This is our first time trying out Ethiopian food and we really enjoyed it. It was fresh, flavorful and well balanced. They also offer gluten free Teff Injera which is the flat bread you use to eat, I was so happy that they offered this option so I could also have the full experience. We tried the meat combination platter and the vegan combination platter, both I felt were a great way to get introduced to the cuisine and get to know which dishes you like. I enjoyed it all so we will definitely be ordering from Cafe Colucci again! read more

Cafe Colucci - Meat platter, vegan platter and gluten free teff injera! Delicious - Ethiopian Near Me - Oakland, California

Great food, staff is always friendly. Nice outdoor eating area. I highly recommend it.

Great food. The new space is lovely. Longtime favorite in the east bay!

Great food. The service is a little slow because there was only one waitress for the whole restaurant, but the food is absolutely worth the wait. read more

This is my go-to. Delicious food, never had anything I didn't enjoy from the menu. From the vegan combination plate to shrimp tibs to doro wot. The gluten-free (teff only) injera is the best. You can also purchase the Brundo Spice Company, a women-owned business, herb and spice mixes from the shop, as well as totes, apparel, cookbooks, and housewares. (You can also order the spices from the website/app toast when you're ordering food for pickup/delivery - super convenient!) Great customer service! The restaurant has a warm & inviting atmosphere. Indoor and outdoor dining available. read more

Love this place. The injera bread is so delicious!! We always get a meat and veggie sampler to share. Portions are generous. The sambusa appetizer is good. The service is friendly and they have a cute patio area. If you love the food as much as we do, stop at their little market next door to pick up injera bread or spices to take home. read more

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Absolutely delicious! We sat outside on a beautiful Sunday a few weeks back, enjoyed the foliage, and ate so much of the meat combo platter I'm surprised I have eaten meals since. Would definitely recommend that combo platter with a crap ton more injera. read more

Cafe Colucci - Beautiful ladies and a beautiful Meat Combination Plate - Ethiopian Near Me - Oakland, California

Food was too spicy. I ordered a Veggie Sambusa and a Sega Tibs with the specific instruction of not spicy due to a stomach ulcers. On three continuous occasions the cook ignore the request. If you have a health problem please avoid this establishment. read more

I went to Cafe Colucci to order a veg combo to go. The tatted white woman uses my credit card in the machine instead of tapping it. I told her that she had to tap it she said it doesn't always work. As I signed, responding to her as she waited for a tip, hand still extended. Ok I gave her a tip, went, and outside to finish my conversation. I waited and went inside to see the white waitress in the face of the black men laughing and hanging out. There were only three tables filled with white people; the only blacks were in the kitchen or in the white-tatted woman's face. After thirty-five minutes the other white woman gave me the cold food I knew that would be the last time my old, black ass would ever go to that restaurant. read more

I've been meaning to try Ethiopian food for the longest time, and I was frankly a little scared. I was pleasantly surprised at how different, yet tasty all the foods were! I just wish I knew what the dishes were named off the top of my head. The veggie Sambussa tasted very similarly to a samosa but crispier outside. Definitely recommend for the dipping sauce as well! The veggie platter and meat platter were enough to fill 6 people! It came out and seemed pretty small, but I think the injera (so good! Definitely for people who love the sour in sourdough bread) filled us up. It was a bit of a struggle to break up the meat to pick up with the bread, but it was cool! We also got fried potatoes which were delicious! They were like potato chips w the softness of a baked potato. Overall the bill split to less than $10 per person! Super cheap! This place isn't 5 stars because the food itself was pretty decent but not amazing. Also, service was nice as well! Definitely a good experience. read more

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I really love this classic restaurant. The appetizers and veggie combination are the best.

