Yep it's all true, dark place...we were the only people there. The woman who was there was very nice. We didn't know what to order so she brought us a veggie meat combo and it was awesome. I did order a lental free meal for my allergic husband and he spent the rest of the day vomiting. Not the best place for special requests, go and let them bring you what they want.
Review Source:Absolutely delicious! I was skeptical at first, but i can not stop thinking about this place ever since i first went there...over a month ago. Â I'm thinking tonight's the night to finally go back! The service was outstanding-our server (who i believe is also the owner) was warm, welcoming, and full of very helpful suggestions for wary diners who are new to Ethiopian cuisine (as i was). The food was ABSOLUTELY TO DIE FOR- full of flavor and very affordable! 3 shared plates was plenty for four people. Â We had the vegetarian combo, a beef dish, and a lamb dish featuring lamb prepared two different ways. The vegetarian sampler featured about ten different tastes, and the meat dishes were served in the middle of the vegetarian "ring" of tastes occupying the perimeter. Â everything was on one large plate to on top of Ethiopian cuisine's traditional utensil- deliciously tangy and spongy-in-a-good-way bread, that you use to pinch your food and deliver all the deliciousness to your mouth. Â Don't be scared away by the sparse decor- this place is not to be missed!
Review Source:We've gone here in the past and after avoiding it for a year or so tried again. SO IMPROVED! The food is fresh with distinct flavors and good variety of meats and vegetarian. Servers care and stop by to offer more injera, etc. Give it a go - really good food! For me the lack of the last star is the decor, which is just non-existant.
Review Source:Have been here a few times. Yes, it's always dimly lit and usually pretty empty unless you go late late at night. Staff if always very nice and prompt and the food has never let me down. The owner has always come by, he invited us to join in his coffee ceremony (which was amazing! If you are a coffee lover I highly recommend trying real Ethiopian coffee!) and by the third time we came and ordered the veggie plate yet again, he had the cook make his favorite veggie dish and brought it out to make sure we tasted it. Love this place, will definitely come a few more times, and probably a few more after that.
Review Source:Like a few others on here, I, too showed up to an empty place...except for a guy at the bar reading the paper. Â The owner was stocking the cooler behind the bar and didn't see us come in. Once he saw us, we were very warmly greeted and offered any table we'd like. Â It was my friend's 1st Ethiopian experience, so I was looking to get a few combos and sharing everything. Â Upon 1st glance, it looked as if that could've a little more of a task because the menu only has a couple of options for combos. Â My concerns were quickly proven wrong, as the owner worked with us to put together a good mishmash of dishes that would give a broad example of the cuisine. Â I know we we were the only people ordering in the place, but he went above and beyond what he really had to do to help us. Â
Now, for those who have enjoyed Ethiopian restaurants before, you know it's not super speedy....that isn't the point of the meal. Â Sit back, enjoy a hakim stout, talk a little and relax! Â
At the end of the meal, I had a hankering for some Ethiopian coffee....yep, you read right, a hankering. Alas, the owner said he was all out but he would be more than happy to make some with Colombian  beans he DID have.  What's more, the coffee was no charge and he brought out some incense for the table!
All-in-all it was a really great experience. Â The food was good, although I've had better around town, but it was more about the experience and the treatment we received. Â Strongly recommend this place!
I'll admit, when I walked in I second guessed myself. It was super dark, pretty late, and definitely empty. But then the owner saw me and offered a warm hello. I took a seat at the bar and ordered the beef tibs. What came out was a huge plate of extremely well spiced beef. I'm craving it again just writing these last few sentences.
Turned out that the place wasn't empty, it was just that everyone was eating on the back patio. Apparently a lot of people were back there as a steady stream of them would file in and out of the bathroom.
The owner and staff (other girl behind the bar and the chef) were really nice people. They definitely appreciate their customers and can't help but smile when you compliment their food or ask questions about their culture.
If the craving for Ethiopian cuisine hits in Denver, Red Sea is your spot.
Denver has some surprisingly great Ethiopian places, and this is certainly in the top five. While the service isn't very fast (and I've found it rarely is in Ethiopian places), and the wait staff isn't friendly per se, and you can't even get a glass of water (you have to pay $1.50 for a bottle of water), it's still worth it. The food is tasty, affordable and served in perfect portion sizes.
I think the friendliness of the folks at Abbysina make me prefer it a smidge over Red Sea, but to be honest, they are both delicious and worth trying if you're into delicious, freshly made Ethiopian food.
I really enjoy this place. Â A lot. Â The food is the best I've had in Denver (though I've only ever tried Abbysinia and Red Sea - must branch out!). Â Abbysinia has a better atmosphere, this place has none (well they usually have the TV on too loud), but the food here is SO GOOD. Â The veggie combo is wonderful. Â They have more variety in their veggie dishes than Abbysinia, they are very friendly. Â Neither place seems to be too comfortable speaking English, which can make for some rather entertaining mishaps. The staff here has always been very nice to us. Â I particularly LOVE the veggie combo and the Chicken Tibs. SO FLAVORFUL. Â And the tea is delicious, too!
