Nice and authentic place to try Eritrean - seems like a social club for the locals! A bit of a dive but the food is good, especially if you like garlic. According to the reviews the credit card machine seems perennially broken. Owner and staff are very nice. I'd recommend as a place to change it up for a cheap and interesting lunch.
Michael Sierra-Arévalo
+5
The space and decor are not exactly the most inviting but the food is awesome. Friendly staff and quick service. The hamli tibbs is great!
Such a sweet cook/server. Unfortunately there were great delays, and there were only 3 diners for lunch, but he apologised profusely. The food was excellent! Chicken, spinach and salad... so yummy!
The place does not look impressive at all. But surprisingly the food was absolutely finger licking good. Definitely would recommend. If you are around, give it a try.
Wonderful 80 year old owner AND chef. The food was really nicely spiced (we ordered mild). We came here on a business dinner that was unique to DC. If you are looking for good food at a great price this is your place. No white table cloths but a family owned restaurant. And yes it is cash only but our bill for 5 of us and a glass of wine was 70.00
Absolutely wonderful food! My nephew and I stopped by for dinner before attending a 9pm set at Twins Jazz. We ate at the bar watched a little soccer and chatted with the bartender who was very friendly. She explained each dish and took our picture. I had the combination platter with chicken and my nephew had the vegetarian combination platter. The servings were both delicious and filling. If you want some really good authentic Ethiopian food and don't need a pretentious atmosphere, this place is a gem!
Had a FANTASTIC birthday dinner here last night. They did up chef's combos for all 6 of us, meat and veggie, perfect portions (we were all pleasantly full), delicious. Quiet spot, full bar, great service, exactly the experience I wanted.
Been coming to this friendly, family-run spot for ten years. It is a taste of old (Eritrean) DC amidst the fancy lounges and tapas places going in.
The food is less greasy than some other Ethiopian/Eritrean spots & good veggie options. Good for groups.
This place is an amazing family owned bar and restaurant. It's like the "Cheers" of Eritrean food.
You know it's going to be good when people who just got back home from visiting their friends and family back home in Eritrea are sitting at the bar with ya.
I walked in with $20 bucks and walked out very very full, drunk, and happy.
If I lived in DC I'd probably spend to much time (or not enough) there on my days off.
My first experience with Ethiopian food - we can here because we read rave reviews, and it completely lived up to all of them! The place is small but there was a group of 8 nearby, so definitely accommodating for all sized groups. The food was delicious - some of the best lentils I've every had! We had to eat everything with injera, which is fine if you enjoy the Ethiopian style of bread. The highlight though, of course, was Beth! She was so sweet, and even taught us all how to dance "the Ethiopian way!" If you want a great taste of a new type of ethnic food, definitely choose Selam.
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