Café Colucci Restaurant Review BunRabs Home Yummy Chow Home

Café Colucci
6427 Telegraph Ave.
Oakland, CA
415.601.7999

www.cafecolucci.com

Say Wot

What kind of wound up pancake doesn’t flip over some spicy food? Not me. When the going gets teff, the teff gets injera’ed.

Service:
A family operation that is run with hospitality. There is the occasional glitch, but nothing noteworthy.

Atmosphere:
Super casual and funky. Decorated to evoke an Ethiopian feel. Not a tablecloth kind of place.

Teff Injera is the foundation
of the meal. It functions as both utensils and as a tablecloth.

When a basket of these rolled up African crepes arrive, they look like a bunch of tan sushi handwiping towels, but they taste much better. They are served at room temperature (unless you request them to be warmed.) Unfurl and rip off a piece of this slightly spongey, sour crepe and use it to scoop up some of the tasty chow.

Don't forget to eat the one that acts as the placemat for your meal, it's soaked up some good juices and is the best of all.

Meat Sambussa ($5.95):
Think ground beef fried wontons with a tomato, pepper dipping sauce. These were crunchy with a nice portion of meaty filling. They were a little doughy and greasy, but still good.

Shouro Combo ($8.95):
is a good way to sample a number of the vegetarian offerings. I loved the mitten shouro which is poured over the teff at the table. Chickpea powder is made into a porridge with spices and garlic and made for a delicious, puddle of beany goodness. The Gomen are tasty sautéed collard greens with onions and garlic. A potato and carrot dish is called Atakilt also contains green beans, tomatoes, ginger and turmeric. A chopped romaine salad with vinaigrette acts as a borderline to the non vegetarian side.

Doulet ($9.95):
is described on the menu as “a challenging delicacy.” I would disagree with this description. If you didn’t tell an offal-averse person that this pot of meatiness contained lamb tripe and liver, they might just focus on the beef, ghee, onions and spices. All the ingredients are minced to a scooping friendly size and if I were thinking clearly, I would have upended the container onto the platter to let all the juices soak into the crepe lined platter. Next time I’ll remember.

Ethiopian Tea ($1.50):
Hot, barely steeped tea arrives with a fresh bag for you to finish off the brewing to the desired strength. The perfect beverage to accompany this food on a cold day.

 

Two and a half carrots out of four

Walking into the fragrant Café Colucci would be confusing if you were expecting pizza instead of Ethiopian food. They kept the name of the previous business (which served Italian food) but they changed the spices. This place is definitely worth a visit for it’s yummy chow.

 

"Okay"

Café Colucci Bathroom Rating

One unisex that is passable but not always fully stocked with paper products. For some reason there are two sinks inside this one room. There is also a hand washing station in the nook outside for those preparing to eat in the proper manner without spreading cooties.

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