Monday, July 14, 2008

Ethiopian cuisine in the neighborhood

Yesterday, Caroline and I rediscovered a neighborhood treasure within walking distance of our little Nashville house: Gojo Ethiopian Restaurant. I knew it was there, I'd even been there once when it was a scary hole-in-the-wall. But it always looked so deserted I wasn't sure it was even in business anymore. A few months ago someone painted it a bright orange and changed the name from Lalibela to Gojo. Well, last night we decided to give it a go, and it was an absolute delight.

The little girl who waited on us was from Addis Ababa and had lived in the States for many years. She was still in high school and said she came here for the education opportunities. She was helping out her aunt in the restaurant for the summer. She said a family had come in that same day saying they were adopting from Ethiopia. I wish I knew who? I ordered the vegetarian combo. My favorite was the shiro wet (ground chickpeas) and Caroline liked the ye atkilt wet (green beans). She was not a fan of injera, but she kept trying it thinking it would be more like bread. We'll have to work on that one. I'm eager to take Spence and try some new dishes. I think they will do a coffee ceremony too.

In other news...three Bethany families passed court on Friday and are officially parents of their little ones. They will travel to Ethiopia in the next couple months to pick them up. Yippee!