The food was decent, but I felt it was overpriced. I tried the combo for two ($53) and the mushroom tibs with beets ($27) with two friends. All the dishes were flavorful, with my favorites being the shiro (ground chickpea) and the green lentils. The others were about on par with most other Ethiopian food I've had. With two drinks (beer and tamarind juice), the bill ended up at over $120, which is definitely quite high compared to other similar restaurants. read more

Tsion Cafe - Ethiopian Veggie Combo for 2 - Ethiopian Near Me - New York, New York

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Very good food excellent service and a great location. My only complaint is that I never know when it's open for some reason the hours seem to be inconsistent. read more

Love the culinary diversity, great combination, and great results. Highly recommended if you want a combination of Ethiopian with notes of Israeli Mediterranean cuisine. Everything is fresh with just the right type of spicy. read more

I love everything about this restaurant. This was my second time here, and I brought 2 friends along. The drinks were great, the food was amazing, and the music added to the wonderful ambiance. We ordered several vegan items off the menu and we enjoyed everything we had. I can hardly wait to return! read more

Tsion Cafe - Ethiopian Near Me - New York, New York

This was such experience for my first time And this place a 10/10 The Honey Wine by the Bottle IS A MUST The platter for the table IS A MUST Just let your waitress/waiter make the decision for you because you won't be disappointed for this vegan meal. Very home feeling very beautiful decor and the owners were kiss top chef beautiful The dessert OMG. Don't even like coconut but I will 100 of those sweet treats I'm always coming back for this meal P.S you will prolly rest two orders of the samosas for sure read more

My first time at Tsion Cafe was with a large group of 10 to celebrate a birthday. The restaurant staff warmly welcomed us to a nice table and brought water and menus. They asked if we were familiar with Ethiopian food and whether we would want them to explain the menu briefly which was appreciated. We asked questions about how much to order for our large group and were given great recommendations, We ended up ordering the perfect amount of food, it was all sooooo delicious. I only managed to photograph the appetizers but the entree were incredible. Some of what we ordered in addition go hummus and Sambusas Fikre (Lover's) Combo Beets, shiro,cabbage, mild lentils, gomen, injera Tsion Platter Shiro, atakilt, mild lentils, qey sir, injera Oyster Mushroom Wot Oyster mushroom slow simmered in spicy sauce Atakilt sauteed cabbage with spiced potatoes and carrots All Great, we also got a few extra sides of injera to help us share better. Everyone in the group reached the consensus that while everything was delicious, the mushrooms were the star of the show. While we said we were too full for dessert, the owner heard we were celebrating a birthday and came over with malawach and halva for the table. I usually find halva to be too sweet, but this hazelnut halva was PERFECTION. Not too sweet just right We will definitely be back to Tsion cafe and I highly recommend this restaurant whether you are looking to expand your palette and try new foods or if you are a long time lover of Ethiopian food! read more

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Very good Ethiopian with some dishes not typically found Each large plate serves one person Portobello tibs, Tsion plate, and a sweet potato jolof bowl all excellent. Unlike other Ethiopians places you have to ask for extra injera and they also serves forks Injera: it was ok but I prefer all teff Bathroom: clean and single serve non gendered Location: very close to subway and bus stops read more

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As the Co-President of Women's Media Group we hosted a special booksigning and culinary event! The book is GURSHA and the recipes come from Chef and owner of Tsion Cafe in Harlem-Beejhy Barhany! The food is amazing, the atmosphere electric and cozy, and the staff is spectacular! It is a must eat place whether you go to the restaurant for the full experience or order for pick up and eat at home! If you love the food as much as I do-you will want to get the book at try the recipes! Enjoy!!! read more

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Delicious vegan food, great service, ambiance with a light touch. Kosher Ethiopian food, which is hard to come by. Effortlessly handled a busload of about 30 experienced folks. I bought the owner's cookbook and will try some recipes. read more

Delicious out of this world food and great great people, i will definitely recommend this place.

They certainly deserve 5 stars. It's a wonderful hybrid of Ethiopian and Israeli food. I came here for a special occasion and was blown away! First of all, the owner approached us and explained her background, the history of the restaurant, and all of the dishes we had ordered. We shared so much food. We had sambusa, lentils, injera chips, kitfo tartar, veggie combo, doro tibs, jollof rice, and quinoa salad. The best dishes, in my opinion, were the doro tips (spiced chicken) and the jollof rice (West African rice). But everything was incredibly flavorful. Then we were treated to an incredible traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony. The coffee ceremony is regarded as a significant social event. We ended the night with a delicious dessert called Malawech with roasted coconut and honey. Oh! What a great place :) read more

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This spot meets all my dining criteria. Their kitchen staff knows what they're doing. Their team treats everyone with kindness. The menu at Tsion Cafe covers all my preferences. On balance, service was attentive and I want to come back. read more

Fabulous Foods... and Ambience... A GREAT neighborhood spot !!! WELL worth your time to visit...

