Altaye Ethiopian Restaurant

Always very good food! The main chef/​proprietor is very sweet and thoughtful. I am without exception treated as if I were a long-​time returning friend. If I am with someone I generally get the veggie combo with a meat dish based upon her recommendation. I am never disappointed! It is a treat to see the owners’ young son periodically appear. Very charismatic and dear young boy. It is also very gentle on the wallet. Highly recommended!

Went for lunch the other day and it was very good. I would probably have given it 5 starts on my own, but I went with my Ethiopian friend who was a bit more critical (she makes delicious food and brings me gifts of berbere when she visits back home). We had the lamb wote and vegetarian combo. Fresh injera and tender lamb in a delicious spicy sauce. I always love Ethiopian lentils, and there were three to choose from in the combo, the yellow ones were my favorite. Everything was delicious, even simple potatoes with carrots were turned into something incredibly delicious! The greens were great, as were some type of braised cabbage? I love that this place is just down the road from my work, we’ll be back!

The Veggie Combo goes far beyond satisfying both palate and appetite. My picky, wheat intolerant, daughter loves the enjera as much as I do. We adore the owners and their young son, so personable and genuine. Just wish they were closer to where we lived so we could visit more frequently! We make our way across town just to have a meal made by them. If you haven’t yet, you should too. Simply delicious and delightful.

I have been a long time customer her but won’t be going back here again. Picked up food here a couples of weeks and was treated so rudely. Maybe it was just her bad day but that was unacceptable .On top of that when I looked at my billing statement when I got home it looks like she charged
Me 10 $ extra for using my debit card since they only usually accept cash. I tried calling her the next day only to be ignored. Left several messages and she never got back to me. Her food is delicious but I won’t be going there anymore. Sad she lost a long time customer.

OMG sooo goood. So delicious and rich and oh those spices are just perfect. We asked lady to pick food for us as we were not familiar with many and she did great job.

Excellent!
Superb Ethiopian food, served by very friendly people in a very homey place.
(By the way: not true about accepting only cash. They take debit cards.)

My husband and I drove through terrible Seattle traffic to have lunch here today (Thurs, May 14) at 11:30 – open according to the Unilocal information. There was a huge «Open» sign on the door but the door was padlocked. Obviously closed. The windows all have metal grates, not inspiring one’s confidence in the security of the neighborhood. The neighborhood was one I would be reluctant to visit with out a strong healthy partner. We didn’t get to try the food and we won’t be back!

Omg best day ever when I come here. The food is on point, but the environment makes me want to keep coming back. It’s the kind of place where you can sit cross legged in your chair, have a cup of tea while chatting with the matron and other guests. Simply put it’s my go to for the whole Ethiopian experience.

After reading positive reviews from neighbors, I went with positive expectations. I went for an early dinner. Food was average and not worth a return trip. Parking is in a sketchy residential zone. It doesn’t bother me that TV news was on, but reception went in and out. When I asked for leftovers, they were smashed into a tiny takeout container. There are far better options in Columbia City. Makes me wish for the original owners of Awash (before the name change.)

What makes a meal Ethiopian for me is a.few.things. various delicious flavors and spices, injera, and the smallest small talk making you feel like you are in someone’s humble home. This place is no different. Its a small place but living up to the semantic trick of «cozy». I love this place already.

We ended up here because the neighboring restaurant Sunset Café ran out of food, which is our favorite. The food was good. We ordered a vegetarian combo and non vegetarian combo. I loved the vegetarian combo a lot and my friends found the non vegetarian one to be ok. Injera was not too sour which is good for me.
The service was a bit cold on the day we went. The place is tiny.
Most important, THEY ACCEPT ONLY CASH!

First I would like to paint the picture. My wife and I wanted Ethiopian food so I went on Unilocal to find something close. Found a restaurant with five stars but when we got there they were closed. So we went back to Unilocal and found this place like a block away. We go in and the lady serving didn’t really seem capable of answering our questions about the menu. She actually seemed annoyed by our desire to add to the dish we were perfectly willing to pay for. Food was descent but the customer service was why we will never go back. Smaller portions than I am used to but you won’t be hungry… I digress

Love this place. Best Ethiopian I’ve had in Seattle. Hans down. I had quite a struggle trying to stifle my moans of ecstasy whenever I ate another item.

One of My happiest moments in life… hearing the sound of the two way door opening, Titi’s smiling face as she approaches my table. Hands and arms full of steaming hot food. She places the huge platter of amazing food in front of me. I peer at it and… Sweet sweet heaven! The food is and always has been, truly one of life’s little joys!
My favourite sound in this world… That door, opening.

I have tried many different Ethiopian restaurants in the area and this is by far the best the food was so fresh and delicious I was amazed. I highly recommend that you give this place a try you won’t be let down.

