Alem's Coffee
Coffee shop · Shafter ·
Eritrean cafe serves shihan ful, fava bean stew, w/ bread
Eritrean cafe serves shihan ful, fava bean stew, w/ bread
"Alem’s Coffee in Temescal is the only right answer when a hearty, protein-packed lunch is on the day’s to-do list. The Eritrean and Ethiopian breakfast and lunch dishes, like kitcha fitfit, fata, and tibsy, a beef and lamb stew, are all deeply comforting. We especially love their shihan ful, a stewy dish made with slow-simmered fava beans that are pureed and then topped with minced onions, tomatoes, feta cheese, green chiles, olive oil, berebere, and cumin, and served with two huge football-shaped french rolls. Once you've placed your order, settle in at a table on the covered patio." - Julia Chen, Lani Conway
"This laidback cafe in Temescal has been serving comforting Eritrean and Ethiopian breakfast and lunch dishes, like kitcha fitfit, fata, and tibsy, a beef and lamb stew, plus coffee, egg sandwiches, and pastries since 2000. And we hope they never leave, mostly because we love their shihan ful. The stew-like dish is made with slow-simmered fava beans that are pureed and then topped with minced onions, tomatoes, feta cheese, green chiles, olive oil, berebere, and cumin, and served with two huge football-shaped french rolls. Order at the counter, and settle in at a table on the covered patio." - Lani Conway
"This cozy coffee shop across from the Temescal DMV serves some of the tastiest Eritrean breakfast dishes around. The shihan ful, a spicy fava bean dip that comes with two warm, crusty French rolls, is the must-order dish, but the cafe’s excellent Eritrean-style “frittata” (like an onion-y scramble) also has its fair share of devotees." - Dianne de Guzman
"The Eritrean/Ethiopian cafe has been a staple in North Oakland since 2000, but I only recently discovered how much I had been missing out on their incredible shihan ful. I went to Alem’s for the first time to order the stew-like dish made with slow-simmered fava beans that are pureed and topped with thinly minced onions, tomatoes, feta cheese, jalapeños, olive oil, and berbere. Each order also comes with two big oval-shaped French rolls, which are the perfect vehicles to scoop up heaps of this flavorful stew. I’ll definitely be back for their other East African breakfast and lunch dishes, like kitcha fit-fit, fata, and tibsy with beef and lamb. - LC" - Julia Chen 1, Lani Conway
"This cozy, congenial coffee shop across from the Temescal DMV serves some of the tastiest Eritrean breakfast dishes around, nearly all of them priced at just $8 or $9 for a hearty, satisfying meal. The shahan ful ($8.95), a spicy fava bean dip that comes with two warm, crusty French rolls, is one of the most delicious dishes you can eat at any time of day. The cafe is offering its full menu for takeout from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily." - Luke Tsai