Ranked by TableJourney editorial score.
DC's Little Ethiopia signature: cubed lean raw beef warmed in spiced niter kibbeh and fiery mitmita chili, served on injera with ayib fresh cheese and gomen collards, with extra mitmita at the table.
Kitfo is one of Ethiopia's most distinctive dishes; the raw or barely-warmed beef preparation, similar in spirit to French tartare but Ethiopian in seasoning, is the national special-occasion meal. Washington DC has the largest Ethiopian-American population of any US city, centred around Adams Morgan, Logan Circle and Shaw, with the U Street corridor known as Little Ethiopia. The community arrived in waves from the 1970s onward; today Dukem, Etete and Chercher run authentic kitfo. The dish is served leb leb (briefly warmed), tire (fully raw) or yebesele (cooked). Mitmita, made of dried bird's eye chilies, cardamom, cloves and salt, is the structural seasoning.
2 editor picks for Ethiopian Kitfo in Washington DC, ranked by editorial score. All Washington DC signature dishes · Ethiopian Kitfo across every city.
Chercher Ethiopian Restaurant in Washington DC is the second-floor 9th Street rowhouse Ethiopian dining room in Shaw's Little Ethiopia, a no-reservations.
OrderThe shiro chickpea stew with extra injera; the menu's editorial signature.
TipNo reservations; the staircase line moves fastest at 17:30 on weeknights and crowds outside the door by 19:00. Cash and card both accepted.
Dukem Ethiopian Restaurant in Washington DC is the U Street Ethiopian dining room since 1997, the older sister to Etete and a U Street institution.
OrderThe kitfo (Ethiopian raw beef tartare) leb leb or rare with mitmita spice; the room's deepest cut.
TipLive Ethiopian music plays Friday and Saturday from 21:00; the back booth is the quietest table.
Ethiopian Kitfo makes more sense with someone from Washington DC explaining it. These are the classes and tours we have checked, with booking links.
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