Zeni Ethiopian Restaurant

It’s a miserable April evening in Denver: my nose is dripping and my stomach is making gurgling noises as loud as a four year olds’ temper tantrum. I’m yearning for something that will tame my hunger and excite my senses at the same time. Something exotic, yet comforting and familiar. What will it be….steaming pho with torn basil, pungent fish sauce, and crunchy sprouts? No. Homemade tortillas mounded with slow simmered carnitas and pickled red onions? No. Who am I kidding, I know exactly what I want: dark spicy sauce flavored with chiles, ginger, garlic cooked into meat and vegetables so long they melt on my tongue. Sour Injera bread, still warm from the griddle to sop up the sauce. Maybe a sip of Tej, the sweet honey wine, to wash it all down.

The last time I dined at Zeni’s was a few weeks ago, but I can still smell the spices and feel the spongy Injera bread. Zeni Ethiopian Restaurant is sandwiched in between a drug store and an Albertsons in a suburban San Jose strip mall, easy to look past if you aren’t hungry for succulent Doro Wot garnished with homemade cheese. But I was, and we found the restaurant quickly, as well as a convenient parking space. The abundant staff were all smiles as we walked in (it probably helped that we were in the company of a chubby nine month old baby), and we were seated immediately. Our spacious table in the back of the restaurant was near the kitchen, but that didn’t matter, as we were treated like African royalty.

The menu is concise, and sticks to Ethiopian classics including beef, chicken, lamb, and vegetarian offerings, all under $14.00. Our meal was a little slow to come, but with full water glasses and a bottomless Injera basket, we were happy campers. Once it was time, it took several waitresses and a ceremonial-like dance to serve our food. A huge platter with a dome shaped cover arrived, and was uncovered to reveal an enormous round of Injera, covering the entire bottom of the platter. In the center of the dish, a waitress mounded a refreshing salad of iceberg lettuce, roma tomatoes, and onions tossed in lemony vinaigrette. Another waitress spooned our entrees in multiple piles around the salad, ensuring each diner could reach everything. They left us with another basket of Injera, and full (to the brim!) glasses of locally made Tej honey wine ($5.00/glass).

I won’t lie; my memories of the meal are literally blended together, because the sauces get mixed as hands squish Injera pieces over chunks of food. I do remember that the Ye Doro Tibs ($11.50) was some of the spiciest chicken I have had the pleasure of eating, and the Ye Bere Tibs ($11.50) were hunks of beef in a surprisingly un-greasy butter sauce. The crowning glory was Ye Doro Wot ($10.99), a whole chicken thigh and drumstick coated in rich mole-like sauce, crowned with a hardboiled egg and crumbles of homemade cheese.

It was a rare dining experience, where I went in an outsider and left like family. I ate with my hands and end up smelling like I was dipped in Berbere sauce, but that’s the point at Zeni’s. It is now 6 o’clock though, and unfortunately, I don’t think Zeni’s will be open by the time I complete the thousand mile journey.

Zeni Ethiopian Restaurant
Ethiopian Cuisine│1320 Saratoga Ave, San Jose, California, 408-615-8282│$3.00-$55.00│Tuesdays-Thursdays 11:30 am-10 pm, Fridays 11:30 am-11 pm, Saturday Noon-11 pm, Sundays Noon-10 pm, Closed Mondays│Mastercard, Visa, Discover, Cash, Debit Card accepted.
Front Burner: Extremely friendly service and food so authentic it is probably prepared by little Ethiopian grandmas.
Back Burner: Don’t bother to eat here if you are a neat freak or in a hurry, call for takeout instead.