Saturday night, in search of good Ethiopian food, I headed to a locale smaller than my regular haunts. What I found was a splendid, low-key alternative to the often long weekend lines up Broadway. Sheba Cafe (or Queen of Sheba Cafe as it is also known) is a fine little spot just north of Balmoral on Broadway in Edgewater.

The menu is filled with yummy and cheap meat and veggie dishes ($6-$12), along with some quite good deals on combination platters ($13 for 4 items). We chowed down on deliciously flavorful beg tibs (lamb) and misir wat (red lentils), yellow split-peas, tikil gomen (cabbage with potatoes and carrots) and a dish of shimbera fitfit (mashed chickpeas with garlic). Everything was lovingly prepared by our cook/hostess who disappeared in the back while delicious smells arose from the kitchen. It's BYOB, so that cut our bill down, but in comparison to other Ethiopian restaurants on the strip, this one cost us half as much for a similar table full of food.