At Desta, serving authentic quality Ethiopian food with promptness and courtesy is our profession, but you don’t have to take our word for it. Read the reviews from a number of our diverse and satisfied visitors!
“Desta I have to say had some amazing food!!! I went with my Ethopian friend to make sure I get the true taste of Ethopian food!! Well trust me Desta did not disappoint!! We got the fish Tidbit and the lamb tidbit…omg I have to say the Fish was reallyy good!! It just melts in ur mouth and is soo yummy that it leaves you wanting more! The injera was something totaly new to me…and to get the total Ethopian experience, I had to eat it all with my hands, something about eating food with ur hands…just makes the food taste even better!!! I was soo impressed. To finish it off we got some Ethopian ginge tea….add a tiny bit of sugar, and trust me…the tea was just perfect!!!” – Anisha
“Wanting out of the same old, same old lunch offerings, my daughter and I went for lunch at Desta. What a GREAT choice! Nice atmosphere, good jazz, kind and considerate waitstaff. And the food was perfect! We shared a vegetarian combo platter and a platter of fish tibs. It was more than we could eat, and inexpensive, too! What a nice find. Thanks, Yelp!” – Joe
“The fish tibbs are excellent as are the rib eye tibbs. The greens that come with the dishes are also very tasty. Everything is seasoned very well and the servers are really cool. This is definitely my favorite ethiopian resturaunt…” – Justin
Desta Ethiopian Kitchen is in a collection of shops on the corner of Briarcliff and Clairmont Road. It’s a block south of the I-85 – Clairmont Intersection, and on the right as you’re heading south. It’s not easy to see, more on the Briarcliff side of things. When you see what looks like parking, pull off the road and look for it.
There are at least three other Ethiopian restaurants in the area as well. Desta is in a separate building, and you may see the drive through before you see the rest of the restaurant. There is outdoor and indoor seating, and a decent amount of parking by the restaurant. Inside, it’s quite an attractive restaurant, if small, and there are both tables and booths to sit in.
I came here on a Father’s Day, after having argued the merits of 2-3 other places. I had eaten Ethiopian food about 22 years ago, in a restaurant in Philadelphia. On that day, the food was laid on a huge chunk of the Ethiopian bread (called injera, and made with the grain teff) and the food placed over the bread. Injera is spongy, and it is intended to be used as a utensil. We tore up bits of our plate of bread, scooped up the food, and ate it. From what I could see in the newspaper, the arrangement in Desta was going to be a little different.
By BOB TOWNSEND
For the Journal-Constitution
Tuesday, March 03, 2009
Desta Ethiopian Kitchen is a wonderful little restaurant. Located in a small plaza near the intersection of Briarcliff and Clairmont — in what’s become a burgeoning area for Ethiopian businesses — it’s at once worldly and homey, with attentive service and, best of all, delicious, bargain-priced vegetable, meat and fish dishes.
Of course, knowing that Ethiopian cuisine is centered around injera — the spongy bread that also serves as an eating utensil — may be a bit off-putting, even to some otherwise adventurous eaters. But the kitchen’s elegant and easygoing approach to presenting its food, and the friendly staff’s willingness to provide tableware for the timid, makes it a snap for almost anyone to enjoy a meal here.
Happy place
Desta is the Ethiopian word for happiness. Fittingly, on a recent evening the place exuded a lively sense of communal joy, echoed by a relaxing jazz soundtrack and scattered signs proclaiming positive aphorisms such as “Live, Laugh, Love.” Blithe servers, dressed in black with jaunty red jabots, danced between the two intimate dining areas, where tables and booths were filled with convivial groups eating and drinking together. At the tiny nook of a bar, a small group of men engaged in lighthearted banter while sharing a bottle of wine.
Desta: Modern Ethiopian
New Ethiopian in the Williamsburg Shopping Center
Published 07.23.08
By Cliff Bostock
Desta may be serving the most palatable Ethiopian food I’ve ever tasted. Its chef, Titi, who visited our table, calls her cooking “modern.” That means the spices are cut back somewhat, not especially to please the American palate, but to let the flavors of the prime ingredients dominate.
“I only buy the highest-quality meats,” she said. “I can season the food with the usual spices if people ask, but I’m more interested in letting the taste of the meats come through.”
I’m guessing that’s why there are no wat (stewed) dishes on the menu. Instead, the meats are all cooked tibs-style – sautéed, usually with onions and other seasonings.
Or, if you really want to test the quality of the meat, you can order kitfo, basically Ethiopian steak tartare. The kitchen minces rib-eye and, as is traditional, combines it with clarified butter and a red chili spice. In my two meals at Desta, this was my favorite dish. The flavor of the meat is totally complemented by the piquant seasoning, a balance that’s unusual in my experience with this dish. It was served with a small mound of aiyb, similar to cottage cheese and capable of cooling the spices for the overly sensitive.
Desta isn’t like a traditional Ethiopian cafe; it puts a modern spin on Ethiopion food by serving each order on individual plates. Another thing that makes Desta different is that since it started out as take-out only, the prep their food in advance. So, you eat fairly quickly after you place the order. (Unlike a traditional Ethiopian restaurant, where food isn’t prepped and a meal can take 30 minutes to be served.)
But the most important thing that makes Desta stand out is the food – it is awesome. It is so yummy, I was addicted to it for a while. My favorite dish is the veggie combo. It usually comes with miser wot (lentil stew), aterkik wot (split bean stew), gomen wat (collard greens), and a salad.
