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    The Blue Nile

    3.7 (333 reviews)
    ModerateEthiopian
    Closed Closed
    Updated 3 months ago

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    THE BLUE NILE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Good for kids
    Good for groups
    Outdoor seating

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    Recommended Reviews - The Blue Nile

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    Ethiopian spiced tea
    Katy C.

    Our friends who live in Ann Arbor took us to The Blue Nile recently while we were in town. It was Nate's first time trying Ethiopian food, which was exciting to share with him. The vibe inside was cozy and dimly lit, and I think it would make a great date spot. You can make a reservation on their website, but we didn't end up needing one on a Sunday evening. We found street parking nearby, but there are garages around that you can park in as well. The best way to go in my opinion is to get the all you can eat vegetarian platter. For $20 per person, you get generous portions of each of the vegetarian dishes, and they will refill whatever ones you want any time. You can also add their meat dishes for an additional cost - we got each of the meat dishes, including chicken, beef, and lamb. Blue Nile has a full bar, which is pretty unique for this type of restaurant. I opted for the spiced Ethiopian tea, which is a warming blend of spices and is perfect for a chilly fall day. The meal begins with a hot towel to clean your hands, as the food is all eaten without silverware. The dishes are served with injera, a spongy fermented flatbread that also serves as a utensil to scoop the dishes up. I've had better injera before, but it definitely did the trick for this meal. I really enjoyed all the different dishes, but my favorites were the red lentils, spicy beef, and lamb. Everything was super flavorful and the meat was so tender. The chicken fell right off the bone. I like that they had the option of meat dishes, as the other Ethiopian restaurants I've visited usually are completely vegetarian or vegan. Service was attentive and friendly and we were completely stuffed after this meal. I'd visit again for more tasty food and hot tea!

    Beef
    Lydia F.

    I have had the Blue Nile on my list of places to try for some time, and I was finally able to make it! It did not disappoint. We ordered the vegetarian feast, which is $19.99 per person. The veggies are all you can eat. We also added a la carte beef and spicy chicken. Unfortunately, I did not write down the accurate names. The beef was the star of the show. It was spicy, earthy, and delicious. My favorite out of the veggies were the cabbage and collard greens. The bread given to eat the food was light and spongy but very filling. It almost made me wish for a fork because I was so full from using the bread. The customer service was excellent, and I loved the beautiful details of the restaurant like the hand towels provided to clean your hands and even the beautiful wood decor of the restaurant.

    Elizabeth K.

    I worked at Blue Nile while attending U of M in the late 1990s and ate countless meals there then. The owners Habte and Alma were always so lovely to me. I've lived in New York for 25 years since and have eaten at several renowned Ethiopian restaurants in cities across the US, but none compare to Blue Nile. Blue Nile recipes are perfect from the injera bread to every single dish on the menu, it's truly the best. I've craved a Blue Nile meal for years and had it on my bucket list to come back to Ann Arbor just to eat an Ethiopian feast again. I finally got a chance this past weekend. As soon as I walked in the door the aroma (and nostalgia) hit me. Everything tasted exactly as I remembered after all these years. They've expanded the restaurant but it still retains the same style as it did when I worked there. The staff is friendly and attentive. It's a great value (in my opinion, they should raise their prices). I was sad not to be able to buy tea by the jar anymore, so I drank several refills to savor it. Blue Nile is a treasure and I hope it continues to thrive.

    Doro Wat and Zitzil Wat
    Cherry O.

    I was really excited and looking forward to experience Ethiopian food for the first time. I'm originally from Chicago but am visiting Ann Arbor with my best friend whom has dined here before. The prices here aren't not cheap. It's more like $$$. We ordered the Veggie Platter which is $19.95/pp which is AYCE. The server will come ask if you would like a refill on any of the veggies entrees. However, the meat is not part of the AYCE option. Meat dishes are ordered a la carte and range like $7-8 depending on chicken or beef. The lamb however is $16.95. The spiced tea is also very good $3.95. It comes with Injera (Ethiopian bread) that is very spongy in texture. The way to eat the food is to rip off a piece of the Injera and use it to scoop up the entrees using your fingers. I'm sure you can ask for utensils but don't expect them to be at your table. The Injera is nothing like a naan that is more "bready". It's very hard to describe and it's not at all flavorful, but super filling. The flavors are savory and they have a kick. However, I found the taste to not be rich enough to my liking. I prefer Indian food that packs a punch with all the spicy yet has some richness to the entrees. Here I didn't sense that but did sense a lot of spices throughout the dishes. The restaurant decor is beautiful. I gave it 4 stars only because our server wasn't that attentive and failed to refill our tea and water when we requested a few times.

