Restaurants

Less than five minutes’ walk from Westbourne Park tube lies this fabulous family-owned restaurant serving arguably the best Eritrean food around. Mosob is bedecked in Afro-chic furnishings and has the friendliest waiters in west London. It is also blessed with good, simple cooking (made by mum, served by her son and nephew) that provides both a great introduction for newcomers to the cuisine, and a welcome reminder to fans of Horn of Africa food. We started with some tasty mini-sambusas (samosas), golden crisp pastry stuffed with fresh meat and tangy vegetables. Next up, the mains: after some advice, we chose zigni, a beef stew with a nutty flavour, which nicely complemented the sourdough taste of the injera. Bebe’ainetu was a fantastic choice for vegetarians, consisting of taster-sized portions of dishes like alicha (stewed cabbage, potatoes and carrots) and shiro (spicy ground chickpeas). Desserts are of the rich European gateaux and ice cream variety – a chocolate torte, a parfait of mango sorbet, meringue and fresh fruit. Regrettably, there are no African drinks on the menu either, but when your waiter gives you a stunning Asmaran travel guide to read between courses, who needs suwa?

Time Out Eating & Drinking Guide 2009