Echye's Restaurant, Victoria Park

Echye Restaurant is a family run restaurant in Victoria Park that provides Eritrean cuisine with the help of African spices. The service was welcoming and as we entered the restaurant we could feel the tribal atmosphere through the decor which was simple yet sufficient. There was also small tables and arm chairs which assisted the sharing of meals which is known in this type of cuisine however, we opted for the normal setting.

The waiter was very cheerful when taking our orders and when we had asked for further explanation of the dishes.

We ordered the Zhigni (top left)- $20: Most popular meat dish - tender lamb with berbere, onion, garlic & Tesmi

Tibsi (Keyh) (bottom left) - $22: Succulent lamb strips pan-fried fresh with berbere, spices, onion &
Tomato comes with Enjera – a yeast-risen flatbread with a unique, slightly spongy texture made of sorghum, wheat flour & rice (on the right) and salad in the centre ($5 as a side dish).

The Zhigni was much more tender than the Tibsi although both were delicious. The Zhigni was more spicy than the other and contained a thicker gravy compared to the Tibsi. I really liked how the Zhigni  was served in a clay pot which retained the heat well.

The Enjera was light and fluffy and was very filling. It complimented the meat dishes well and we only got through half per person and could not finish the rest. It has a slightly sour taste and spongy texture. If you have not tried this before then you should give it a go as it is not comparable to any other type of bread I have tried.

We received a complimentary salad as a side dish containing lettuce, tomato, cucumber, onion, chilies served with dressing. This was due to the delay in another dish we had ordered; the Azifa - (side dish $5) black lentils served with fresh tomato, onion, green chillies with dressing. Although we said not to worry about it due to the delay the gave it to us free of charge as they wanted us to try it. It was quite tasty but the onion was prominent.

Last but not least we tried the Habesha coffee which is black coffee. The preparation was most unusual but pleasant, there was an lady roasting the coffee beans near the front entrance of the restaurant and the aroma of the coffee beans filled the room during our meal. It was a little smokey but bearable and the door was open which was necessary. She did this for about an hour. When it was time to serve the coffee it was freshly poured and given to us in a small cup. It was concentrated and was nice after a substantial meal.

http://www.echyerestaurant.com.au/#Menu