    Vegetarian all you can eat
    Abby B.

    We went to The Blue Nile with the hopes of finding an Ethiopian restaurant similar to our favorite in Chicago, The Blue Nile did not disappoint, but the menu structure was unclear to us before dining. You essentially HAVE to get the all you can eat vegetarian meal, then add on any meats or extras. That's about $20 per person for veggie dishes. The portion sizes are generous - my husband and I had a hard time fully finishing just our first plate. I understand why they have this policy, but the no leftovers rule was a bummer. It ultimately felt like we didn't get that much food for what we paid, just due to the limitations of our stomachs that night. On the bright side, the food was amazing. Everything was unique and flavorful; we actually liked it better than our Chicago spot. I would still come here again, just better prepared with an empty stomach and AYCE expectations. This is also a great spot to take any visiting vegetarian friends.

    vegetarian platter
    Jessica W.

    http://www.bluenilemi.com/ ten out of ten! i have been wanting to experience ethiopian food for quite some time now. i am so glad i went. the restaurant itself felt very authentic and the staff was very attentive and kind. we opted for the endless vegetarian platter. website link above for descriptions. it was the perfect amount of food that made you feel satisfied and not overly full. next time you're in A2, check them out!

    Vegetarian plate
    Stacia G.

    Went here after wandering around a bit in Ann Arbor. We sat outside and it was the perfect night for it. Staff was out immediately to get order. Staff roamed around and refilled the bread, water, and if you wanted- vegetables. The sad thing is you cannot just get a vegetable dish alone- you have to get the feast. It's $18.95 per person. It is "all you care to eat" and it's still not necessarily what you might want. It does come out fast! We did have to "find" original staff who took out order to get the check. That did take a minute... Food was excellent though and enjoyable- just a lot more than intended. One round can feed two hungry folks easily.

    Nicole E.

    I haven't had Ethiopian since the pandemic started last year. The Blue Nile in Ferndale is still sadly closed for dine-in and is only available for carry out, but it's pricey to get carry out items and only be capped at 1 serving for the two of us. Guess we will be going to AA whenever we want Ethiopian food then. It's busy in here. Parking was fun. They don't have their own parking lot like the one in Ferndale. They are busy with orders that no one is seating folks. Doesn't appear to be at 25% capacity, we only see 2 booths that are not seated. They do have these isolated rooms to the side, those look ideal here. Their vegetarian feast is $1 more than the one in Ferndale. Ok. We did get seated but no one has come to get our order for a bit. Service is nowhere the same as the one in Ferndale, not by a mile. Luckily we are seated by the window and away from everyone else and only the waiter would walk to our table. We have been sitting with our menus for a food 5-7 minutes, still no one. 10 minutes later I see the owner or manager grab two glasses and fill it with water. We finally got water after 10 minutes, still haven't been able to put in our order yet. Took us 15 minutes to get our order in, finally. If they are going to be at 65-75% capacity, which isn't allowed at the moment, they need to make sure they have the staffing to cover all of the guests in a timely manner. Social distancing doesn't seem to be enforced either here. We ordered two vegetarian feast, added the timatim salad, dorot wat (spicy chicken) too, no injera. We got our food in less than 5 minutes, no hot towel. No way to eat our food wince we have no injera and no silverware yet. The salad is bland and lame, not enough dressing and not enough lemon in the dressing either. The yellow and green lentils are my least favorite. The green lentil is warm here and tastes different from what I was expecting. We scarfed down the first round, it will likely take a while to get a second round of food then. We even pushed our platter to the end of the table to make it visible, nothing yet. It will be breakfast by the time we get round two. The portions here for two are smaller than at the other location too. Also we were done with our veggie platter and our chicken hasn't come out yet at all. We finally had a waiter take our platter and he was going to check on our chicken and grab us another platter as well. The waiter asked what chicken we ordered, he went to check grab it. Round two down. Chicken is tasty, flavorful, messy. My husband thinks we should try to get to 4 or 5 rounds. He is assuming it costs around $1 a dish for the restaurant. The 3rd round went down a bit slower than the first two. I am done. My husband wants to go for round 4 to break his record. Round 4 with two servings of the red lentil and the split peas. 27 dishes counting the chicken and the salad too. So stuffed. Our 3rd or 4th waiter that dealt with us was more attentive than the first 3. John's name was on our bill, but I don't know which of the waiters that was. An hour dinner turned into a bit short of 2 hours tonight. We received our bill soon enough. Food was all good, service was subpar.

