ABITI'S
RESTAURANT

Abiti - nick name of owner Abonesh Adinew - famous Ethiopian singer behind the hit "Balageru" song.

The newest addition to the Ethiopian enclave on the 1900 block of 9th Street that many have starting referring to as "Little Ethiopia." The restaurant, owned by Abonesh Adinew, a celebrated singer in her native country Ethiopia.

Abonesh performs nightly here. The restaurant's specialties are from the Gurga region of Ethiopia , and include kitfo and goden tibs. A breakfast menu is offered.

Washington Post
Washington's Little Ethiopia
A New Cluster of Restaurants Brings Exotic (Yet Inexpensive) Appeal to Ninth and U St
By Walter Nicholls

"... Around the corner is Abiti, a brightly colored, 48-seat restaurant that opened about the same time as Etete. The furnishings are traditional basket-weave tables and Ethiopian fabrics. The surface of the small bar in the rear is of particular interest. "I cut up my wife's old clothes and laminated over the fabric," says co-owner Negash Shifraw.

He and his wife, Abonesh "Abiti" Boku, host an Ethiopian-style coffee service on Sunday afternoons. (The cultivation of coffee, it's widely thought, began in Ethiopia.) On weekend nights, Boku, the cook, sings traditional native songs. "To be different, we're trying to be a cultural restaurant," says Shifraw.

The Washington region, with its 200,000 people of Ethiopian descent, has the largest Ethiopian population outside of the country itself, according to an unofficial estimate by the embassy. With the addition of Etete, which specializes in vegetarian meals, 10 Ethiopian restaurants now are clustered at U Street east of 13th and in the 1900 block of Ninth Street. Each has its distinct ambiance and fans.

The new enclave has twice as many Ethiopian restaurants as Adams Morgan, where Ethiopian entrepreneurs began opening food businesses in the late 1970s. The exotic and inexpensive cuisine attracts not only fellow countrymen but especially students and tourists. Meals are a communal, social activity, and there is no need for a knife and fork. Ethiopian is all about finger food.

Diners gather around a single, circular platter covered with a soft, 16-inch pancake or bread called injera . Spicy stews, seasoned vegetables and pureed legumes are artfully placed around the pancake. Additional injera are served alongside. That's when it's time to tear a section of the bread and use it to gather a mouthful from the assorted offerings. When the underlying pancake, soaked with sauce, is consumed, the meal is considered complete. ... >>more