Kensington
Our street
Racecourse Road, a short tram ride from the city, where the neighbours made us feel at home. Come and make an evening of it.
The neighbours
Where we come from, a stranger is a guest until they are family, and it takes about one dinner. Kensington turned out to feel the same way. People here are open and curious and kind. They came in to see what the new family was doing, asked how to eat with the bread, brought their parents the next time and their kids after that. When a new face comes in a little unsure at the door, there is often a regular at the next table who leans over and shows them how to tear the injera before we get there. People try things, and then they tell their neighbours, and the neighbours come too.
We are not the only ones from our part of the world on this road. Families from the Horn of Africa have lived in the towers along Racecourse Road for a long time, and the Somali kitchens and grocers on the strip, and Little Africa around Nicholson Street in Footscray a few minutes away, are all part of the same story. We are the Habesha table on this end of it, and glad of the company.
Getting here
The 57 tram from Elizabeth Street stops at Racecourse Road near our door. Kensington station is a short walk, and if you drive, parking in the streets nearby is free. The address, the hours and a map are on the booking page.
Before and after
Flemington Racecourse is up the road, and a day at the races followed by a platter and a beer with us is a very good day. The first Tuesday in November is loud, and we love it. On a quieter day, walk along the Maribyrnong before you eat, and afterwards there are bars on Kensington's own little strip where you will probably run into someone who was at the next table.
If you want the full coffee ceremony, with green beans roasted in front of you and frankincense on the coals, that is a daytime thing, and the cafés around Nicholson Street in Footscray do it properly. Have a Habesha breakfast there, walk it off along the river, and come to us for dinner. Ours is a five-minute coffee with cinnamon and ginger, made for a Saturday night, and you are welcome to sit over it as long as you like.
Good nights to come
Our New Year is 11 September, or the 12th in a leap year. Melbourne's big party is in Footscray, and we are open that night too, so come and eat with us. Christmas is 7 January and Timkat, the Epiphany, is 19 January, or the 20th in a leap year, and both are good excuses for the long table. In November the African Music and Cultural Festival comes to the city, and the tram brings you straight from there to us. Any other night, Monday to Saturday from 5:30pm, is also a good night. Groups can book the long table, and if you are writing or filming about the area, the creators page has what you need.