A very nice cultural exploration with kind service and full bellies. The most unique thing is the bread and the chicken was well spiced. Overall the food is a 3. The flavors and uniqueness didn't quite grab me, but the style of eating and cultural education of the bread and how it's served was very fun. The food was great. The chicken soaks into the bread center. Yum. The rice was average, as well as the corn. The collared greens were my favorite. Those were the exception - very well seasoned and flavored. The appetizer was like an Ethiopian samosa, tasty. But 2 for $8? I knew that ordering it, but a little steep! Great service. We met the owner. Very nice. They came and regularly checked up on us and answered questions about the unique bread. Food, ok. Experience, awesome. Service, awesome. read more

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The food was authentic and spectacular and the service was excellent. Warm and friendly ambiance.

One of the best Ethiopian restaurants in Harlem with excellent food and amazing people. A must try!

I honestly don't want to write this review so I can keep it my Harlem secret. But I also really want Tsion to be here forever. So here goes. Tsion's owner Beejhy is the friendliest, most delightful person you'll ever meet. She's Jewish and Ethiopian, which is why the menu at Tsion goes beyond the typical Ethiopian dishes to incorporate Israeli and other Middle Eastern items. Everything we got was fantastic. - Malawach (Mediterranean pancake, boiled egg, green awaze, grated tomatoes): Please start your meal with this. You won't regret it. - Ethiopian Veggie Combo (shiro, atakilt, messer, kik, alicha, gomen): Anyone who knows Ethiopian food knows the veggies are the star of the show. Especially that cabbage. Drooooool - Sega Tibs (filet mignon, tomatoes, shallot, jalapenos, awaze): Tender yet meaty, and oozing fragrant spices. This is one of the better versions I've had. - Jollof Rice: The previous item cake with a choice of side, so we had to try this West African staple. It was delicious, but a tad too oily. - Vanilla Halva: On the house because Beejhy is awesome. I normally don't like halva and don't eat much of it even when I travel through the Middle East, but this one was less dry and sweet than most--so I liked it. Bonus: If you're high-functioning alcoholics like we are, you can easily get South African wines by the bottle for ~$30-40. We got several. We drank several. We left happy. read more

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Absolutely loved my experience at Tsion. Tizata was the sweetest and taught us how to say a few words. The drinks were absolutely amazing and she has great recommendations. The food on that note was even better. Depending on your entree the portions are reasonable read more

Food was different I am good way and eating with your fingers fun. Service was fine. The paintings made it warm and fascinating.

Great service, Yummy food! Went with a big group and everyone enjoyed the food. The waiter was super friendly and efficient. read more

I came to Tsion Cafe for dinner with 3 people on a Sunday night around 6:15pm. We had a reservation and were seated in the outdoor patio right away. This was perfect since the sun had not set/ the weather was warm and not rainy. The restaurant is small and feels very cozy/homey with an ambiance that is relaxed and cute with colorful and lively decor. Service was pretty great as well-- we got good recommendations from our waitress and she was very attentive of our table and any needs that arose. For food we ordered: Lentil sambusa: we got this for our table as an appetizer and it was super good! Very satisfying pastry with lentil filling (there is a chicken option too but we decided on lentil) that comes with two pieces per order. The dough itself was very crispy and flaky. Wish they had more filling inside them though-- it felt very pastry heavy without that much lentil. It did come with a tangy yogurt dip that I loved. It gave the dish a really nice, refreshing, creamy complement to balance out the spices. Veggie combo for 2: ordered two of these as we were a group of 4. They came with a small basket of rolled pieces of injera. Very generous portion size. Comes with a nice variety of different legume stews (lentils, yellow peas), collard greens, cabbage and carrots. All super tasty! Loved the injera as well, it's very fluffy and has a flavor that reminds me of sourdough bread. My favorite was the kik alicha which are the yellow peas! I'm usually a huge fan of this dish and wasn't disappointed here. Doro tibs with jollof rice: shared this with our table. Small pieces of chicken with veggies that are full of flavor. We got it with jollof rice instead of injera to be able to try something different. The rice was very good and had a tomatoey, smoky taste. I'm a bigger fan of lamb tibs but sadly these weren't available and the chicken ones were good enough! Will try them next time though if they are an option. Overall had a good experience here. Super cute vibes, great service, and amazing food! Pricing is a bit on the high side but most Ethiopian cuisine places tend to be. It's well worth it for the high quality, wholesome, filling food and fun experience of eating in a large group! Would recommend if you are looking for Ethiopian food in the area. read more

