Came here with my parents. The sunset and veggie combos are amazing in both quality and quantity; the injera was the best that I've had yet. The owners are very friendly and happily showed my parents how to eat the dishes. Note of caution: The portions here are huge - the three of us ordered two dishes and had more than enough for a feast! read more

I agree with the other positive reviewers - this place is great! Although the outside of the restaurant certainly doesn't elicit excitement, what matters is within. At Sunset Cafe, you'll find a delightful owner serving extremely good Ethiopian food at a bargain price. The quality is good, and the portions enormous. I ordered the vegetable-sampler, and ended up taking home more in leftovers than I was able to eat at the restaurant. Without exaggeration, I was given 2 - 3 meals worth of food. Given that it was all delicious, the $15 (including generous tip) that I paid made it a very good value. I'm told that the restaurant does steady dinnertime business. I went for lunch on a weekday, though, and it was nearly empty. It was great - I enjoyed superb service and practically had the place to myself. Just be ware: it may look closed during lunchtime even though isn't. You're simply expected to enter though the attached Ethiopian grocery store. Enjoy! read more

Very good food. The food came out fast. Ms. Sunny, the chef is awesome. A great hostess. read more

Sunset Cafe - #45 on the menu. It serves two, maybe three. Delish... the chef Ms Sunny is the warmest and kindest hostess! - Ethiopian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Loved our visit. Owner is friendly, and the food tastes wonderful. Takes some time with a large group (more than 7 or 8 people), but well worth the wait. read more

Sunset Cafe - Ethiopian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Wow, that was a lot of fun! I went in with my World Cultures class and was greeting warmly by the owner. I explained to her that we wanted to sample traditional Ethiopian fare. With a large smile, she provided us with an incredible array of diverse tastes and flavors with a combination if their sampler trays loaded with sides of injera. The injera was the best I have eaten. Very fresh and wonderfully sour. Our dishes were a blend of differently spiced meat and vegetable dishes and all moderately priced. We spent $50 and it fed all 8 of us to the brim and still had three boxes of leftovers. read more

Sunset Cafe - A sampler plate of meat and veggie dishes with injera, traditional Ethiopian flat bread. - Ethiopian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Another great Ehiopian find! Large portions of food at very reasonable prices. My friend and I shared the veggie combo which had 6-7 different dishes and came with endless refills of injera (the bread). The lentil dishes were my favourite - all of them had different but equally delectable gravies! The combo proved to be too much for the 2 of us and we ended up with generous leftovers. We also had the Sambusa which is similar to an Indian samosa but with a mixed veggie filling instead of just potatoes - yummy! Its a pretty small place but very charming. The waitress was super nice and the chef (or owner) came out to talk to us and explain a bit about the foods - very thoughtful. Don't let the somewhat dingy exterior deter you, this is a great place to dine at! read more

Delicious injira. Beautiful presentation. Fresh ingredients. Honestly one of the best injiras we ever had. Sunny, the cook and owner, is always sweet and a great host. Big portions but feels light and healthy. read more

Friends found this little Ethiopian restaurant on Yelp- and all of the 5-star reviews are true! The atmosphere was relaxed and Sunny, the cherf/owner, made sure we were well fed. We got a veggie combo, doro wat, and awaze tibs. When the food came out, Sunny gave us a tour of each dish- how it was made and what ingredients we would should pay attention to. The food was amazing, a wide variety of flavors and spices. The injera, as others have mentioned, is perfectly sour and just the right thickness for grabbing all of the tasty stews and veggies dishes. It was a savory feast! We will be back. read more

I agree with the other reviewer who said this would be a top contender in the Bay Area. Do yourself a favor and come here. We had the sunset combo. Everything was so flavorful and I love that the owner was so attentive to everyone in the restaurant. She went around at explained everything on the plate to us which was helpful because it was my boyfriends first time having Ethiopian and he didn't know what to expect. It has a very cozy atmosphere and we will definitely be coming back. read more

Yes!!!!!! This food is so fast, easy, delicious and inexpensive!! At first I was skeptical taking the server's recommendation on a combo plate with 4-5 different meats and veggies option as she said it was enough to share with two. My boyfriend is a body builder and I may be a small Asian woman but I can really eat! Lo and behold we had plenty left over between the two of us! Enough to for both of us to share the next day! read more

