So it has been a while since the nerds got together for a night of, well, being nerds. In fact, the last time I reported on such an event (known to those in the know as Nerd Caucus) was back in the days of yore when we gathered to celebrate the awesomeness of Pi Day, and the lead up to Pi Day known as the Approximately Four Pi-days of Pi Day (see here, and here).
Normally Nerd Caucus involves dinner at a sushi place. Tonight we decided to spice up our lives a bit and visit the only Ethiopian/Eritrean restaurant in town (at least, the only one I’m aware of). Up until this eve, I was the only one in the group who had ever had Ethiopian. But I knew, if it was authentic, it was going to be an awesome meal.
Anyway, we ventured to the QB2 Cafe and Diner which is located on Dawson Road. The outside of the restaurant is very unassuming. Once we entered, we could tell that there was something special about this place. It was very clean, the tables were black – giving the place a classier feeling than what the entrance suggested. The waitress (and I believe co-owner) brought us water and provided us menus. Despite the fact that I’ve had Ethiopian on several occasions – the first during a trip to Chicago many years ago – I’m not familiar enough to know what to select or what anything means. That is, I wouldn’t know the difference between a tibbs dish and a watts dish to save my life. But given that I’ve never been disappointed when eating Ethiopian, I wasn’t worried.
The one thing that really made my day, and informed me that we were in for not just a meal, but an experience, was the quantity of misspelled words on the menu. Chef was replaced with Cheif or Chief, special was written specail, ultimate was spelled ultimite, and even non english words appeared with multiple spelling. Seeing this on an assignment from one of my students would cause me great concern. Here, however, it made me smile. This was going to be authentic.
The dinner experience began when our waitress came to the table to wash our hands. She carried around the table to each of us a beautiful silver basin in which to catch warm lemon water that she poured over our hands. The water was poured out of an equally beautiful, almost antique looking, silver decanter/pitcher. Clearly this meal was going to be awesome.
Jasper and I decided to split two dishes – the Smokey Tibbs (a lamb dish), and the QB2 Ultimate Platter, which included several vegetable dishes, a beef dish, and a spicy chicken and hard-boiled egg dish. Lorna and Rick opted for the Smokey Tibbs and the Chacha Tibbs (a beef dish). Babak, Warren and Jenn also tried the Smokey Tibbs (it was the chefs specialty after all). I think they had another dish, but I forget what it was.
Jasper and I also ordered coffee. Now, ordering Ethiopian coffee is a special treat because it isn’t something you just do. You have to order it in advance, at the start of the meal, so that it is ready by the time you have finished your meal. Why? Well, the beans are freshly roasted from raw, green coffee beans. Clearly this takes a bit of time. They are then brewed into a very strong, espresso like elixir that is absolutely incredible. If you like coffee, you will love this.
Anyway, to say the food was incredible would be an understatement. The table was all but silent when the food arrived. The spice was perfect, the textures were incredible. It was truly a fantastic experience. And our waitress was awesome. Very friendly, very helpful, and for some reason, I want to say very gentle. She was very soft-spoken, taught us about the coffee, the food, and the incense that was eventually lit prior to the coffee ceremony. Based on all of this, we were convinced that she took extra special care of us for some reason. Maybe she has an affinity to nerds. Whatever the reason, she only added to the overall experience. I wish I caught her name.
Following dinner, the coffee ceremony began. It started with the burning of incense at the table. The incense itself reminded me of that which used to be burned in church when I was a kid. I believe it was only used on special occasions – Easter I think. Or perhaps Christmas. Whatever the reason, the smell of it brought me back to my childhood. I absolutely love that smell. It definitely had a calming effect on me, and helped me appreciate and savour the experience. As the incense filled my nostrils and reminded me of my youth, the coffee was slowly poured into 7 tiny cups and passed around the table. I carefully sipped it, trying to savour every note of it. It was dark and strong, rich, and with a slight bitterness. It was perfect. I can’t think of a better way to end a perfect food experience.
We left full bellied and very satisfied, with the agreement that we would definitely return in the near future for more.
So dear readers, if you haven’t had a chance to check out this restaurant, you really should make the effort. I for one can not wait to go back.
For those of you who might be wondering what we discuss during Nerd Caucus, I present to you in no particular order, some of the topics of the eve:
- Statistics at the bar.
- Statistics in movies.
- The Birthday Problem.
- The authenticity of a restaurant that misspells many common english words (we all approve of this, because we feel that it almost guarantees a great experience and an amazing meal).
- Video blogging.
- Statistics of bowling.
- Pod casts.
- Job related misery.
- Most common month for births in the States and in Canada (August/September vs April/May, respectively)1.
- Most common month for marriages in the States and in Canada (June, vs August, respectively)2.
2 The only sources I could find for this are here and here. Not exactly rigorous sources. Oh well.
3 An older reference, and specific to the northern United States.
consumedbywanderlust 
Did they bring the coffee beans for you to smell? I’ve eaten Ethiopian food many times, but I’ve never done the coffee ceremony. Nancy & Jeff love it and Jeff seems to take much pleasure from saying he got to “smell the beans.” Because he, like us, has the sense of humour of a 12-year-old boy!