Eshkol, a family restaurant on Lancaster Avenue in Ardmore, brings the delicious flavors of Ethiopia to the Main Line, writes Ben Silver for the Main Line Today.
The popular eatery is owned by husband-and-wife team Tesh Gebremedhin and Chaltu Merga. Marga, who grew up in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, dreamed about opening her own restaurant for years. She moved to the United States aged 26 in 1990 and spent years working odd jobs. At the same time, she started preparing food for weddings, religious events, and communal services, and soon her cooking became highly regarded among her community.
Nine years ago, she and her husband decided it was time to open their own place. Eshkol has fewer than a dozen tables, with woven baskets to hold bread for communal-style meals. There are no utensils, as all dishes in Ethiopian cuisine are eaten by hand.
The menu offers a diverse selection of Ethiopian specialties. Among the vegetable dishes are gomen – collard greens simmered with onion and ginger in oil – and tikil gomen – cabbage sautéed with onion, garlic, and ginger in olive oil. Meat highlights include Merga’s special minchet abish, a delicious spicy minced beef dish.
Read more about Ardmore’s Eshkol in the Main Line Today.