If they had any atmosphere at all, I'd give them 5 stars. Â Go for the food. Â Not the ambiance.
Highly recommended!
I've had a lot of Ethiopian food, and this is really good Ethiopian food. My husband and I got the veggie combo, and the meat combo. It was an excellent array of tasty dishes. The price is very reasonable, and the portions are large. I'm hoping they'll have honey wine next time I'm there.
Review Source:I still love Red Sea. Â
I've been coming here for about 8 years and have seen the restaurant go through many incarnations and owners, and in all that time, it's kept its greatness. Â The owner has stayed the same during the last upgrade. Â He's a wonderful, friendly person who will remember you from one time to the next. Â The menu has changed, but all the classics are still there. Â
I went back last night and the beef tibs wet were fantastic. Â It's unctuous for sure, not heath food in any way. Â But it's so flavorful and delicious. Â I asked for spicy, and it wasn't as spicy as I've had from Red Sea in the past, but so good! Â The sauce is wonderful. Â I also had a vegetarian combination, which, as usual, was delicious. Â Not very spicy-hot, but so spicy-good. Â
Red Sea was my first Ethiopian love, and it's lasted a very long time!
This is the best Ethiopian food I have come across in Denver. The pricing is more than fair. You will be fed and fed well for not a lot of money. The injira (sp?) bread that they use is gluten free, so those with a gluten allergy, like myself can feel free to wail on the bread they provide. The ambiance is not great, but the service is excellent, the staff is friendly - utterly accommodating, and the food is fantastic. Also, a full bar and variety of domestic and imported beers.
Review Source:Yum! Â My love affair with ethiopian food has been going strong for years now. Â There are several places around town to go when I have a craving, but I always come back here. Â Don't let the lack of ambiance scare you off. Â The food is the highlight here. Â You can't go wrong with the veggie combo or any of the meat dishes, which are served family-style with injera. Â The service has always been great and the prices here are relatively inexpensive. Â Can't wait to come back!
Review Source:We were feeling adventurous, so we decided to give this place a try. The location and exterior are a bit on the shady side, but I'm glad we mustered up the courage to go in. We are both big fans of heavily spiced food, and we certainly weren't disappointed with Red Sea's offerings. We got the veggie combo and the chicken wat, both of which were fantastic! The service was excellent, too. As far as Ethiopian places go, this one is really delicious and definitely worth trying.
Review Source:Went back and service, food, and coffee was exceptionally great! The staff has been friendly and prompt and the veggie combo was again delicious. We usually stuff ourselves so much with dinner that no room is left over for coffee but we were offered coffee by the server and am SO GLAD we accepted. The coffee is fantastic as it is served (no need for sugar). Can not wait to visit again!!
Review Source:I've been to most of the Ethiopian restaurants in Denver, and the Red Sea is one of the better ones. Â
We had the zigini (meat) and the veggie combo. Â The veggie combo is better at other restaurants, but the zigini was awesome! Â It was very flavorful, I just wish that it was a little more spicy, but I'm sure you can request it to be made spicy.
Like most Ethiopian restaurants, the room is borderline scary and dirty with the occasional odd wall hanging, but the service is great and very friendly.
The cost is normal, about $10 per selection.
My favorite Ethiopian in town is Habesha (5707 E Colfax Ave), but the Red Sea is not bad at all and I would come back sometime.
Since moving to Denver in 2007, I passed the Red Sea Restaurant on many occasions and thought, "Where the hell is the Red Sea?" Â Eventually, I got off my butt and realized that the Red Sea is that thin strip of water that divides Saudi Arabia/Yemen from the East African nations or Egypt, Sudan, and Eritrea. Â Eritrea? Â Apparently, they are the coastal counterpart to Ethiopia and despite years of Ethiopian/Eritrean tensions, their cuisine shares a lot of similarities. Â
We've been to Red Sea a few times in the past year. Â The space is sparsely decorated and designed to be multipurpose. Â They have a giant screen and projector to show films, though I've never seen it in action. Â In addition, they have a full bar. Â Every time I've been here, the restaurant is empty. Â The service is super-friendly, though painfully slow. Â However, it's a nice quiet spot to catch up with friends.
The food falls into the a-okay category. Â The doro wat (chicken and boiled egg in berbere) here is pretty delicious, but other dishes don't go beyond average, in my opinion. Â However, you will leave here stuffed...always! Â The location is great since it is walking distance from the casa.
i am here in Denver for about a week from Grand Rapids, MI so i am interested in trying many ethnic foods. The Red Sea did not disappoint as the food was terrific. i have been to two other Ethiopian places back in Grand Rapids and this place is right there with the best of them. i would have liked to have my hot tea come out before the food rather than 2 minutes after and it just appeared to be plain American Lipton tea at that. hmmm. i would have also liked hot towels to wash off my hands prior to eating with my hands, but the bottom line is the food and i would easily head back to the Red Sea if i was staying in Denver longer.
