Terrific Takeout: Meskerem Ethiopian Cuisine Inaugural Feature at the Brilliant Suggestion of @JohnLeguizamo Our Coverage Sponsored by Fresh Origins
Michael Ayalew, owner of Meskerem and native of Ethiopia who personally crafts your uber-authentic dinner
Fresh Origins is America’s leading producer of Microgreens and Edible Flowers. Combining the benefits of an ideal climate with a deep passion for quality and innovation, Fresh Origins products are sought after by the finest restaurants and top chefs. The farm is located in the picturesque rolling hills of San Diego County, where the near perfect weather allows for production and harvest all year. Fresh Origins produces almost 400 Microgreens, Petitegreens, Edible Flowers, Shoots, Tiny Veggies™ and related items. Many are not available anywhere else, with new introductions nearly every month. Fresh Origins products are on top of the finest cuisine in the world! Fresh Origins supplies distributors of specialty produce who serve fine dining restaurants and resorts nationwide. There are also a few online sources of their products available to private chefs and home cooks. Read our first Culinary Queen interview with Kelly Sasuga:
For more information about Fresh Origins, visit their website at
Thanks John for your recommendation!
This one's for you, and this is the best we could do in terms of having a drink with you.
That's you on Peachy's phone...
P.S. Everyone is required to watch STEALING CARS, his movie we highly recommended, prior to eating dinner at Meskerem!!! Michael, will you give them a quiz to see if they watched?
***
And, of all of the suggestions John makes at the conclusion of his video-which you can see at the bottom because this is Michael's post not John's, it is clear that Michael is the best and brightest because he's the first to be gracious enough to be reviewed. Of every category we review, restaurants and movies are definitely used to being reviewed by the world (and we're working on the shoe industry and more...). We just wrote on East Side Sushi, a movie, and we said when we're not reviewing a restaurant, we're reviewing a movie about a restaurant.
Well, now it looks like when we meet the movies they give us restaurant direction and so the world goes around.
It is a small world after all because when we got there Michael asked us if we liked wine. Since this is our inaugural visit and hopefully the first of many, he hadn't known how much we love a lovely glass of wine at the end of the day and even more so at the end of a long, long week. And we didn't know that we liked honey wine, which is an Ethiopian recipe and is always served chilled. Now we know!
If you have never eaten Ethiopian food before, you will be amazed at all the choices and may have trouble differentiating all of the contrasting dishes. Don't worry.
All you need to know is that you're going to like it and you should order everything.
Meskerem began in 2000 when Michael opened the original location, and everything here is superbly authentic right down the the Injera (a fine grain) bread made on premises with the grain Teff. It's spongey and has an enticing texture like you've probably never seen before. It is like the most beautiful, delicious gym mat you would want to eat. Michael personally cares about every last detail and doesn't need a PR firm to brag about him (and a lot of them, whom we never work with, are not honest to tell you the truth!). Michael's culinary talents and sincere warmth are all you need to experience to know this is a great place for a wonderful dinner.
We began with the Sambosa, above.
Although the name is pretty similar to a girl scout cookie name (you'll never guess who was good at selling those) it is actually composed of chopped prime beef or lentils that teams up with hot green pepper, onions, and garlic. The flavor is amazing and this little wonder lives in a flat bread triangle that won't live long once you bite into it.
We are told this is a popular dish.
We next tried the Avocado. It is as close as we got to our traditional green salad that we try to include. Chopped avocado mixed with tomato, green peppers and onion is simplicity in fine form that is just so fresh and delicious you must try it.
On this Injera bread you will find going we believe counter-clockwise (every single item we had never eaten before like this in presentation or composition):
collard greens
chopped beeef
tibs wat beef
yellow beans
shiro (chickpeas)
lentil
However, none are as straightforward or as boring as you knew them to be in your life prior to going to Meskerem. The girl that dreams of burrata and branzino dreamt of these amazing concoctions the night she ate this. And then she got up and opened the refrigerator and her dream came true.
So, what did we try and like?
We loved everything and it's clear why John likes this place!
Everything is fresh, flavorful and delicious and as a cuisine experienced at this restaurant, Meskerem only in particular, it is the best thing you didn't know you liked before.
We have never reviewed an Ethiopian restaurant before this one.
Gomen Besaega: A special cut of prime beef seasoned with garlic, onions and ginger, and finished with boiled collard greens (up with the green vegetables!).
Miser Alech: Split lentils dipped with ginger, garlic, onions, olive oil and curry and then cooked to perfection.
Miser Wat: the same as Miser Alech but finished with berbere after the garlic, onions and olive oil (no curry). We put three stars after this one in our notes.
Shro Wat: Three stars were written by Peachy for this one too and this is ground and highly seasoned chickpeas in berbere sauce. And berbere is ground red pepper that you are going to love! Michael gets his berbere spice directly from Ethiopia.
The method of eating is with your fingers and you're going to feel like you went on a picnic but you're sitting at a dinner table.
Michael, the artist, and his edible palette!
If you like your dinner to cluck instead of moo, you should know the chicken is just as enticing as the beef. We believe this is the Doro Wat: chicken pieces seasoned with onions, garlic and fresh ginger then sauteed with butter and red wine finished with berbere. The Special Chicken Tibs are instead finished with awaze sauce.
This superb bastion of exotic gastronomy is going to have you wanting another glass of honey wine to complement it!
Even better was Tibs Wat, which is slow cooked in a pan and sauteed with berbere.
Slow cooked with two chicken legs and a hard boiled egg, this succulent prime beef is going to have you glad you are also not a vegan (but maybe a Deegan?).
Everything at Meskerem is made by scratch and has a lot of pride and love it in from Michael himself.
John we hope you are going to grace us with your presence - we would put you to work for the formal review! And here's the video that started it all:
P.S. John we did not know you when we reviewed CHEF, but it looks like you learned in that movie that the internet can do good things for great restaurants!
Michael is a total peach and we cannot wait to see what he does next!
Their website is coming and we hope their Twitter too!
Their facebook page says:
Ethiopians have the right idea when it comes to meals. Share. Here's how civilized people do it: put delicious food in the center of the table, pass around the injera, and dig in. The beef, lamb, and poultry dishes are very good indeed and Meskerem also excels in vegetarian choices. This is the place to bring a group of acquaintances. You'll leave as friends.
For maximum enjoyment, Ethiopian restaurants require a group, and while beef, lamb and chicken dishes are plentiful, so are vegetarian selections. A meal works like this: A main course is placed in the center of the table, and diners pass a platter or injera, spongy rounds of bread made from fermented tef, a rye-like Ethiopian grain. You tear off a piece, collect some stew from the platter and eat.
Meskerem's injera is glorious with a light, fresh sourdough aroma rising from the bubbly brown bread. The best vegetarian choices include yemiser alecha, a mild lentil stew flavored with garlic and ginger, yemiser wat, a heartier lentil stew spiced with fiery berbere sauce, and shiro wat, a spicy chickpea stew flavored with cardamom and turmeric.
In keeping with our traditions, we invite you to try our renowned Ethiopian cuisine.