    Ethiopian Feast

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    7 months ago

    Absolutely fantastic Food. Went on a date here many years ago and I absolutely love everything about it. It's a lot of fun.

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    2 years ago

    Interesting place, food was good and staff were great. I recommend trying this place, you will enjoy the experience.

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    1 year ago

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    1 year ago

    Really delicious food and friendly wait staff. Veggie feast was super well seasoned. I'll definitely come back.

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    2 years ago

    This is my favorite restaurant. The food is great, the atmosphere is beautiful, and the service is great!

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    Page 1 of 9

    Ask the Community - The Blue Nile

    Do they still offer the option of floor seating?

    I have been there twice in the past six months and not seen it.

    Are many of the dishes gluten-free?

    Yes but the spongy bread is not. You can opt to eat the feast w a fork instead of bread but I don't believe they offer gluten free injera

    Can you order the vegetarian or nonveg feast for lunch?

    yes

    If you're eating in with two people for dinner, can one person get the veggie feast and the other get the meat feast, or do both have to get the same feast?

    You can get separate feast - they may put the meat portions on a separate plate.

    View All 5 Questions

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    Baobab Fare - Plantain chips with dipping sauce

    Baobab Fare

    4.7(428 reviews)
    35.0 miWayne State
    $$

    Seriously one of the best chicken dishes I've ever had. This place was a little ways away from the…read moredowntown area, but easy enough to get to by bus. For two people, without reservations, we waited about 30 minutes on an early Saturday evening. Well with the wait. The interior was nicely designed and the staff were very attentive. Ordered the Kumuhana and tried the Ji Hibiscus beverage. The drink was good, but on the sweet side. The food was amazing. Chicken was super tender, rice was cooked well, corn salad added a nice touch of freshness, and the plantains were good too. A very filling meal, I'm surprised I was able to finish it all. Would definitely come back again, if in town.

    It required two visits, trying different dishes to finally have enough 411 to write a review…read more Tried: Sambusa, Plantains Chips & Dipping Sauce, Nyumbani, Kuku, Kumuhana, Mbuzi, Samaki, Intore, Mgoga, Tamu, Coco Mango, & Ji Passion Fruit My Favorites: Intore and Samaki - when it comes to flavor profiles, these two dishes shine over others. I also asked the waitress which dish is the most popular and they told me the Samaki is their #1 seller. I tired half/half on the rice on my first visit, this visit I went with spiced rice pilau only. I'm not a fan of coconuts, while the coconut rice doesn't have a overpowering coconut flavor, spiced rice will be my to go moving forward. Nyumbani, while decent, the meat was bit under seasoned to my taste. Kuku was the better over Kuhuhana. Mbuzi - the goat shank was lukewarm when we got it, it was bit hard to break the meat off the bone, but worth trying at least once. Service was superb on both visits, water bottle gets refilled w/o asking, and great experience. While I won't be able to make it out often, definitely will be on my list of places to revisit while in Detroit area.

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    Baobab Fare - Plenty of seating

    Plenty of seating

    Baobab Fare - Samosa appetizer

    Samosa appetizer

    Baobab Fare - Fizzy drinks

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    Fizzy drinks

    The Blue Nile

    The Blue Nile

    3.8(306 reviews)
    33.3 miDowntown Ferndale
    $$

    A true Gem in the city, hidden in plain sight. If you're looking for something new, and an actual…read moredining experience, run don't walk to The Blue Nile. This family-owned and operated restaurant has been serving up Ethiopian delicacies for more than 40 years- ideal for vegans and meat lovers alike. The Blue Nile all you can eat platter is great for both groups and first dates, there's a coziness to this restaurant that is a rarity these days. Offering a full bar, the Ethiopian tea is a must, to try at least once, even if you're not a tea drinker. Open Wed-Sun.

    Had never had Ethiopian food before I came here - so I can't necessarily speak to the authenticity…read moreof the food, but I CAN speak to the fact that it is delicious. Awesome for vegetarians, since the main platter of all-you-can-eat dishes is fully vegetarian. You can add meat dishes on an a la carte basis, but I have never felt the need. I always have to make sure not to eat any other bigger meals earlier in the day before coming here, because I want to be able to enjoy multiple rounds of food if possible! :) It's also so fun to step into the full experience of eating with your hands. Sometimes the service can be slow. But I have always found the staff to be very kind and courteous. So, if you're in the mindset of having a relaxed dinner experience, then you'll have a great time! The vibes are calm and there's usually relaxing music playing. Side note: they have gift certificates as well!

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    The Blue Nile - Inside

    Inside

    The Blue Nile
    The Blue Nile

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    The Blue Nile - ethiopian - Updated May 2026

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