retiredmartin

Having your in-laws over for fourteen (14) days leaves you on edge, as you have to be available at all hours to hoover, clean and provide taxi services. I’d been encouraging Mrs RM to take them out to Sheffield’s many authentic ethnic restaurants serving pie and chips or fish and chips.

On Monday evening, after doing that No.1 on What Pub Bessemer they’d beat me to (prospective tickers, as Dave cruelly suggests ?), I wandered aimlessly in search of somewhere interesting to take them.

Plenty of choice on Highfield’s London Road, whose pubs looked alluring but empty.

But with the in-laws resting in the University Quarter, I opted for somewhere they could get to just by jumping on the Number 120 from Glossop Road into town, where we met Mrs RM who’d had to take a tram.

I was really keen to get a curry, as Curry Heute has little to say about Sheffield in my new home, but Aagrah was closed and old favourite 7 Spices would provide to hilly a challenge for some of our group.

So, on a whim, we headed for Beteseb, the little Eritrean cafe down scruffy Church Street. You can’t miss it;

I’d walked past this a few times and marvelled at its contrast with glitzy food court Kommune across the road.

My own parents would have been reticent about the menu;

To be fair to Mrs RM’s parents they seemed to relish the challenge.

“Are you familiar with how we eat Eritrean food ?” asked the lovely host.

“Yes. Of COURSE we know how to eat Eritrean food” we chorused, then picked a range of dishes called Tibs Firfer, Tibs Derek, Shiro Wet and “Beetroot”. It was like the line-up on the Mojo stage at WOMAD.

“Oh, and four Ethiopian beers please“

Oooh, look. Export pouring. It was cold.

But you wouldn’t go for the beer. You’d come for the experience of being served a meal for four on on enormous flat bread, with only your fingers to eat it with.

Oh, and some more bread that looks like those hot towels you get in Indian restaurants to scoop it up with.

Well, it was wonderful. Beautifully cooked meat in a range of sauces with gorgeous vegetable side dishes. I made a real pig of myself, and could hardly move afterwards.

But DON’T go there for a first date. It’s VERY messy.

UPDATE : Look who’s making Eritrean food hip NOW;

At least he didn’t photobomb my photos, the blighter !