Profile

The dim lighting is welcome, obscuring the rinky-dink décor. But no one comes for anything but the food. For the most part it's good, and perhaps detractors are particularly hard on the place because it's so close to the excellent Ethiopian restaurant Awash, about 15 blocks south. At Massawa, injera—sour, spongy bread made from teff, a tiny grain found in eastern African—is milder and thinner than at Awash, which though not ideal for veteran eaters of Ethiopian food, might please those unaccustomed to the unusual bread. The edges are dried out, which is unfortunate because injera plays a major role in the meal, serving as both plate and utensil. Combination platters let you sample multiple dishes—the vegetable combination loads injera with tangy collard greens, delicious pureed chickpeas, and a yellow-tinged mélange of potatoes, carrots, and broccoli. What comes with the carnivore-friendly Massawa combination, with chicken, lamb, and beef, reaches almost the same heights, though the meats could be more tender. Undercutting the purpose of the combo platter, both the lamb and beef come with very similar fiery sauces made from berbere, a common Ethiopian spice mixture. Good thing the sauces are delicious. — JJ Goode

Ful, $8.80; Massawa combo, $18.50; vegetable combo, $16