Sunset Cafe - Combo plate for $15 - Ethiopian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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Sunset gave us an amazing experience, great food and excellent service! I would highly recommend it to anyone read more

Sunset Cafe - Such great service! - Ethiopian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Checked out this place after reading all the positive reviews about it. It was our first time trying Ethiopian food so had no idea what it would taste like. The service at this restaurant is super friendly and welcoming. Definitely good quantity of food when ordering the combo. I love the fact that the lady introduced all the food items when she took it out for us - definitely add a special touch to the whole experience. However, the food was either too spicy and too sour for my liking to be honest (veggie and sunset combo). I am sure it was good food, but my taste buds and I didn't enjoy the flavour too much. So based on Yelp rating system, I could only give in an a-ok (3 stars) and not I'm a fan (4 stars). read more

As we walked through the door on a rainy Friday evening we were greeted by the foggy haze of burning incense. The restaurant was empty save for a man sitting in the corner drinking Corona and chatting with the waitress who promptly got up and gave us a choice of tables. She showed us menus, poured us water and smiled. When we ordered she didn't really understand our request for both vegetarian and meat combo platters. Then, as if on queue, out of the kitchen appeared the chef to clarify our order. When the food came the chef explained each of the items as she poured them out onto a large tray layered in a traditional Ethiopian bread. First an egg, followed by lamb, beef and collared greens. The rest of the tray was covered with red beans, cabbage, potatoes and split peas. I got great satisfaction from eating the food with my hands. With each bite I unrolled some of the bread provided for us in the basket and scooped up the contents of the tray. To finish,'we tore into the bread on the bottom of the tray which had been soaking up the juices the whole time. Overall I got great pleasure from my first Ethiopian experience. The service was good (remember this is African style so not super fast but super friendly) and the prices were low (can't beat $25 to feed 4). I would certainly consider going back. I just hope they have more customers the next time. read more

If you want amazing service and delicious Ethiopian food come here! What a great experience!! read more

Sunset Cafe - Veggie and meat combo! - Ethiopian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

The food and seasonings are phenomenal. First time eating Ethiopian food and won't be the last! I will be back!!! read more

This place has a really good and fulfilling Veggie Platter combo. The food here is outstanding, and the owners are extremely nice. Be sure to partake in the Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony if you get the chance! read more

Sunset Cafe - The Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony. - Ethiopian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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Solid Ethiopian food for a reasonable price. It's in my neighborhood and I've been back a couple times. I recommend the sampler platter. You get a bit of a bunch of different things. The sambusas are good too, though $2 each. read more

Weren't sure when we first saw the outside of the restaurant, but it was quite clean and nice inside and, OMG, the food was fabulous. Sally welcomed us and served us 11(!) separate dishes on injera bread for the veggie combo. Amazing spicing and everything was delicious. Loved the carrots and green beans. We are definitely coming back. read more

Sunset Cafe - Ethiopian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

My wife and I try to go to Ethiopian restaurants when travelling just to compare to this place. This one is the best. The setting is a bit old but clean and tactfully decorated. The menu is complete and prices are very reasonable. The service is fashionably slow but with a beautiful smile. Slow sometimes is due to the fact that the owner is the cook and waitress. So visit this place if you are in the mood for the best Ethiopian food in the greater USA area . read more

Used to absolutely love this place- brought all my Seattle visitors here and would drive out of my way any day for that veggie platter. Came by on Xmas eve and the place had been remodeled and food was such a disappointment. Only half of the usual dishes on the veggie platter- we were hoping it was a holiday fluke but saw another review saying maybe they got new ownership. So sad if that's true, Sunny was a goddess! read more

