Lalibela Ethiopian Restaurant

First time eating Ethiopian food, and all I can say is wow. The food is amazing. No overpowering spices or flavors, everything was well balanced. We ordered an eight combination platter, in which we enjoyed both the collar green and green beans dishes. While there was only 1 server, service was still great.

This was my first time eating Ethiopian food, and it’s just not for me. We made an hour long trip out to the restaurant because we had heard great things. I tried the vegetarian sampler, and my date had a sampler as well. I was so excited by the variety of vegetarian options and couldn’t wait to eat. Sadly, the food was just okay, it seemed a bit cold. Way less spicy and flavorful than I was expecting. The absolute worst part about our experience was the bread, which is a main part of the meal. We both just did NOT like the taste of the bread (at all) which made it difficult to enjoy our dinner (it was so sour, it overpowered the flavor of anything eaten with it). The service was friendly, but there were maybe three people on staff, so was slow. I probably will not eat here again, but I enjoyed the experience.

Great Ethiopian food! Easily one of my favorite restaurants in New Haven. And one of the best Ethiopian restaurants.

This is by far one of the top five best restaurants in New Haven, maybe in Connecticut. Their food is authentic and very well prepared. Absolutely delicious and very good service. I’d recommend the sambusas and the doro wat as my favorites.
This is a great restaurant, one of the best Ethiopian restaurants I’ve ever been to.

What happened in two years?
We dined as a party of 4 on a Saturday night — there were 3 servers and about 9 – 10 tables. An order of 1 appetizer and 4 entrees took nearly an HOUR. Drinks were never refilled, no updates on the food — our server basically disappeared and no one else approached our table (while other tables that arrived after us received their meals).
When we finally got our food, the appetizer had been forgotten, the platter (and baskets) of injera were actually cold and our entrees were luke warm. We asked for the injera to be heated and ended up with a platter that was even colder. Our dismay had to be apparent. An apology was barely offered — we at least would have appreciated a comped glass of wine after a $ 100+ meal of barely edible food.
Total disappointment. I’m surprised there is still business.
Oh, and the baklava? I saw boxes in the back of the restaurant so it’s not even made in house.

I was really blown away by the vegetarian dishes we had. It’s definitely some of the best I’ve had in a long time. In particular, I really liked the Shuro (seasoned chick peas in a berbere sauce) and Kosta (spinach and potatoes slowly cooked in a blend of mild spices).
However, the service was very slow. There were only 4 parties in the restaurant, but it took a long time to get our food and get the check. It was a bit unbearable at times.
I’d say this is definitely a spot worth checking out, but make sure you’re not in a rush to leave.

Good food, but insane that they only have one person waiting tables, seating people, and bartending. Very inefficient and had to wait a long time to be seated, then to have order taken, then for drinks, then for food. everything took way too long.

Never had Ethiopian food before, very good. Need more servers. I’m at a table of 12 and there is one waiter for the whole restaurant. And it’s a Friday night. So if the service was quicker I would have given theme a 5 star.

Excellent dining experience!!! The lamb was superb, the Ethiopian bread outstanding and the sweet wine made from honey a life changing experience!!!

Amazing vegan food options! So flavorful & delicious! Very friendly staff and clean environment. This is my second time here and I came here for the lunch buffer. I came here on a Saturday night and they had the piano playing. Both experiences were amazing and I look forward to coming back again and bringing new people to enjoy their food!

Came here for lunch with my girlfriend. I have only been to a handful of Ethiopian restaurants so I’m no expert but I really liked the lunch buffet. Some dishes were better than others but the food was flavorful and tasty overall. I would definitely come back!

The food here tasted great and the atmosphere was very pleasant as well! It was my first time trying this cuisine and I definitely intend on going back for more.

I’ve never dined in but I love having their takeout. I usually get gr combination plate so I can get s little bit of everything. I love the gomen (collard greens) and the lentils. I’m not a vegetarian but if I were this place would make it easy. Only took 15 minutes for a double order of the combos. Posters of live music makes me we want to go back and see what that is all about.

Food is good, but service is a disaster. We waited over an hour for food, and when it arrived there was nowhere near enough (we later realized the waitress forgot to put in one of the orders in the group).
Food itself was fine, but not worth the wait and aggravation. Will not be back.

I came here on a Friday night, as part of a large party, to celebrate a dear friend’s birthday. Myself and two other members of our group decided to share an order; we opted for a combination plate (for two) and a lamb dish to split three ways. We selected the Gomen (collard greens), Doro Wot (chicken in berbere sauce), Atkilt Besiga (beef), and Yebeg Kikil (lamb).
The Injera was wonderful and rather addictive. Of our entrees, I preferred the Yebefg Kikil (lamb) most, followed by the Doro Wot (chicken in berbere sauce). The other items were also good, but I liked the aforementioned items best.
It is difficult to speak to the service; because our group was so large, our meal preparation took longer than is probably typical.
Recommendations:
–Doro Wot and Yebeg Kikil, all the way!
–If you can help it, skip the utensils and use your Injera!
Verdict:
I hope to try out their lunch special sometime soon.

I recently dined for lunch with a friend and we gorged on the lunch buffet. I was very glad that there were so many vegetarian/​vegan options at the buffet, including green beans, lentils, potatoes, greens, split peas, salad, and others. I would say the quality of the food wasn’t the best Ethiopian I’ve had but it was decent and a good price.