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First time having Ethiopian cuisine. Walking in, you step down into this into an ambiance like no other. Brick wall filled with art, low lighting and warm. You immediately feel the energy shift to this warm inviting little gem. Beautiful art decor on the wall and there is a patio in the back. Also they have lovely authentic Ethiopian jewelry for sale. Drink: The cocktail choices are amazing. The drinks were well made and very refreshing. I had the pleasure of have the Red Foxx which is a beautifully handcrafted sorrel concoction of bliss! I had two. They also have one of my favorite beers Golden Monkey, a Belgian Wheat ale that is hard to come by in restaurants. Food: if you have never tried Ethiopian food I would highly recommend trying this little spot out. It was the way the food was made. You can tell when a cook takes pride in the taste and my tastebuds had a great party. I opted for the Tsion spiced salmon, I requested medium rare, but it was well done anyway, which is ok. I enjoyed it nonetheless and it wasn't dry! Every bite was flavorful. The lentils were perfect and the potatoes had the right amount of crisp. I also tried a piece of injera and I must say with lentils scooped in it made it quite tasty I have to give a big thank you as well to Tizita she was kind, polite and taught us some awesome words. We had a group of 6. Social distance completely enforced, temperature check and contact tracing. I will be back the whole staff was so kind and you can always win me with that read more

Tsion Cafe - a brick wall with a portrait of a man - Ethiopian Near Me - New York, New York

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Great gem in Harlem that will surely become my go-to spot for Ethiopian food. Originally, I had stopped by Tsion Cafe for a social event with no intentions of having food. In my defense, I had dinner at another event earlier that event, but I did order quite a few beers while at Tsion. By the end of the event hosted by Tsion, I decided to get a few things for the road. I gotta say that ordering some things to go was the best decision that I made that night. I absolutely loved the jollof rice with chicken and wished that I ordered two to have some for the next day. I found the Injera was absolutely amazing because it had a little bit of heat to it. I do not believe that I have had "spicy" injera, but it works. While everything was pretty on point in my order, I wish that the portions were a bit larger. I hope to visit very soon. read more

Tsion Cafe - A little Ethiopian for the road. - Ethiopian Near Me - New York, New York

Doro Tibs with jollof rice is a must! Holy flavor profile! Man, idek how to explain it, just get it! I tried both the Halva and Malawach for dessert: the halva is flaky and in cubes, tastes like hazelnut, very interesting taste; the malawach was soo good! The pastry was so delicious, I could've had it alone without the honey and stuff on top. There's also a number of cocktails here. I tried Redd Foxx and Sweet Nina. Sweet Nina was better but both were great. I am very happy I finally tried this neighborhood spot. read more

This was my first foray into Ethiopian food. The owner of the restaurant was very kind and helped us pick out what we should order since it was our first time. We ended up getting the lentil sambusas as an appetizer which were really tasty. Similar to an Indian samosa. For the main course we ordered the veggie combo and a chicken dish. It comes with bread to eat each part with, and it also sits on a giant piece of the bread. Everything was good, but nothing was spectacular. All the flavors were nice, but nothing really blew my mind. But it was still a nice meal, and a nice introduction to some new types of food! The restaurant was very cute and felt very authentic. read more

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I've been meaning to get here since the early part of the pandemic, when I "cooked along with" the chef as she made her gomen collard greens. Mine were okay, but when I did finally recently (3+ years later,) get here and order them, they were fabulous. My husband had the doro tibs, a chicken dish served over jollof rice. He really really liked it - I was glad, because part of the reason it took us so long to come was that when he had previously tried Ethiopian food he had not liked it. But we had an adventurous grandkid visiting so that was as good a reason as any! Hopped the A train and got up there in no time. Teen and I shared the mushroom tibs, which more traditionally for Ethiopian food (at least how I've had it before) was served on injera. It was delicious and we both liked it a lot. We shared a side of the gomen collards and a side of jollof rice, both very delicious. There's a small patio out back and it was a lovely evening, so that's where we sat. We got there earlyish for a Saturday night, before 6, and the place began to get busy later on. People were ordering drinks as well as food, though we just had water. We did have a dessert, the malawach. It's actually like fried dough, served with honey and coconut. It's tasty. If you like Ethiopian food or have never tried it and would like to, get here! read more

I've been coming here for years, since 2017. Tsion Cafe used to be a favorite among many groups of friends, it was our go to for Ethiopian food and their French toast. The firfir & brunch items were so good. My last visit there was very disappointing. Not only was our food served cold (only one other couple was there so it was not busy) but it was a poor experience overall. The prices are very high and what you get in return is almost insulting. The food was not fresh, served cold and did not taste good. The only thing that we enjoyed were our cocktails & the sambusa. The injera, chicken tibs & veggie combo was terrible. Also feels like you cannot say anything to staff or management as they have a "this is what it is" energy. They longer no longer serve brunch and items on the menu that were once delicious are no longer there. I spent $100 on a dinner that was worth $30 at best. Unfortunately will not be returning. read more

