We have been Zeni patrons for decades - I have raved about them being the best Ethiopian in the entire Bay Area... And to see it decline breaks my heart.
The prices have shot up - that I can understand and am ok with. To accompany that with shrinkflation too - unacceptable. The portions on a combo platter were 40% smaller in my estimation.
Then there is an expectation by the establishment about how much food one should order, if you're a light eater, you'll be taking home a doggy bag, you'd think - but the shrinking portions will help.
What irked the most was the shift in attitude. We just felt taken for granted and somewhat unwelcome. Hunt for the next Ethiopian begins.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Vegetarian Combo, Injera, Ye Doro TIBS, Ye Doro Wot
Vlade Patterson
Best Ethiopian food. Service is lacking, hard to call-in to order to go. No one can up the phone during business hours. Should open a second location...
Prices went up 250%+ since 10 years ago
Kiran Ranganath
We thoroughly enjoyed the vegetarian combo. It comfortably serves two people, although we did add a side of Injera.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Kolisetty Raghavendra
Average food compared with other bay area Ethiopian restaurants. But definitely tops in the worst service for dine in customers.
Food: 3
Service: 1
Veronica Felix
Portions are a lot SMALLER, no forks or spoons like they had before. Food was ok. They are clearly cutting costs. Seems cheap, no as many people as before. I wont go back neither recommend.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Rajkumar Agrawal
Food was good however waitress had a very bad attitude. Did not like that at all.
Jj Mo
Worst food I have ever tasted I ordered the chicken Tips and I got small container with chicken and separate bread called anjeers I spent 25 I should have never gave a rip either too this was worst restaurant I have ever been to I swear next time y'all order from Salam way better food trust me am African I can tell you that
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Dan Meyer
We have been wanting to try this place for a while and it was worth the wait. I’ve never had Ethiopian food before, but this was a great experience with many different flavors and options. The Sambussa was especially delicious. The only complaint was that the bread was cold. Maybe this is normal, but we took some home and warmed it for a much better experience.
Went twice. Stick with their specialties, and don't go if you don't like spicy. I tequested no spiciness, still came out spicy. Anything off the specialties list is not particularly appetizing.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 4
3ofus
Excellent food. The portions are very generous. I like the location.
Caroline
I have NEVER been to an Ethiopian restaurant that I didn't like. This was the first one.
Ethiopian food is one of my favorite foods and even when I'm traveling internationally, I always crave it and find one.
I just moved to this area and decided to check this one out and ordered the beef tibs as I normally do.
All I could taste was cumin. It was too strong and overpowering. The beef was also not marinated properly as it was flavorless in the middle. It was also very chewy and hard to swallow.
On top of that, out of the 50 or so different Ethiopian restaurants I've been to in the last few years, I have never seen one that doesn't offer a salad with it.
This dish was $25 + tax + tip.
There are quite a lot of Ethiopian restaurants nearby so I will be checking them out instead.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 2
Kelly Anderson
I had a disappointing experience with the customer service at Zeni. The tall waitress appeared visibly unhappy and unapproachable, as if she didn’t want to be there. While I understand that everyone can have an off day, consistent poor service (as reflected in other reviews as well) seems to be an ongoing issue here. I won’t be returning.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 3
Service: 1
Vikram K
Tried this place for the first time. The food was good—especially the kitfo. But the service was kind of off. The waitress gave off a weird vibe. Not sure if she was having a bad day or if that’s just how she is, but it made us feel like we weren’t really welcome. She didn’t have a name tag or introduce herself, so I don’t know her name. Honestly, I’m not sure if I’d come back, even though the food was okay. The way I see it if they don’t welcome customers then why go?
Wonderful place to try unique Ethiopian style
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
We have been Zeni patrons for decades - I have raved about them being the best Ethiopian in the entire Bay Area... And to see it decline breaks my heart.
The prices have shot up - that I can understand and am ok with. To accompany that with shrinkflation too - unacceptable. The portions on a combo platter were 40% smaller in my estimation.
Then there is an expectation by the establishment about how much food one should order, if you're a light eater, you'll be taking home a doggy bag, you'd think - but the shrinking portions will help.
What irked the most was the shift in attitude. We just felt taken for granted and somewhat unwelcome. Hunt for the next Ethiopian begins.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Vegetarian Combo, Injera, Ye Doro TIBS, Ye Doro Wot
Best Ethiopian food. Service is lacking, hard to call-in to order to go. No one can up the phone during business hours. Should open a second location...
Prices went up 250%+ since 10 years ago
We thoroughly enjoyed the vegetarian combo. It comfortably serves two people, although we did add a side of Injera.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Average food compared with other bay area Ethiopian restaurants. But definitely tops in the worst service for dine in customers.
Food: 3
Service: 1
Portions are a lot SMALLER, no forks or spoons like they had before. Food was ok. They are clearly cutting costs. Seems cheap, no as many people as before. I wont go back neither recommend.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Food was good however waitress had a very bad attitude. Did not like that at all.
Worst food I have ever tasted I ordered the chicken Tips and I got small container with chicken and separate bread called anjeers I spent 25 I should have never gave a rip either too this was worst restaurant I have ever been to I swear next time y'all order from Salam way better food trust me am African I can tell you that
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
We have been wanting to try this place for a while and it was worth the wait. I’ve never had Ethiopian food before, but this was a great experience with many different flavors and options. The Sambussa was especially delicious.
The only complaint was that the bread was cold. Maybe this is normal, but we took some home and warmed it for a much better experience.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Sambussa, Meat Combo
Everything is good delicious good service 10/10 🥰
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Went twice. Stick with their specialties, and don't go if you don't like spicy. I tequested no spiciness, still came out spicy. Anything off the specialties list is not particularly appetizing.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 4
Excellent food. The portions are very generous. I like the location.
I have NEVER been to an Ethiopian restaurant that I didn't like. This was the first one.
Ethiopian food is one of my favorite foods and even when I'm traveling internationally, I always crave it and find one.
I just moved to this area and decided to check this one out and ordered the beef tibs as I normally do.
All I could taste was cumin. It was too strong and overpowering. The beef was also not marinated properly as it was flavorless in the middle. It was also very chewy and hard to swallow.
On top of that, out of the 50 or so different Ethiopian restaurants I've been to in the last few years, I have never seen one that doesn't offer a salad with it.
This dish was $25 + tax + tip.
There are quite a lot of Ethiopian restaurants nearby so I will be checking them out instead.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 2
I had a disappointing experience with the customer service at Zeni. The tall waitress appeared visibly unhappy and unapproachable, as if she didn’t want to be there. While I understand that everyone can have an off day, consistent poor service (as reflected in other reviews as well) seems to be an ongoing issue here. I won’t be returning.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 3
Service: 1
Tried this place for the first time. The food was good—especially the kitfo. But the service was kind of off.
The waitress gave off a weird vibe. Not sure if she was having a bad day or if that’s just how she is, but it made us feel like we weren’t really welcome. She didn’t have a name tag or introduce herself, so I don’t know her name.
Honestly, I’m not sure if I’d come back, even though the food was okay. The way I see it if they don’t welcome customers then why go?
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 2
Service: 1
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