Funny, last time I wanted to come to Altaye, it was randomly closed and went to Sunset Café. Today, Sunset Café was randomly closed so came to Altaye (they are less than a block from one another).
Friend and I came for lunch and ordered the veggie combo and one chicken dish. The owners are really nice, and we enjoyed chatting with them.
Food was good, portions are a bit smaller in comparison to other Ethiopian places around. Found the injera to be a bit dry and not very tart. Everything we ate was flavorful. I really enjoyed the beets! The hot sauce wasn’t very spicy, and had a more smokey component to it. Was a nice meal.
The restaurant and bathroom are super clean.
With so many places around that serve Ethiopian, may keep exploring or head back to Sunset Café.

I had never had ethiopian food before tonight, and this was the best experience I could hope for. It’s a small space, but not crowded. I like the choice to have less tables rather than more. The owners were so warm to us immediately that we were almost confused, in a good way. It felt like being invited into someone’s home.
When we ordered, Titi asked us why we picked one of the dishes, and we said «I don’t know!» not really knowing our way around the menu, and she asked us if we were okay with spices, both just flavorful and hot, and after hearing our preferences pointed to another dish and said «I want you to try this one» — which we LOVED (both the way of suggestion and the dish when it came out). They refilled our water frequently, and there was plenty of injera with our dishes when they came out. Both were FANTASTIC (beef tibs and a beef stew I can’t remember the name of). The homemade cottage cheese was so delicious, as was the injera.
We ate until we were absolutely stuffed (we ordered two dishes for two people and had leftovers); in that time both Titi and her husband asked us a couple times if the spice levels were okay (I’m a bit sensitive to spice, but my sister is not, so they made sure the dishes weren’t too spicy for me), if we needed more injera and to refill our water. Titi even joked around with us about how we looked a bit confused when we came in, and then made sure we enjoyed ourselves. We had an exceptional experiences, both in terms of food and customer service, and cannot wait to come back and bring our friends and family and try the entire menu!

After a four-​hour drive into the Seattle area, I was very excited to try this Ethiopian restaurant due to all the great reviews. Sadly, it did not even come close to the expectations. I really hope that Titi was just having an off day, because the food did not make up for how we were treated.
Food: I will say that the food was okay but not the best traditional Ethiopian food I have had. Not only was Titi unwilling to recommend us their best/​most popular dishes but the vegetable platter and the lamb dish were only okay not great. In addition, when we asked for I will say that the injera was definitely the highlight and we were lucky to get plenty of it. We were surprised that we were not offered anything to drink and when we inquired about the beer (per the reviews) and again they really did not recommend anything.
Service: Not only were they not helpful, but also at times seemed quite rude. When we could not finish the platter and the lamb dish, we requested boxes to take the remaining food to go. Titi reacted by getting annoyed, telling me to eat as much as I can, and walking away. It was not until 10 minutes later when she came back and asked me if I still wanted a box to go. Then, she took the plates, and it took her another 10 minutes to return with our packed food. When we paid, she asked us four times if we wanted change back to which we replied yes each time. It was highly uncomfortable to be pushed to give them over 30% tip rather than allowing us to choose how much to tip. I had never experienced that before.
Ambiance: The place seems like it needs a little maintenance, but it was clean. There was no air conditioning… only 1 fan.
Although, I will never be back… I truly hope they treat their clients more kindly and with more professionalism in the future.

Wow– the Ethiopian food here is delicious, and the owners are so friendly. I got the vegetarian platter to go, and the styrofoam take-​out box was bulging– I couldn’t believe how much food I got for the price. Not two but three large injera!!! I had enough food for lunch, dinner, and lunch the following day.
Don’t be put off by the neighborhood and no-​frills interior– the owners are super friendly and this is some of the best Ethiopian food in town. Highly highly recommended!

This is an unassuming restaurant on Rainier Ave. I’ve tried other Ethiopian restaurants in other cities and by contrast this one seemed simple and food tastes home cooked. The ambiance is simple, no frills but clean. There is no music just a TV screen. There are no utensils given and guests share a large platter, so be prepared to eat with your hands and eat a lot of injera as that is the only thing you can sop up the food with. So you’ll end up feeling pretty full as injera tends to fill you up fast! I might bring a utensil next time in my purse just so I don’t have to load up on it.
I am always amazed by how similar Ethiopian food is to Indian food. The real every day food cooked at home in India, not the paneer and chicken that you eat in restaurants as that is Punjabi special occasion food and NOT every day food in India.
We started with sambusa appetizer or lentil filled deep fried «samosas». Delicious. The chicken and lamb curry was delicious as was the injera bread that tasted fresh and not over fermented and sour like at some restaurants. Injera is made of teff grain that has high nutritional content including protein and minerals and is similar to quinoa in appearance. The platter is served with injera on bottom and the meat curry, a spinach garlicy vegetable, curried beets, cabbage vegetable, yellow split pea lentil, a moong lentil and a masoor (Indian name) lentil, and crumbled cheese that tastes like Indian paneer.
I really liked the food due to the home cooked taste of the meal. The owner Titi recommended Ethiopian beer, and gave the table some beers to sample. I tried an Amber beer that was good, but I could not tell what it was as I couldn’t read anything on the bottle.
Overall, this is a great place to go with a few people and share food and conversation. When you’re all eating with hands from the same plate it almost becomes necessary to have great conversation. An enjoyable and delicious experience.