We have eaten at many restaurants specializing in Ethiopian food. Cafe Colucci is the best! The vegan sampler is wonderful; especially outstanding are the shrimp and asa tibs. The shrimp and asa were perfectly cooked. The outdoor patio seating was enjoyable on a sunny afternoon and the service was excellent. There's plenty of free street parking too. read more

The Best Ethiopian food in the Bay! They get it right each and every time. It's one of my favorite restaurants to eat at.

Food 4/5. Service 5/5. Ambiance 4/5. With all the Ethiopian options around Berkeley and Oakland, Cafe Colucci is always a great choice. Although, compared to similar quality Ethiopian places, the price is a bit steep. However, this is offset by the amazing service by the waiters/waitress that are constantly checking in on your meal. There's a good amount of tables inside and outside of the restaurant. The restaurant can get crowded on Friday and Saturday nights but I never had to wait longer than thirty minutes for a table. A safe option here is always the veggie and meat sampler. I never venture far away from this because 1. I don't really know what to get 2. The amount of different things you get to try is great. The main filler of the meal will probably the bread which is called injera. It's a flatbread usually rolled up in rolls - they honestly look like hand towels - which a sourdough taste with a sponge texture. With the veggie and meat sampler there is over ten items things to try. With the unlimited bread you are able to get and just the amount of food you get from both samplers, it's more than enough for two people - easily split between three. Overall, it's priced than most Ethiopian place but well worth it for the great service and ambiance that it does provide. Tips - get the veggie and meat sampler to get the best tasting of all the food that Ethiopia has to provide. Pros - Great service, with attention to the details of the service. Cons - other Ethiopian places nearby that can be cheaper with less attention to the details when it comes to service. read more

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The food here is AMAZING!!! My best friend and I have been in the restaurant to sit and eat and we also have ordered it for takeout and every time, they give amazing portion sizes and the food is just so goood. We literally crave it lol!!! Please go!!! read more

As a vegetarian, I appreciate all the vegetarian and vegan options. Their vegan sampler platter is top notch. Oh, and the new location is beautiful! read more

Deeeelicious! 5 stars for the food and service. Such amazing flavor! We got the veggie sampler and whole fried tilapia with potatoes. First of all I love eating with my hands and was pleasantly surprised when we were not given utencils! I unfortunately don't remember the names of everything but my favorites were the yellow lentil, the dark brown grain and the tilapia. The fish was perfectly seasoned and fried. Those two orders together were more than enough to stuff my boyfriend and I for brunch! We also tried the African beer - Tuskers- which tastes quite like the Japanese beer Asahi if you've tried that. I also tried the semi-sweet honey wine because I've always been curious about it. It ended up tasting closer to a hard liquor than a wine with a honey after taste. Quite strong. Friendly staff as well. Will definitely return! read more

Cafe Colucci - The semi-sweet honey wine - Ethiopian Near Me - Oakland, California

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This was one of our fav Ethiopian places when they were on Alcatraz and now they have an amazing new place. The food is still soooo good and the space itself is just beautiful! I can't recommend this place enough. Congratulations to the entire staff for making the experience of dining here so worthwhile. read more

Cafe Colucci - The vegan sampler along with Begue tibs and a beef tartare. The beef was unbelievably good. - Ethiopian Near Me - Oakland, California

I am so glad that Cafe Colucci is now in my neighborhood. We had a wonderful Family Birthday dinner there this evening I had the Mushroom Tibs which made me soooooooo happy i did'nt pay attention to what my loved ones were having. We were all just happy diners and rejoiced in each others company. The service was great and the Injera was delicious!! Welcome to the Neighborhood! read more

The family and I went to Cafe Colucci after not having been during the pandemic. The food is every bit as wonderful as it always has been, but the charm has been wiped clean. The "new decor" is cold and lifeless. Even the children remarked on how unremarkable the place was. Instead of a vibrant Ethopian vibe with lots of color and those wonderful tables with the insets of lentils and spices, or those wonderful pieces of artwork, the new tables are nondescript. Now instead of a welcoming and warm ambience, there is a big white unwelcoming room with too much light and too little atmosphere. Will probably be taking out from time to time, but we don't relish eating in such a blah environment. read more

