Kat's 9 Lives

Recently I have been on a huge Ethiopian craving and I was wondering where I could take my best pal E to for dinner that would be cheap & good. What better way than to introduce her to Ethiopian food because it is not costly, a new experience, and good. I mapped out if going to Little Ethiopia would be very far from Lobster Fest, but one day I happen to see that there was one in Anaheim! I was so excited and eagerly awaiting the chance to take someone with me to try it! So of course on our way back from Lobster Fest I had to stop by Merhaba for a quick bite!
The restaurant is tucked away in the corner of a strip mall. We were both still VERY FULL from Lobster Fest since all we did was eat Eat EAT! O=9 So we decided to just order 2 dishes. Normally I would be very greedy and be compelled to try a bunch! Also I debated a long time about ordering the Ethiopian coffee but I was afraid it would be like the one we had at Messob. Eventually after a long debate I decided not to since it would be a huge waste if I don't like it and E doesn't like it. That would be $12 down the drain. At Messob it wasn't as bad because there were 8 of us. For our main dishes I decided to get the Zel Zel Tibsy and Kelwa Bighe Tseada. The tibsy is home grilled Beef Strips Seasoned with Assorted Spices and tossed with Onion & Green Pepper. It's not really that spicy but it was seasoned well and the meat was decent. The kelwa is mild saute of Lamb. I liked this more than the beef because it was more flavorful and the meat was more tender.
As usual, there are no utensils provided in Ethiopian/Eritrean food. You use the Enjera/Injera to pick up all the food to eat. I don't think E really enjoyed the dining style and found the enjera/injera a little awkard. The food tasted decent, but to her they were nothing out of the ordinary or distinct to make her think it's Ethiopian. I told her that I ordered the safer foods because she would probably never eat the Kitfo, which is raw meat, or other more adventurous dishes. Personally, I thought the food was decent and the service was fine. Would I seek this place out? Most likely not, but then again it is slim pickin's in the OC for Ethiopian food. We will see in the future! ^_^ It's definitely not the best Ethiopian/Eritrean I've had but it's solid still.

Merhaba