Contemporary Ethiopian restaurant that utilizes better ingredients and more style than its Little Ethiopia neighbors.
Cuisine
Open
Dinner Wed.-Sun.Features
- Heart-healthy dishes
- Romantic setting
- Reservations suggested
- Casual
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 Little Ethiopia is a one-block strip of shops and restaurants on South Fairfax, and Meals By Genet is the neighborhood’s crown jewel, offering better flavor and a more inviting space than its neighbors. Genet Agonafer’s handsome restaurant features framed Ethiopian paintings and decorative dark wood silhouettes. Every meal involves a platter lined with injera, the sour, crêpe-like bread made from teff. There is no silverware, so be prepared to tear off hunks of injera to use as your utensil. A great way to sample different flavors is to order the Vegetarian Combination, ten distinct piles highlighted by sinus-clearing green lentils with hot Ethiopian mustard, collard greens and a mix of thin-sliced potato, carrot, green bean and onion. The top meat offering is Hirutye’s Yebegsiga Alitcha, on-the-bone lamb shank stewed with garlic, ginger, “other spices” and more tufts of injera. Chicken tibs is also first-rate; boneless chunks are sautéed with onions, green chilies and Ethiopian butter---clarified butter blended with cardamom. Genet’s spices are sun-dried in Ethiopia and flown to Los Angeles by relatives. There are also Italian dishes, but better to stick with the Ethiopian classics. To drink, order a bottle of sweet Ethiopian honey wine.
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