Cafe Colucci was a pleasant surprise. I ordered the vegan sampler and everything on it was delicious. I particularly really liked that the restaurant stocks each table with their unique spice mix to add to your dishes if you want something more spicy. Parking is street parking but not too hard to find. Highly recommend this especially if you are new to Ethiopian cuisine. read more

Cafe Colucci - Vegan Combination Platter (VG) - Ethiopian Near Me - Oakland, California

We were at Cafe Colucci this past Sunday for lunch. My husband's co-workers recommended this place, and since we were in the area (and still looking for a great Ethiopian restaurant) we stopped by for lunch. I was going to give this place a solid 4 because the food is really good, but unfortunately the service was sub-par and I had to take a star away. We arrived at 1:30 and were seated quite quickly. We ordered our food within five minutes. For appetizers we ordered the veggie sambusas and the fried potatoes (which are more like chips). For our main we ordered the veggie combo for two (which was more than enough food for me, hubby and kiddo). Then, the waiting began. We played some games to pass the time. Two tables that came after us seemed to get their food. We decided to be patient and just chill out. If I am honest, we have yet to find an Ethiopian restaurant where the service isn't slow, so we were ready for that (however, this place exceeded our expectations). We weren't in a hurry... but we were starting to get really hungry. Our apptizers finally arrived 35 minutes after we placed our order. Just to note, a couple that came in half an hour after us, got their appetizers at the same time as us!!! I was really upset! Our server didn't give us any napkins and I couldn't get anyone's attention, so I walked up to the counter to get the napkins. Our food arrived a few minutes after that, so it was clear our server had forgotten about us and our appetizers. I am a pretty patient person (usually my husband gets irritated way before me), so this really had me upset. No apology for the wait, nothing. Okay, rant over (mostly). Let's get to the food. The food is really tasty. The sambusas were crunchy and the lentil filling was very flavorful. The fried potatoes which are more like chips had some chili powder on it and it was a nice spicy kick. The kiddo loves these. The veggie combo was lovely! All the lentils and veggies were well spiced and tasty, and their injera is pretty perfect! You can tell they use a good quality teff. So all in all, food good, service not so good. May give this place another try just because of the food...hopefully the service quality will be better next time! My search for the perfect Ethiopian place continues... read more

Worst customer service ever. No one greets you and you will stand at the door forever waiting for someone to come say something to you.

Service is very fast and food is great! I got the meat platter, it gives you a small sampler of everything, but overall portions is huge for the price. It's not spicy at all read more

Cafe Colucci - Meat Combination Platter - Ethiopian Near Me - Oakland, California

Atmosphere was authentic Ethiopian with a mix of American. The aroma of the spices when you first walk in get your mouth watering. The kuti tea/coffee is great. It's a mild coffee, more water than typical American coffee and mild caffeine content. We started out with veggie sambussa. Lentils, veggies and spices in a wonton like wrapper. Delicious!! Not too spicy. We shared the vegetarian combo plate with the red flour gluten free option for the bread. Ended the meal with the crispy, flaky and sweet baklava. Great service and delicious food! We will be back again for sure! read more

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Delicious food, excellent customer service, hospitable staff and outdoor patio seating.

Best Ethiopian in the Bay Area, hands down. Every dish is and tastes unique and you'll find special additions to their platters that you don't find in other restaurants... you'll always want a little extra of their Azifa! The space is inviting and has stunning photography of the women who produce all the ingredients used in the restaurant. They truly are (Ethiopian) Farm to Table. The best! read more

We came with high expectations after a couple recommendations. However, It's quite average, if that. Have had really good Ethiopian food in the Bay Area and in DC. We had Mitten Shuro, Mushroom Tibs and the Gomen. All were pretty flavorless. The 100% Teff Injera is good but that's about all. read more