This place is very good. It is a small place. It is very neat inside and very tidy. It has a nice feel to it. We got the Sunset Combo. It had: - Doro Wot - Lamb with Doro Wot sauce - Chicken with greens - Chicken Tibs - Beef tibs - One dish of lentils - Collared greens The sauce/gravy of the Doro Wot is amazing. It is the best I have had. It is spicy and flavourful. The meat dishes were a little overdone but mostly nice. The lentils were good but it wasn't either Shiro Wot or Misir Wot. The service was good and the chef/owner (I think) came out to meet us and explain to us all the dishes. It did take a long time to get our food - almost forty five minutes and it seemed that everything in the kitchen is serialized. Overall, this place is great. It is slow though. read more

Boyfriend and I have always wanted to try out Ethiopian food. More so me than him. With enough convincing he finally agreed. Service: Was great. We got the feel of the mom and pops restaurant. The owners were both very nice and sweet! Food: We ordered what was recommended and got the Sunset Combo. All the meats were really good! Our favorite was the lamb curry. The Ethiopian beers were good! We tried both the light and dark. BUT - The Ethiopian bread is sour. If you like sourdough then you will probably like it. We arent fans and it felt like it threw the whole the whole meal off. We also ordered the "hot wings" for the appetizer. Be warned. DONT order it. Im guessing they dont get many orders of this. Because it literally tasted like the frozen "buffalo wings" and just microwaved. read more

My husband and I love Ethiopian food but hadn't gone to any of the local restaurants since we moved into the south lake neighborhood. My son suggested Ethiopian last night and after checking yelp we went to Sunset. YUM!!! The best ever!!! We had both the vegetable and meat platter which included items that were new to us as well as old favorites. The savory spiciness of the dishes makes it hard to stop eating even after you're full and still, there was so much that we had lots of leftovers to take home. The people there are very friendly and create a very inviting and homey atmosphere. This might be our favorite new restaurant! read more

This is the kind of place Yelp was invented for. Hole on a wall with great authentic food. Located in Ethiopian neighborhood, it looks a bit scary from the outside. (Inside is clean and charming) We had the Sunset combo ($13) and Buritto ($5) appetizer. Combo was big enough to share with 2 hungry people. They were both so fresh and good! The owner/chef Sunny was very nice and lovely. Coffee was delicious. (And the coffee ceremony is interesting) Sunny obviously take a lot of pride in her food. read more

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My pregnant wife has been craving East African food recently. So I decided to take her to Sunset Cafe - the portions here are HUGE so we shared a meat combination. Great service, great food! read more

Sunset Cafe - Traditional Ethiopian coffee. I love the smell of sage. - Ethiopian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

The zilzil tibbs and the lamb tibbs were so delicious! The richness of the marinated meat was complemented by the spicy jalapenos and sautéd onions. Those dishes combined with the veggie platter made a well rounded meal that three starving men couldn't finish. The restaurant has simple decor, but the atmosphere is one where you feel at home. Highly recommend to those interested in trying Ethiopian food the first time, as well as those who know and love this cuisine. read more

Sunset Cafe - The veggie platter - Ethiopian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

This used to be our favorite little Ethiopian gem of a restaurant. Sunny & husband were always so welcoming, portions huge with bonus dishes and amazing prices. When visiting today, the first thing we noticed was a bad remodel. Then came the smaller portions (still good food), then the inattentive service and next the jacked-up prices. Quite the difference! We were told that they recently changed owners. What a shame. read more

Charming chef but nowhere near the quality of food as Altaye. Most of it was over-microwaved and while still tasty just lacked the subtlety of the insanely good Altaye. Sunset probably does have slightly nicer ambience though with more space or blaring TV, which might explain its higher yelp rating. read more

Wow such delicious food with fun experience! Ordered the meat combo plate, really amazing! Really friendly service :) Want to try the veggie combo plate, but need to be next time, so full... read more

Like it very much. Like all reviews have stated, food is delicious and portion very generous. And the owner is so warm and welcoming. We were invited to sit for the coffee ceremony, and spent over two hours there. It's like eating at a friends house! read more

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Love eating here. Reminds me of the food I had in Ethiopia, real home cooking. Sunny the owner is the best. She takes your orders and then runs back to the Kitchen so it's nice and fresh coming out to you. Be prepared to leave very stuff with left overs for lunch or breakfast the next day. Be prepared to wait for the feast she places in front of you. read more

