Being the only Ethiopian restaurant in Hawaii, Ethiopian Love offers customers a unique and cultural experience that cannot be found anywhere else in the state, according to its owner Abraham Samuel.
Samuel and his fiancée, Faith, are Ethiopian natives. Samuel said they chose to establish their business in Hawaii because every other state already had an Ethiopian restaurant. “Anybody in Hawaii who wanted Ethiopian food would have to travel 2,800 miles. So that was why we decided to open this restaurant at this location. And we are the only one in the island.”
The restaurant stays true to the Ethiopian theme and is decorated with Ethiopian art and music. In addition, Samuel said the dishes — made by Faith — are 100 percent authentic. “In fact, we exceed a lot of restaurants in the mainland. Other restaurants get their bread from a third party, but because the Ethiopian community in Hawaii is so small with only 10 to 15 of us, no one can help us make the Ethiopian-styled bread, injera.”
Samuel continued, “We are literally the only restaurant that does that and it is very difficult to make. We ferment it for three days before baking it in the house.”
He explained their method is tricky because if the injera goes bad, they would have to close their restaurant for that day. “But after a lot of trial and error, we have gotten it right now so we don’t have to worry.”
According to Samuel, they tested how their food would be received by Hawaii residents by sharing space with another restaurant in Kapahulu. After seeing their pool of customers was increasing, they decided to launch their own full, brick-and-mortar Ethiopian restaurant in Chinatown.
“We have been here for about seven months now and so far so excellent. A lot of people are really excited because, compared to a lot of other restaurants, this place offers a unique way of eating. It’s finger food, so you eat with your hands. And it’s delicious at the same time.”
Another reason why the restaurant provides a unique eating style to its customers is “everybody’s order comes in one big plate so everybody gets to taste one or the other meal and pick the best part and feed your friend at the same time,” said Samuel.
He explained this is a gesture of love and affection as families sit down to a meal together and feed each other. “It’s a very new way of eating in Hawaii.”
For customers Steve Erickson, a retired marine engineer, and Hugh Kaiser, a retired naval architect, the authentic Ethiopian taste of the food and different style of eating was enjoyable.
Erickson said he lives near the restaurant and was eager to try the food. He said, “It’s delicious and I really like the red lentils.”
Kaiser said he had never tried Ethiopian food before. He found it interesting to “break the injera and scoop up the food to eat the fillings.”
The restaurant also performs a coffee ceremony for their customers, if desired. Samuel said, “Coffee was actually discovered in Ethiopia and just like how the Japanese restaurants have their tea ceremony, we have a coffee ceremony. This is a very unique experience for our customers.”
The lunch menu provided a few appetizers, six entrees and nine vegan options thus satisfying vegetarians, vegans and carnivores. The restaurant is located on Smith Street in Chinatown. For more information, visit ethiopianlovehi.com