Went back for breakfast, hoping for the best. The foule was great this time, But the bread that came with it was badly burned. We asked for unburned bread and it came out 60 seconds later, Indicating that they had under and bread... But for some reason they decided to give us the crappy burned ones. Hopefully, reviews like this will have the impact of making the restaurant provide only unburned food to its customers read more

Cafe Colucci - The bread that came with.... badly burned. - Ethiopian Near Me - Oakland, California

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I really don't like giving negative reviews because I understand it effects someone's business. I want to preface this with how much I have enjoyed eating at Cafe Colucci in the past and that in general their food is delicious. I am gluten free and not because it's some new fad diet but because when I eat gluten I often feel sick. I am able to eat at restaurants as long as I don't eat gluten directly. A few months ago, I ate at Colucci and asked for the gluten free injera, I even doubled confirmed it with the waitress before she left our table. The injera she brought us was a lighter color than I remembered but I thought maybe they changed the recipe. When the waitress brought us a new basket it was much darker and I asked her about it, pointing out the one I had left over and the one left in our basket. She said the lighter one was the wheat injera and tried to claim it was a piece in the basket and not from our previous basket, even while holding a piece I had showed her that was half eaten. The point of this is if you are gluten free for health reasons and eat at Colucci triple check what you got when it arrives. All I got was the one basket of gf injera for free and now I'm at home feeling like crap. read more

Nine years after my first review, I still love the food at Cafe Colucci. And this time, for my own benefit, I'm going to document in my Yelp review which dishes I loved the most. Because I always forget in between. Appetizer Denitch tibs - basically handmade potato chips with a wonderful seasoning. Everybody likes these, you may have to order a second basket even though the first one was quite generous. Meat Sega Wot Banatu Fitfit - Savory cubes of beef in yummy sauce with bits of injera mixed in Minchet Abish Wot - A ground beef in a tasty sauce Veg Mitten-Shouro - A sauce made of chickpea flour. Just get it. Gomen - Those collard greens are always good Service is still leisurely, but very friendly and helpful. read more

The dinner prices seem to have gone way up although the quality is still top notch. We had dinner earlier this year with our friends, K, M and P. P was a newbie and LOVED it. I don't remember what K,M and P ordered--meat dishes.... It was pretty busy but the service was prompt and our sever was as sweet s can be. Mr Rinky asked her how she was handling the crowds...and she replied, "Oh I'm just doing great! This is where I come to relax...I'm a preschool teacher during the day." We all chuckled . Mr Rinky and I took his sis here for lunch a couple of months ago. "J" too was a newbie, also a veg head. She loved it too. read more

C aters to my gastronomic desires O utstanding sauces L oud flavors and fast service U nimpressed? Well then, you clearly have s**t for brains C an't beat the Sega Tibs C areful, some dishes are quite spicy I njera up the ying-yang read more

This might edge up to be my favorite Ethiopian in the East Bay. Both the meat and veggie combos were delicious. I don't know what everything was, but I thoroughly enjoyed eating like my toddler and trying all the different flavors. The glass of honey wine was the perfect accompaniment. The servers came back quite often to give us more injera bread. Warm atmosphere. Friendly service. read more

When Van and I can't decide what to eat, Ethiopian is always a trusty choice. With Restaurant.com coupon in hand, we dined here on a Thursday night. Business was booming and with the mild weather, lots of folks were enjoying themselves outside. We ordered what we always order when having Ethiopian ... Meat Sambussa - which was hot and tasty. Like Ethiopian wontons. Lentil soup - whole lentils ... very flavorful. I think I missed the part about them being "whole" cause usually I like mine all mushy / pureed. Doro Alicha - chicken with ginger. The flavors will surprise you ... but in a delicious and awesome way. Sega tibs - Beef, also a trusty dish. It's like the tikka masala of Ethiopian food. Mushroom dish - can't remember the name, but it was a vegetarian dish with mushrooms. It was like stir fried mushrooms. Very good, but the first one I'd trade to try something else next time I visit. And yes Virginia, there will be a next time. read more

