Cafe Massawa

East African restaurant, Eritrean restaurant, Ethiopian restaurant in New York, NY

Address

3153 Broadway, New York, NY, 10027

Phone

(212) 663-1800

Website

cafemassawa.com

About Cafe Massawa

Cafe Massawa, also known simply as Massawa, is New York City's oldest Eritrean and Ethiopian restaurant, having served the Upper West Side and Harlem community continuously since it opened its doors in 1988. Located at 1239 Amsterdam Avenue with a second entrance at 3153 Broadway, the restaurant was founded by Almaz Ghebrezgabher and Amanuel Tekeste, whose vision established one of the pioneering venues for East African dining in the United States. For more than three decades, Massawa has introduced generations of New Yorkers to the communal traditions of Eritrean and Ethiopian cuisine, where dishes are shared family-style on large platters and scooped up with injera, the spongy, tangy flatbread that anchors the meal. While the restaurant is especially known for its hearty vegan and vegetarian dishes made with lentils, split peas, and collard greens simmered in berbere spice, the menu also offers fish, beef, lamb, chicken, and shrimp preparations, with spice levels that diners can adjust from mild to bold. The restaurant's happy hour, running weekday afternoons and weekend afternoons, features discounted draft beer, wine, and cocktails, drawing a mixed crowd of neighborhood regulars and newcomers curious about East African food. Beverage offerings include tej, a traditional Ethiopian honey wine, Eritrean beer, and hand-brewed Ethiopian coffee served in a traditional ceremony. Massawa also caters private events and gatherings with family-style packages designed for sharing. Open daily from late morning through 10pm, the restaurant remains a fixture of Harlem's dining scene and has been recognized in guides to the city's Black-owned restaurants as a longstanding, community-rooted institution.

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