As you know, we love Asian food, but we’re always open to culinary adventures from other parts of the world. So today I would like to introduce you to one of the best African restaurants in Frankfurt: The African Queen Restaurant.
Both Erta Ale, which we reviewed in a previous post, and The African Queen offer homemade East African cuisine. While Erta Ale primarily serves Ethiopian dishes, The African Queen specializes in Eritrean cuisine. Given the geographical and cultural similarities between the two countries, there is a considerable overlap in their culinary offerings.
Restaurant Profile
- Name of the Restaurant: African Queen Restaurant
- Adress: Schloßstraße 113, 60329 Frankfurt am Main
- Style: East-African Cuisine
- Price: around 20 – 30 EUR per Person (incl. drinks)
The African Queen Restaurant offers a delicious selection of lamb, beef and chicken dishes, all well seasoned and accompanied by vegetables. Vegetarians and vegans will also find plenty to enjoy, such as hamli (a spinach dish with tomato sauce) or shiro (ground chickpeas).
To whet our appetites before the main course, we opted for sambusas as a starter. These delicious pastry pockets are generously stuffed with minced meat and served with a delicious herb dip.
Sambusas are a popular starter or snack in many African and Middle Eastern countries. They are similar to the samosas commonly found in South East Asia. Sambusas can be baked or fried and are usually served with yoghurt sauce or chutney. The dough is thin and crispy, while the filling is flavourful and moist.
Unlike samosas, which often feature spices such as turmeric, cumin, coriander, and garam masala, sambusas contain a blend of regional African spices such as berbere (an Ethiopian spice mix), harissa, or ras el hanout.
We complemented our meal with some delicious African beers: Dju Dju and Ma Suwa.
Dju Dju, also known as palm wine or palm wine beer, is a traditional West African drink made from the sap of the oil palm. The sap is carefully tapped, collected and then fermented to raise its alcohol content to around 3.6%. This beer has a mild, slightly sweet and fruity profile. Flavours include passion fruit, pineapple, banana and mango.
Ma Suwa is brewed with fermented teff flour, a gluten-free local grain, and a special yeast derived from sorghum. This beer has a subtly sour taste with a distinct yeasty character. If you choose one of the banana, mango and coconut flavours, it is further enhanced with a fruity note.
Both beverages are elegantly served in coconut bowls, a tradition cherished in the rural areas of Eritrea.
Our main course – the African Queen Tasting Platter, ideal for two or more people – is the absolute highlight and best-seller in the restaurant. It’s a platter full of flavours, spices and fresh ingredients that will leave you wanting more with every bite!
The African Queen platter serves a variety of classic Eritrean dishes all at once. Meat dishes of chicken, beef and lamb in a variety of sauces, egg, spinach, ground chickpeas, potatoes and much more. There really is something for everyone!
The platter is served in a colourful mesob, a traditional, intricately woven straw or reed basket. Once the basket is on the table, the waiter lifts the lid of the mesob, revealing the large platter with all its exotic African scents and colours.
It is served with injera, a traditional flat, airy bread widely used in Ethiopian and Eritrean cuisine. Like suwa, it is made from teff flour. What makes injera special is its fluffy texture and sour taste, which comes from a fermentation process.
To fully enjoy the African Queen platter, it is traditionally eaten with the hands. Tear off a piece of the slightly sour and nutty injera and place small portions of your favourite food on it. If you like, you can top it off with some spicy berbere or awaze.
Berbere is an aromatic blend of spices including chilli, garlic, ginger, basil, fennel and coriander. Awaze is a spicy paste or sauce made from berbere, garlic, ginger, lemon juice and sometimes honey or wine.
Both dips give the dish an irresistible, addictive, spicy and fiery taste, perfect for lovers of spicy cuisine.
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