Sunset Cafe - Ethiopian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Sunset Cafe is a humble restaurant that, from the outside, does nothing to distinguish itself from the countless other small, diversified shops along Rainier Avenue. The interior is also nondescript. But that's where ordinary ends. If you are willing to wait longer than average for your food to be cooked then you will be rewarded with a soul-satisfying meal. We were lucky enough on Mother's Day Eve to have the owner / chef Sunny present and serve our food. There are down home food experiences I will never forget. Mrs. Marcialis' Sunday feast in New York. Black Baptist church picnic's in Bear Mountain State Park. Cajun fish fries with family in Louisiana. You don't need to be from Ethiopia to know that what Sunny serves up is something made with joy and masterful skill and love. Tips Take a little extra time to read the menu since our waitress was very pleasant but did not know much English. We ended up with several lamb dishes in our combo where we would have preferred something else. And like Italian or Indian where the non-meat dishes are arguably the stars, so it seems to be with Ethiopian. The vegetarian combo items are so plentiful, varied and satisfying that even our meat-eaters wished they had ordered it with maybe a meat side dish. read more

Food portion was good. Food was ok. Very poor customer service. They got the order wrong and seemed inconvenienced that we requested to get what we already paid for. Will not return. read more

Authentic. Almost everything in the sampler was good, but some of the flavors were actually bland, surprisingly. Service was delightful. Very cozy little place, probably has lots of repeat customers. read more

I love this place! We came with 2 people and ordered the meat and veggie combos. The sweet owner lady let us know that we were ordering too much food for just us and instead added a few extra items to our meat combo for a few dollars extra. Thanks! When the food came out she told us about each dish and wow was it delicious. The only downside was we had to wait a while for a menu as the guys that were there were helping folks that came in but in a pretty lax way. If they're on staff they're not too good at it. read more

My first time eating Ethiopian food. A great introduction! The waitress was very helpful in helping me make a selection (mild beef stew). Ethiopian food is on the spicier side, but they will help you find something mild if you prefer that. As others shared, the chef brings out the food personally! She pours the items individually on a large crepe-like bread. The stew was very delicious! 4 stars instead of 5 because I had a hard time (headache) with some of the incense. read more

The BEST Ethiopian!!!! Must have the mint coffee after your meal. Delicious food, great service, great price and it's not pretentious! What more can a foodie asks for? Nothing! read more

Sunset Cafe - Ethiopian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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I am a big fan of Ethiopian food and try to find a new Ethiopian restaurant to try in every city I visit, and this is by far the best Ethiopian restaurant I have been to. I wish I lived in Seattle so I could go here all the time. The food was absolutely delicious - rich but not too oily, the meat was tender, and the injera was perfect -- light and not too sour. The combo offerings have the widest variety of dishes I have seen for unbelievably low prices. The Sunset Combo, which included a variety of lamb, beef, chicken, and vegetable dishes, was just $12 -- I paid $35 for a comparably sized but less diverse and less tasty at an Ethiopian place in Atlanta just a few weeks ago. The exterior of the restaurant is somewhat unassuming, but inside it is pleasant, with lots of natural light and tasteful decorations. The food presentation is also artful. The coffee ceremony was also the most authentic I've seen in the U.S. -- i.e., the only one I've seen that is exactly the same as what I saw when I was actually in Ethiopia, when you get to see the beans roasting and have the special garnish to stir/flavor the coffee. It was the best Ethiopian coffee I've had. Also, the lady that runs this restaurant is delightful. She is very friendly and warm, and took care to explain all of the dishes as she presented them at the table. When I asked to add shiro to my combo, she made some fresh right then, and it was perfect. Like everything else here, the tej (honey wine) here is by far the best-tasting that I've had anywhere. If you have time for just one restaurant on a visit to Seattle, go to this one! read more

Sunset Cafe - Sunset combo plus shiro. This is a TON of food for 1/3 the prices of similar combos I've ordered elsewhere. - Ethiopian Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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The food is fabulous. Even my family, all of whom are from Ethiopia and Eritrea, enjoyed it. We got the Sunset combo-highly recommend!

The veggie combo and lamb stew were great. We will be back! Nice cafe ambiance. There is parking in the lot next to the building :)