1.) Just to warm you up:
I thought the only Ethiopian restaurant was the Abyssinian in Hartford. I saw the reviews on LaLibela and heard the gossip word of mouth that this place was better. I had to check it out on a New Years Day 2015.
2.) What your eyes may see:
Nice place. Nice wooden floors, tables, and seats. Near the entrance is a piano. From the photos I’ve seen there people were able to play it. That’s good, a great way to lure customers into a comfy cozy spot. There are walls in between the main dining area and te bar top. The bar seats about 6 to 8 seats.
3.) Food:
Appetizer:
I had the Yedoro Sambusa — a pastry stuffed with spiced chicken. It was great. Flaky and mouth watering. They give you two of them. They are like Samosas.
Main:
Atkilt besiga which was cubed beef tenderloin, potatoes & carrots sautéed in a mild sauce & garnished with green peppers. Pretty good. Seasoned nicely.
Beer:
Hakim stout — tasted like an unfiltered, barley wine at 5.5%
Dessert:
I had the Baklava. It wasn’t like a typical baklava. Almost tasted stale, perhaps too much honey? Too much drenching of the lemon? I dunno just didn’t have that crispness of the pastry or the crunchiness of the walnuts I was looking for.
4.) Service:
It was a very slow and quiet day, but I had Ashley as our bartender/​server. Sweet and cute personality. She was good.
5.) Price:
All of this came to about $ 35 bucks
6.) Impressions:
I’ll definitely come back here. Their appetizer and main dishes were yummy. I want to try the other items.

Lalibela was perhaps my favorite restaurant when I lived in New Haven. I’ve been here dozens of times across several years. As per the other reviews, I think it’s best characterized as «inconsistent» depending on the night and its staff, but it’s an excellent place for a quiet, vegetarian date night. The décor is really pared down – cheap almost to the point of tacky. On average, the service is attentive and the food is excellent.
We would do the combination dish, usually with everything but the chickpeas and zucchini. My personal favorite is the Tikel Gomen (potato). I also like the lentils and string bean dishes. My girlfriend liked liked the mushy stuff – the Gomen (collard greens).
Be sure to use the coupon on their website! 10% off dinner (Sun-​Th), 15% off lunch (M-​Sat)

I finally gave this place a try tonight and it EXCEEDED my expectations and I will definitely be going back! Not necessarily the best I’ve had but a great option for New Haven! DEFINITELY get their fish (asa wot).
1. I had very low expectations that New Haven would have good Ethiopian food.
2. I’ve found the food from the Lalibela food cart on Cedar St. to be a disappointment and was fairly certain that I’d never try the actual restaurant.
3. A friend suggested going tonight so I went along.
+ Great options for people with food restrictions
Whether you’re vegetarian, halal, gluten-​intolerant, or whatever, there are a lot of options here. I was mildly confused when the menu offered gluten-​free injera for an additional charge. I thought that all injera was gluten-​free… unless they spike their teff with some wheat flour? Idk. Also, the meat is not halal, but they have lots of vegetarian options and a few seafood choices.
+ Injera was good
Some places don’t make their injera sour enough. This place had good injera. As much injera as you can eat.
+ Love the service and the atmosphere
I went on a Sunday night so it was fairly quiet (only two other groups were there during the entire duration of our dinner). The place was well-​lit, well-​decorated, clean… pretty different from the hole-​in-​the-​wall places I’d go to in DC. Waitress was attentive and our food came pretty fast.
+ Stuffed Peppers — SKIP THESE
I had never had these at an ethiopian restaurant before, but they were just two fresh, long green peppers stuffed with a tomato mix along with some small pieces of injera. Aside from being spicy, this wasn’t that tasty… not worth the $ 6.95.
+ Kitfo — GIVE IT A TRY
Kitfo is my go-​to ethiopian dish, so of course I couldn’t pass up trying theirs. We got it medium rare. When it was first served, the waitress didn’t bring the cottage cheese but brought some out when we asked for it. The kitfo was slightly on the bland side, and mildly cold, like it just came from the fridge and was briefly cooked to get it medium rare. Not the best kitfo I’ve had but I would consider getting it again. This came with two vegetables on the side (lentils, etc).
+ Vegetarian Platter — GET IT
This was only $ 15 or $ 16 or so for the «one person» portion, and you get four veggies. I liked the spinach + potatoes, the collard greens, and the zucchini. The cabbage + potatoes was only so-​so (kinda bland). The «one person» portion was enough veggies for the four of us.
+ Asa Wot — GET IT
The asa wot was excellent. The fish was perfectly fried — still crispy on the edges but meat still moist, and the sauce it was served in was delicious.
+ Sizeable Portions!
It was great that there was so much food! We basically only got three dishes, but it was more than enough for the four of us (young people who eat a lot). The dishes are kinda expensive, but they are filling. There is the option to do a combination platter where it’s paid per person (and you get four dishes), but we chose not to do that because it does not include the kitfo nor the fish.
I’m glad I went and will definitely be going back whenever I get ethiopian cravings!

I love Lalibela. Despite their virtual monopoly on Ethiopian cuisine in New Haven, they still offer excellent versions of traditional dishes like kitfo, doro wat, and fosolia. The individual entrees are a little pricy, but you can also go with a combination platter – you get to try a greater variety of tastiness and they give you a truly obscene amount of food and injera. I wish they offered kitfo and a few other things as combos, but it’s still not a bad deal. When you add in their large space with very cool décor and a friendly waitstaff, Lalibela is just a great choice overall.
My one minor complaint is that they tend to use less of some of the more fiery spices when you’re white. I know, I know; such a stereotype. Yet the one time I came here with a friend who happened to be Ethiopian, the food was orders of magnitude hotter than I’d ever had it before. (And incredibly delicious!) Oh well, all the more reason to treat a friend to dinner!