is great - - like a team building exercise or something.
Even thought the pessimistic thoughts of Conductor and the skeptical comments of the Admiral (who I am very proud of, I must say. Trying new things is very unlike him!), it looks like everyone enjoyed it, don't ya think?