Food on Top of Bread and Eating with your Hands

Since moving to Oregon, there has been one thing that I have been searching for-Ethiopian food or Moroccan food. The way these dishes are normally served is on top of a crepe like pancake and with no silverware. Thus, food on top of bread and eating with your hands! And since Portland is best known for its food, I figured this would be the best place to look. I have heard horror stories about some pretty bad places to eat and the good places were never open when I could go.

A friend of mine works at a small Ethiopian place that K Dub and I had found on accident one day. Last night a group of us headed down to Bete Lukas for some much needed food on top of bread. It was a quaint little place on the second floor of a small building right off the main road. It's a small place and family own and run. My friend works pretty much as the sous chef in the kitchen. The owner, Peter, is a quick-witted, hilarious, Ethiopian man with a good heart. He looks after his employee, my friend, and cares greatly for his customer's well being. While talking to him, he compared his restaurant to a hospital; people come in with a need and he tries to alleviate their aliments through awesome tasting food and good company.

Ken, MER and I ordered the beef and veggie combos mostly because we didn't know how to pronounce half the things on the menu. And when it arrived I was so excited!

Like a kid in a candy store. I had finally got what I had wanted and been searching for! Not too spicy and very filling. They provided an extra pancake and we plowed through most of what was there. The spicy beef stew and chickpeas were delicious and hit the spot after a long day. The spices and mixtures blended so well together and the honey wine would have been a pairing.

There are also a few other places to get this delicious food but I am glad that we were able to see a friend in action and meet new ones. It's making the SE a more desirable place to reside in...Next on the list I think we'll head to the Moroccan place. We're looking for at least eight people to go on this adventure. Eight people gets you an entire goat and I'm sure an interesting experience!

Tip for the Day: Food is a people pleaser and brings a lot of people together. It makes people happy when they taste something good and something they have been craving. So make great food and enjoy!