Amsale Cafe

Don't let the rundown neighborhood around fool you, this place is amazing! Neat, homey and tidy inside -- but the reason you come here is the delicious food. We skipped appetizers, the combo entrees are more than enough. Loved the server scooping the items from the individual serving dishes to the tasty Injera based flatbread plate. The regular veggie combo (7 items) and the meat combination were satisfying. The Ethiopian Tea was a delight. Friendly service.

Service was nice and quick. Very small and intimate atmosphere. Food was just ok. I was really looking forward to trying this cuisine for the first time. Drove 30+ miles just to try it. Cabbage was probably my favorite dish and had the most flavor. Only issue was that everything served, was COLD even the injera. The meat was the only warm item. There wasn't much flavor which was surprising. The beef was a bit tough and the lamb was fatty. I tried everything and then tried it with salt which was on the table which didn't help much. Maybe because of the temperature of the food. I figured I would just take the rest to go and try it heated at home. Left a nice tip and maybe will try Ethiopian food again somewhere else in the future.Update: the food was better after warming at home. Wish I had the experience at the restaurant though.

Had a taste for Ethiopian food on my recent stay I Philly and decided to try Amsale based on the reviews and ratings. Owner was really nice. I stopped in and ordered takeout. Food was good, tasted fresh and the restaurant was super clean. A bit more flavor would have given it a better rating. But still very good.

Tried Amsale bc of the nice Yelp reviews and it was amazing! Belew, the owner was welcoming and explained to my friend, who had never had Ethiopian food before, the different vegan dishes and she loved it. We shared the 7 veggie platter and it was delish! Highly recommend Amsale.

Fresh and hot food is always available. I would recommend the doro kay wot and lamb. I wished I lived here so I could more often but I live out of state . Service is speedy and friendly. I would recommend this place to anyone who's never had it before.

A cute homey hole in the wall located If you can't handle a little bit a spicy, I would definitely tell the owner. They do a good job of making it spicy and flavorful with all the different spices. Even the non spicy dishes were so full of flavor and umami. Everything is run by a husband wide duo. They only been open for 8 months. This gem is definitely worth checking out and supporting!

I was over a friends getting tattooed in West Philly when we suddenly were overcome by hunger. Maybe not so suddenly..... we did watch the entire Transformers animated movie before ordering. So we ordered and went back to work. A really long time passed and I look at my order like what's going on. It's 7:55 and the app says it was delivered at 7:01. Oh snap we run to the front porch! Luckily it's still there. I don't blame them though. We were on the second floor so maybe we didn't hear the knock. So if you read my reviews often you'll remember me complaining about the Ethiopian around me not giving you enough Injera (Ethiopian Flatbread). Now forgive me but this place gave me too much! We couldn't figure out where the food was in the container? I got a veggie platter and it was not a lot of veggies. For the price I'd have expected a bit more of actual food. Taste wise it was decent. I'm starting to think the Ethiopian places I used to go set the expectations too high. Maybe I'm not a huge fan of Ethiopian but rather of those particular spots. Abyssinia & Queen of Sheba are just untouchable. I'm gonna do a 2 even if it is due to the fact that I may not like Ethiopian food because the value just wasn't there on this purchase. I would maybe try and go there but I wouldn't do take out again.

Amsale serves the best Ethiopian food I've had in Philly. Very small and casual. We had the Door Que Wat- which for me was the best. I couldn't stop eating it and I'm still thinking about it. The flavors were deep and well developed. We had the lamb tibs, which comes with a dipping sauce. We also ordered the Kitfo- raw, but with spices and ghee- which is served with a side of farmers cheese. You can also order it cooked. We also got a ton of veggies- cabbage, lentils, peas, carrots and beans. And tons of Injera which tasted like it was really made with teff. Dinner for 4, plus a 2 year old came to $87- so affordable these days. I wish I remembered to take pics. We will definitely be going back.

Very clean inside nice Ethiopian aesthetic. Food delivery was very fast. Food was a bit cold tho and server (man) didn't look enthusiastic but was very helpful.

West Philly has a ton of Ethiopian places, and this time we wanted to try a place new to us. We picked Amsale Cafe on the basis of strong recent reviews, and it did not disappoint.For three adults, we got the 7-item veggie combo, the meat combo, and yetibs fitfit. All of it was excellent, and it was more than we could finish. Prices are very reasonable and everything was delicious. I would definitely go back there, and I've alerted friends who live in West Philly that it's a gem.We went on a Friday night, but early, arriving at the restaurant at 6pm. We were the only ones there when we arrived, but as we were there several other parties came in. The place is small, so if you want to go at a peak time you might want to get a reservation.