Ethiopian Diamond
6120 N. BroadwayChicago, IL 60660-2502
Edgewater
773-338-6100
ethiopiandiamondcuisine.com
Hours: Lunch, Dinner: seven days
Open Late: Friday & Saturday till 11
Our Review
At this large, shabby-comfortable Edgewater storefront there are savory watts (stews) with beef, chicken, lamb, and fish, but vegetarians never need feel deprived. Vegan options include a spicy red lentil watt; yellow split pea watt; gomen (oniony collard greens); slightly sour tikil gomen (cabbage and carrots); and a mild watt made with potatoes and large chunks of carrot, all served on injera, the large, spongy pancake made with flour from teff, a tiny grain indigenous to Ethiopia. For appetizers there are sambusas, samosalike pastry triangles stuffed with meat or vegetables and served with lemon and a tamarind sauce. Meat dishes include the classic doro watt, chicken stewed in a spicy red sauce with a hard-boiled egg; kitfo, described on the menu as "Ethiopian steak tartare"; and tibs, cubes of various meats or seafood available in a range of preparations and spice levels. There are African beers, served in frosty mugs, and tej, Ethiopian honey wine; service too is honeyed--the staff here couldn't be more genuinely welcoming. On Friday nights from 7 to 10 PM Chicago legend Kelan Phil Cohran, a cofounder of the AACM and a member of Sun Ra's band back in the day, dreamily plays jazz and ambient horn and harp to a synthesized backing.
Price: $
Payment Type: American Express, MasterCard, Visa
Upcoming Events
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Agnes Shawn Jazz Quartet
- Fridays, 9 p.m.
Past Events
-
Ethiopian Culture and Cuisine
- Thu., July 16, 6:30 p.m. 2009
Related Stories
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In the Neighborhood
Recommended Edgewater restaurants
- Jul 22, 2010
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We hadn’t had Ethiopian fare in way too long, so it was a treat to return to Ethiopian Diamond. We enjoyed everything about our visit. The veggie combo for two was just right in all respects, as were the Ethiopian coffee and tea. For dessert, the destaye (fried pastry with dried fruits & nuts) was pleasant. Service was gracious and welcoming, and we did not feel hurried at all. There was a jazz quartet playing at the far end of the rather cavernous room, and they fit right in: pleasant, tasty and unobtrusive. I’m already looking forward to my next visit...
Ethiopian Diamond is a gem. We arrived to a very friendly greeting in a large, unglamorous but welcoming space in Andersonville, filled with Ethiopian mural scenes and almost empty at 6 PM. However, the space rapidly filled yet was still conversation friendly.
Several varieties of Ethiopian beer were offered, but the Hakim Stout stood out as a wonderful accompanyment to Sambusa appetizers. These were excuisitely prepared and although they looked very much like a typical fried starter, they were incredibly tasty, light, and two each left one wanting more and more. We had the Chicken and lentil varieties.
We chose the vegetarian assortment platter at $29.95 for two. The injera was by far the best we have ever had, very moist, fluffy, and we ate it all. The spice level in all dishes was mild, although later we found out we could have asked for spicier. However, we cleaned the plate and found every offering mouthwateringly good.
Next time we agreed we would try individual dishes, as the menu has extensive offerings for both vegetarians and meat and fish eaters. We capped it all off with an Ethiopian tea and shared a destaye, a dough creation filled with almonds and raisins, covered in chocolate sauce and cream, on top of some other tasty crispy fried dough.
While this room does not have the greatest ambiance, it does evoke a certain African feeling, and this was further enhanced by a very eclectic crowd. We understand live music started at 7, but we left just before it was to begin. Regardless, the food and atmosphere make up for the look of the room, and we will surely return to Ethiopian Diamond.
sooo delicious, i can't wait to go back AND i've already told everyone i know how good it is.
i'm sorry i can't remember the names of the dishes in order to recommend them, but the lentils are good, and there's a meat dish that's sort of like steak tartare that really good. the spinach and chicken dish was good, but the others were so much better that we didn't eat much of the chicken.
order the ethiopian tea if you like cardoman, it's tasty.
Compared to all other Chicago restaurants, it's hard to rate Ethiopian Diamond better than "good enough," but it's a notch above that in the smaller dining world of my heart. The staff was genuinely warm & welcoming, the food was tasty, the price was right, and the room, while certainly plain, was comfortable. We had a tibs combo #1 plus a veggie combo; there was *plenty* of food for the two of us, and all of it measured up (the red lentils were especially tasty, the chicken especially tender). Sure, I wish there wasn't a TV running in the back corner, and the food could have arrived more quickly, but we weren't in a hurry, so we just relaxed and had a nice visit.
Now that my favorite Ethiopian restaurant (Addis Abeba) is no more (whimper), the Diamond has taken over first place (in an admittedly sparse field) for me for Chicago Ethiopian food. I'll be back again (when I'm in no big hurry) for another Ethio fix...
We tried the potato and carrot sambusas, which are similar to Indian samosas, but with a nicely different dipping sauce.
There are many great choices for vegetarians AND vegans--hurrah. This place was comfortably busy on a late Saturday afternoon and service was leisurely, so I wouldn't go here if in a hurry. But the service was friendly and the food was good, as on previous visits. They tend to keep the spiciness to a minimum, if that is a concern--I would have turned up the heat a bit.
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