Taste of Africa

Ras Ethiopia claims to be the only Ethiopian restaurant in China and offers patrons a taste of culture with every bite of authentic Ethiopian cuisine. Guests enter to the scent of amber incense and fresh coffee brewed every night in elaborate ceremonies specific to the small African country, which guests are welcome to attend. Diners can sit at Western-style tables or opt for communal eating at a decorative hand-woven basket, called a mesob. Entres are served on a plate of Ethiopian injera bread and are typically eaten by tearing pieces of the spongy, flat bread and using the right hand fingers to scoop up the dishes.

Coming from a country with a large Muslim, Jewish and Orthodox-Christian population, all Ras Ethiopia's dishes are pork-free, and numerous vegan dishes are available as well. All entres, Ethiopian stews called We't, are served with injera bread or rice. Traditional appetizers, such as a meat- or vegetable-filled fried pastry called sambussa (20 yuan), are an excellent way to begin a meal. Diners looking for authentic Ethiopian should try the Doro We't (75 yuan), a dish of tender chicken legs and hard boiled eggs sauted in kibe herb butter and served in a hot, red-pepper sauce called berbere.

"If you were a special guest coming to my house, the Doro We't is what my mom would cook for you," says Daniele Bekele, who owns Ras Ethiopia with his wife Marlo Bekele.