++++ - Where are the forks? Who gives a shit? Dig in! (I say this in jest, as to not demean the culture but to warn you, that you won't be provided with utensils. I was not informed of this beforehand)...Anyways, I am a chronic eater with my hands, and I haven't had a socially acceptable opportunity to eat with my hands in ten years since eating with my Ghanian friend, but I digress. Needless to say, I loved this aspect - Yooooo!!!!!! That lamb is untouchable. It tops anything I've eaten during my week in California +++ - Bread is unlimited, so it's easy to fill up, which would be a shame if you didn't get to enjoy that lamb to full capacity) ++ - Waitresses are some of the prettiest I've seen waitressing - Honey wine is akin to honey meade, both are delectable + - Waitress suggested the meat platter as an introductory course. The lamb topped everything on that platter - Buticha salad was a waitress recommendation. It was good - I appreciate the plentiful street parking read more

I LOVE the vibe and ambiance here. The food is delicious and well-made. As an Eritrean, there's no place like home-cooked food. This place comes very close. read more

Now that I've had my fair share of Ethiopian nationwide, I reminisce back to Cafe Colucci, the place where my obsession with Ethiopian food all started. The food here is fantastic - they've got more "side" items on the platter than most Ethiopian places and have very complex flavors that helps to plus up the experience. I wouldn't say it's my top Ethiopian choice in the Bay Area, but it's definitely one of the top 3. It's priced a little higher than my other Ethiopian favorites, but well worth the experience. They can get pretty packed all week long, and service can be a bit slow. But street parking is easy outside and if you come after 6pm, then parking is free. read more

One of my favorite restaurants in the Bay Area. Found this place on Yelp back when I was still a Cal student, and I haven't found anything close in comparison since. For those who have never had Ethiopian food, I recommend getting the Meat Combo + Veggie Combo at Cafe Colucci (feeds 2-3 people). The variety provides a good opportunity to taste a little of everything. The Meat Combo consists of slow cooked beef, pork, and chicken -- my favorite being the chicken, which falls right off the bone. The veggie platter includes a slow cooked cabbage, lentils, lettuce, hummus-like stuff, and more. I would also recommend the eggplant for vegetarians. It has lots of flavor, and it works well with other dishes as well. For the especially daring, I recommend the raw beef, I forget the name, but you can choose how you want it cooked. Traditionally, it's eaten rare, but the cook staff will prepare it however you like. Lots of flavor, and so so delicious. The injera (spongey bread) is very good, and they provide as much as you can eat. The only downside with injera is that you can't really take it to go - tried it once, and it got really gross. Because the bread is spongey, it's easy to get really full quickly, but it's so worth it. The place is small, and it gets pretty crowded sometimes, but it is so worth the wait. Beautiful artwork and decorations all around, and the seating/lighting is very intimate. The staff is always nice and attentive, and it's obvious that they have great chemistry amongst each other. I've never had a bad experience here, and I couldn't be more thrilled that they are offering a Yelp Deal for their 20th anniversary -- can't wait to go back! read more

Cafe Colucci - Veggie and meat combos - Ethiopian Near Me - Oakland, California

We waited at least 30 minutes to get seated, which was strange because there were plenty of tables outside and inside to fit five of us. I also noticed a few regulars that came by and got seated before us but arrived after us. I was a bit disappointed about this, but we had a good dinner. My sisters and nieces never had Ethiopian food, so I brought them here to try something different. It was funny when they realized they had to eat with their hands. I told them, it's not like it's any different when we eat our traditional food either. So they got over it really quick. Our server was very nice, so it made up for not being seated earlier. Although, we did miss our comedy show we signed up for in San Francisco, which was too bad. read more

Cafe Colucci - Oh yeah. Yummy!! - Ethiopian Near Me - Oakland, California