Bati

Bati Restaurant Review:

This friendly, art-adorned Ethiopian restaurant encourages dining without using utensils. Novices are educated by a hostess as to the proper way to eat Ethiopian-style, using injera (spongy bread) instead of a knife and fork. Dishes at this Brooklyn bistro can be very spicy, so take care when ordering or ask if it’s possible to turn down the heat. The chef recommends a mix of meat and vegan selections, and the combination works beautifully. Kitfo is a beef tartare-like concoction, while slow-cooked chicken forms the base of Ethiopia’s national dish, doro wett, a spicy stew served with a hard-boiled egg. To cool the heat, try the tikil gomen, bright cabbage seasoned with garlic and ginger, or the finely chopped collard greens. For dessert the restaurant has borrowed baklava from Greece, seamlessly connecting the pastry’s honey glaze with Ethiopia’s own sweetish honey wine.