Gibe African Restaurant owner Tesfaye Defa last week opened his African restaurant in Dandenong to cater for growing demand from the local African community.
By Shaun Inguanzo
AFRICAN cuisine is the newest flavour in Greater Dandenong’s growing menu of multicultural restaurants.
The Gibe African Restaurant in Foster Street, Dandenong, is the latest restaurant to open in the city and boasts a menu of unique dishes from a variety of African nations including Sudan and Ethiopia.
Owner Tesfaye Defa said he started the restaurant because there was demand for the cuisine from Greater Dandenong’s growing African community.
But Mr Defa and his wife bring with them a wealth of experience from Ethiopia, where Mr Defa owned a restaurant and his wife was a chef.
“My wife was a chef in an international hotel, the Ras Hotel, in Ethiopia,” he said.
“I had a restaurant in my country, and also had a coffee shop in Dandenong Plaza.”
The most popular dish since Gibe African opened has been the chicken dish dorwatt, and the most popular beer is Bedele, from Ethiopia.
But the response, which has been overwhelming, has not only been generated from the African community.
Mr Defa said many residents from a variety of backgrounds had been booking tables at the restaurant.
