St. Gabriel Ethiopian Delicatessen in Islington

Traditional Ethiopian food at reasonable prices. Food is tasty and service is very prompt and always wi th a smile.

It looks like a deli or a takeout place when you walk in. But don’t be fooled. Take a look at their menu and ask for the big plate for four people. You'll be served a huge plate of about eight or more dishes, all different, with chicken, beef, lentils and their unique spongy bread called injera. To me, it tasted like a Goan bread and the central chicken dish with a sourish spicy flavour was a lot like a vindaloo. If you share the cost with three other people, it is very affordable and you get to taste a variety of food.

We ordered a sharing meal "Kornis" on Deliveroo which arrived looking like an Ethiopian Lasagna. The presentation was really seriously off-putting. All dishes vegy and meaty mixed together. Two of us are vegetarians which meant we couldn't eat. Very disappointing. I am so sorry but I have to say you guys need to sort this out. It is especially sad because the food smelled really good.

My daughter ordered takeaway for our group of seven via an online service (probably just eat). We chose two mixed sharers, which turned out to be way too much food, but no-ones fault. It took rather a long time to arrive - the arrival time changed twice, but it was a big order and tricky location to find. What was really strange was what it got delivered in. Each sharer was sent in a rigid plastic storage box of about 1 sq ft capacity. The injera was layered with dishes in between like a giant ethiopean lasagne. This made it hard to extract and serve and especially hard to seperate the veggie from the meaty. We just about managed. The food itself was good, though injera is not to my taste. Some dishes were very spicy, but all were tasty. We had over ordered and there was far too much and one sharer was put in the fridge untouched and consumed over the next few days. We did end up with two useful storage boxes. My advice if ordering takeaway; allow plenty of time and careful how much you order.

I've just got back after follow up visit to this restaurant and I hate to say it but...bit of a disappointment. The food was still good, although not as good as last time. But the place was no where near as clean, i almost didn't sit down to eat. Last time the food was presented beautifully, this time the service was slow and much less friendly. Last time the portions were huge and plenty more injera bread was offered, this time none and what there was was very cold, and it had gone up by one pound! What a shame, come on guys, whats happened?

Three of us came here about a month ago to eat, two of us had a vegetarian selection to share, the other one had a meat dish. I thought the vegetarian selection was excellent, new flavours which were delicious, the portions were huge with lots of injeera bread. I can't wait to visit again, my friend also enjoyed her meat dish, what a great meal, very friendly staff and clean restaurant, highly recommended!

Nice place to test Ethiopian food. Specially vegetarian. This cafe is a branch of St Gabriel cafe the one where found in Finsbury park.

Food was good, filling, and cheap. As a bonus, it's good for those who are "gluten-free" as non-wheat flours are used. Note on service: Full menu was clearly only available for those of a certain ethnicity and religion. Otherwise, you may receive a watered down menu, or no menu at all. Owners merely tolerate English-speaking individuals, and look upon them in bemusement whilst serving up proper food for those within their immediate community. We suspect that we were only served due to our ambiguous heritages and assertive behaviours. Those a little more reserved may feel intimidated. In summary, whilst the food was genuinely very nice, we had the slightly odd sensation of having strayed onto someone else's turf.

I never leave these reviews but was so happy to find such a healthy, affordable restaurant tucked away in London just near the Cinema Museum. Perfect service too!

This unusual eatery serves authentic Ethiopian cuisine. We ordered some chickpea curry and it was served with a very large piece of Ethiopian bread called iffengieria or some something like that, it resembled a very large scotch pancake. Although it was for one, it was enough for 2 adults. I have now ticked off the Ethiopian cuisine off my list.

I, too, was of the party and can confirm the view's of the poster below. I wasn't so adventurous with my own ordering, instead I tried a border crossing dish with an Ethiopian take on scrambled eggs, served with onions, minced meat, peppers, and of course rolled injera on the side: a new discovery for me. (French bread was also offered.) It was nicely cooked, good value for money and made an excellent lunch. I sampled a little from other's plates and everything was delicious: spicy, but easy on the palate, full of flavour. I can recommend this restaurant for good value food, excellent portions, and a friendly atmosphere.

We were at the nearby Cinema Museum, and for the lunch break we symbolically crossed borders to find ourselves in Ethiopia, and were treated as esteemed friends at the St Gabriel's cafe, to a cornucopia of injera with wats, tibs, lentils, greens and ayibe on top.

We have been a branch of st Gabriel cafe around kennington and elephant and castel. Good food waw. 154 Newington butts. London SE 11 4RN

It is really nice. Such a hot & fresh food is there. Wonderful keep it up. I have not bn in Ethiopian restaurant b4. This is good exepriance. I would like to advice any one to try it.

I go to St Gabriel's all the time – of all the Ethiopian restaurants I've found in London, this is the cheapest (you can get a full meal for under a fiver, especially if you're sharing) and almost certainly the most delicious. It's very small and basic, so not the place for a formal sit-down meal – more of a cafe vibe. I normally get the vegetarian selection of 5 different dishes, which comes on the traditional injera pancake and is pretty enormous (probably too much for one person unless you're really hungry). On the few occasions that I've ordered meat dishes, these have been yummy too. Also, the music they play is awesome.