Tsion Cafe - Ethiopian Veggie Combo for 1 - Ethiopian Near Me - New York, New York

I had only had Ethiopian one time before, and I thought it wasn't for me. Tsion completely changed my mind. I can't wait to go back and to bring friends, especially anyone who thinks Ethiopian food isn't for them. read more

The food at Tsion Cafe was amazing. My wife & I ate here for a special evening out, and were not disappointed. Tsion was amazing. It's a cute place with a very friendly staff. The cocktails were great before & after dinner. We actually lingered for an after dinner drink, which is only something we do when we are really enjoying ourselves. I highly recommend the Tsion Cafe. Everything is vegetarian, but don't let that stop you from visiting. We had no idea that it was all vegetarian, and I had my heart set on some tasty Ethiopian meaty dishes. But I was not disappointed with the food. It was awesome. My wife is a sensitive celiac and must eat a gluten free meal without cross contamination, and Tsion delivered. It is one of the very few Ethiopian restaurants in NYC that is definitely gluten free. When you read the reviews of all of them, not all the restaurants deliver a gluten free meal even when they claim that they do. read more

Excellent food and drinks. Really enjoyed the jollof rice with chicken. Perfectly spicy without being overwhelming. The sambusa had a good flavor and sauce however come with only 2 on a plate so not large enough to share. The drink I had was the Sweet Nina I believe and was delicious. Prices are a little high compared to the portion sizes which aren't small but aren't huge either. Drink prices are normal for NYC. Waitress very polite. However, please learn the laws regarding service animals. I came tonight with a friend and my psych service dog which is protected under the ADA. I requested to be seated on the back patio because there was a man that had been harassing me outside in the front. The owner asked me for a license for a service dog which is illegal. She was nice and truly seemed to believe that was the law even though I explained it was not and was willing to show proof from the State Department. As a handler, I know the regulations for the ADA like the back of my hand and have explained them time and time again. I have posted a photo here of the laws that are stated from the NYS State Department which supercede any local or health department regulations. There are so many people with fake service animals, so I have no problem answering the questions allowed by proprietors, is it a service dog and what service does he perform. I just truly hope places are more informed because it's tiring and frankly embarrassing having to explain why I need a service dog and that he is NOT an emotional support animal everytime I just want to enjoy a night out with a friend. read more

Tsion Cafe - PDF from the NY State Department explaining regulations for service dogs. - Ethiopian Near Me - New York, New York

Tsion Cafe is truly something remarkably special. Go get that delicious incredible Ethiopian veggie food right now!

Came here on a Saturday around 5:30 for a party of 4. The ambiance was nice and cozy. For appetizers we ordered the chicken sambosa, lentil sambosa and malawach with egg. They were all good and nothing was really wrong with any of them. For the main dishes we ordered 3 Doro Tibs W/Jollof Rice, 1 Sega Tibs W/Jollof Rice and a side of injera. The dishes were very flavorful with a good balance of spice. It is a small place and it was not busy (for a while it was just our party) so you would except more attention. The service was slow. One big problem was the portion size. There was not enough food for what you're paying. read more

Amazing! Nourishing goodness. Love that it's now 100% vegan (and delicious as always)

I was really craving Ethiopian food and stopped in at Tsion Cafe. I've been here before and did not find it all that appealing but for convenience I decided to give it another shot. I ordered a vegetarian combo and it was served cold. Not frigid but below room temperature. My wife ordered the Lamb Goulash. The menu doesn't mention at all that it's a meatball dish! There are much better options for Ethiopian cuisine within a few miles or blocks even. I think this place is a little too expensive for what you get; total experience. Two stars from me. read more

Tsion Cafe - Ethiopian Near Me - New York, New York

Delicious authentic Ethiopian food. Great atmosphere and service! We'll be back soon.

This place has Great food and vibes. I would highly recommend this unique hidden gem.

I'm so thrilled. Can't stop thinking about the food. Going back soon! Everything was great, the service, the apps, cocktails, app, entrees, dessert. read more

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Food was delicious and the space was really nice. Having sampled Ethiopian food all over the city (and in Addis), I can say that it ranks up there as some of the most authentic and is definitely a new favorite. Can't wait to go back! read more

Very good food in elegant casual atmosphere, but the proportions are too small for the cost. I offered this feedback politely and constructively, complimenting the food, but the wait person was quite defensive (not that it isn't her right to speak her mind), telling me the injera is to eat also. Duh. I noticed at least one other recent comment gives the same feedback. Take the hint. Two stars for making me like i was being unreasonable when they've clearly heard it before. read more

This vegan restaurant has the sweet combination of historic vibes (speakeasy where Charlie Parker played), warmth, and ease. I really relaxed after a long day.The staff was great and the food healthy and tasty. Right off the A - easy. read more