Red Sea Cafe (Ethiopian Restaurant)
The Red Sea Cafe (670 East Broadway, Vancouver, BC, Canada, phone 604-873-3332) is an authentic Eritrean and Ethiopian restaurant located on East Broadway near Fraser street.
The menu has a good selection of vegetarian and non-vegetarian items, with vegetables such as okra, kale, green beans, and cabbage, and meats including chicken, lamb, or beef (some of which is pictured below).
The stewed vegetables or meats are served on a spongy-like sourdough flatbread called injera. (Click here for more info about Ethiopian cuisine.) In the Ethiopian traditional cuisine, those enjoying the meal use their right hand to pick up pieces of the stew with the injera and eat without utensils. At the Red Sea Cafe you have the opportunity to eat the traditional way, or you can use a fork and knife if you wish.
Prices are very reasonable: one serving of a meat or vegetable with injera costs around $8.00. If you are very hungry, they offer a combination platter for two to share, that has four items (around $15 per person, including tax and tip).
Spiderwoman, a reviewer on DineHere.ca (click here for review link) writes:
I tried this restaurant for the first time the other day.
Got #4 on the menu. A lamb dish with tumeric, ginger, etc…I was really pleased with the ambiance. It’s so clean and peaceful.
The food was fun to eat.
Traditional Ethiopian cuisine – stewed meats or vegetables served on a sourdough flatbread.
The decor of the Red Sea Cafe features some interesting art pieces from Africa.
May 25th, 2011 at 7:19 pm
I wouldn’t go so far to say ‘primitive’ these are people with a culture and history and they are bringing a very small piece of it to us via food. It’s a good way to get to know other ways of eating that are equally important as forks and knives. Thank you very much and I hope you don’t stop your cultural exploration here!
July 12th, 2010 at 6:44 am
This is not the type of place you would drive by and say “Oh we have to try that place” but it is one of those places you realize you need to bring others to once you have eaten there. The couple that own the place are lovely, very helpful and willing to explain the items and make sure you are happy and getting a dish that works with your dietary needs. The food is amazing, bursting with flavours that dance on your tongue from the first bite to the last, and the ambiance is wonderful, relaxed, calming and traditional. Also, I found it to be very clean compared to other cafe type eateries in that same realm around Vancouver. Go prepared to eat with your hands, get a little primitive and walk away stuffed!