Dashen Ethiopian Cuisine

Authentic and Delicious Ethiopian Cuisine in New Brunswick!

New Brunswick's favorite vegan-friendly Ethiopian restaurant that keeps locals coming back for their spongy injera and tourists traveling for their delightfully spicy mushroom tibs and seafood dishes!

Family-owned and operated, Dashen (formally Desta) Ethiopian Cuisine specializes in mouthwatering and well-priced Ethiopian food. Our cuisine entrees are served in a relaxed and welcoming environment that you, your friends, and your family are sure to enjoy, gaining loyal patronage of residents with never-ending injera and satisfying vegetable and lentil stews.

Ethiopian cuisine characteristically consists of spicy vegetable and meat dishes, usually in the form of wat (or wot), a thick stew, served atop Injera (a large sourdough flatbread). Injera bread is about 20 inches in diameter and made out of fermented Teff flour, a grain native to Ethiopia. 

Dining in Ethiopia is characterized by the ritual of breaking injera and sharing food from a common plate signifying the bonds of loyalty and friendship. Ethiopians eat with their hands, using pieces of Injera to pick up bites of entrees and side dishes. Utensils are rarely used with this dish.

While most of the entrees include beef, lamb, chicken, and fish, our dishes are perfect for vegetarian and vegan eaters.

We are also special in that we have a whole menu that serves a variety of crepes! While it's non-traditional, it works! Show your support for an independent, vegan-friendly, and Black-owned restaurant and fill your belly with the nourishing food from Dashen today! And be sure to ask what wines pair best with your dish from their exclusive wine list! 

Check out our Lunch & Dinner menu lunch is served 12 pm - 3 pm Tuesday - Friday. Dinner is served all day Saturday - Sunday. We look forward to seeing & serving you soon.

Get a full sense of their Lunch, Wine, and Dinner Menus Here!

Here are descriptions of some of the well-known dishes we serve:

1. Injera is a sour and spongy round bread, made of teff flour, that’s naturally vegan and gluten-free. Sauces and dishes are commonly poured on top of the injera, then you tear a piece of injera and scoop up the sauce to eat.
2. Shiro is a delicious chickpea powder-based dish (sometimes also including lentils and broad beans), slow-cooked with Ethiopia’s popular — and spicy — berbere sauce. There are several kinds of shiro to enjoy, from the soupy thin shiro wot to the thick and glob-like (but still delectable) shiro tegamino.
   
3. Gomen is made of collard greens and spices. If you didn't like vegetables before, you will after tasting this dish!
   
4. Misir wot is a delicious combination of split red lentils simmered in spicy berbere sauce. (Depending on the ingredients, it may look darker.)
   
5. Kik alicha is a split pea stew-ish dish often cooked with a light turmeric sauce