Review Source:Delicious food. Â Complex flavors. Â Friendly service. Â Cold beer. Â You already know you eat it with your hands if you've read other reviews. Â The atmosphere is not pulling in the Lodo need-to-be-scene. Â But this is another of my pleas to support amazing tastes offered by local business people. Â Please!
If you dine here and don't think it is really good and tasty food, message me and I will consider sending you money to compensate you.  Or I may invite you to get bent.  Either way -isn't it  interesting to have this option for dining?
I have yet to eat at an Ethiopian Restaurant that has great ambiance...this place was no exception. The food was WONDERFUL! Â We had a veggie combo and a chicken dish served family style. The portions were generous (enough to have left overs). The wait-staff was very friendly. I am so thrilled to find such good Ethiopian food in Denver.
Review Source:Ok, so I'm rocking the boat by not giving it five... I haven't tried the other Ethiopian places on Colfax, but I have eaten this cuisine elsewhere and also at Ras Kassa's, in Boulder. I'm not so much dinging the food, which was pretty good - we had a variety of meat and veggie dishes shared between the three of us - but the service, ambiance, cleanliness leave much to be desired.
We entered at dinner time on a cold Friday in late December and while there were several people drinking at the bar, and a couple of guys drinking at a table, no one was eating. Again, this was a Friday night. Odd? It was quite dark, much more like a dive bar than a restaurant. We ordered, and as the only people ordering food I would have hoped to have been fed within a reasonable amount of time. Almost a full hour later, we were served. I think that is unacceptable anywhere. We weren't told why there was a hold up. Maybe it's standard operating procedure? There are placards referencing the new management. I hope they read this.
The ladies' room had no hot water and cleanliness left much to be desired. The mens' room was slightly better, and had hot water. We were with our toddler and having clean hands is especially important to me. When I enter restaurant bathrooms that are questionable I have to question the rest of the establishment, too.
As we had planned to go to zoo lights, and we did, though much later due to the excessive wait for our food, we ended up getting to-go boxes for much of the meal. We had to sit down next to the server and ask for the boxes, and the check. She was at a table having a chat with some friends. When she brought the boxes she asked if everything was alright. It was the first time she'd asked us anything about our meal or if we needed anything.
I cannot remember specific items we ate, though the meal included chicken, lamb, beef, and almost raw ground beef. I stopped eating after visiting the rest room and only my husband and our house-guest ate the leftovers. The flavors were good, and the food did seem fresh. It had better, since it took an hour!
My first Yelp Book Club!! Â Yeah!!! I finally made it to a book club meeting!!
Other than Matt, the book club regulars were not there. Â However, there were 7 people there who were new to the book club, 8 including me...
The others ordered a special kind of beer, I'm assuming it was from Africa, and it was in really pretty bottles and was enjoyed by all. Â I ordered mango juice, which was a very generous portion for $2. Â Quite refreshing.
We talked about the book "What is the What" for awhile, and waited to see if anyone else was coming, and then Matt filled us in a bit about the food and the best way to order.
So we ordered one big big big serving plate with 4 of the vegetarian combinations on it, and another huge serving plate with 4 different meat dishes on it. Â Salads with lettuce, tomato, a tasty dressing, and pieces of hot chile pepper, and maybe a few other veggies were in the center of each tray.
There is not silverware at the Ethiopian/Eritrean restaurants.  Instead, one uses pieces of  injera (sp?) which is a sour-tasting spongy yet delicious African bread to enfold the food and consume it.
The vegetarian dishes were just lovely. Â Such flavorful and interesting spices! Â Grain dishes, carrots, potatoes, spicy cabbage with green beans, squash---various vegetables,all prepared creatively, and deliciously.
I did also try the chicken and egg dish in the dark rich sauce, which was
so good....
We had gracious and friendly service, with our server thanking us and smiling and asking us many times if we needed more of the bread.
There was more than enough food for all of us, and it seemed like all present really enjoyed 'most everything.
Now, it's true I live in Boulder, and not close to East Colfax. Â But still, I will suggest this restaurant for our next family outing when visiting Denver relatives.
Last but not least, the prices at the Red Sea are most reasonable. Â For more than we all could eat, + our drinks, it was ~$12.50 Â per person. Â That included tax but not tip.
P.S. If you prefer fancy decor, this is not your place. Â It is plain and simple--the focus here is the food!
This is my favorite Eritrean/Ethiopian restaurant in Denver. Â When my wife and I moved out here from San Diego in 2000, we were amazed at all the Ethiopian restaurants along Colfax, and were excited to try them all. Â After we made an offer on our first house, we celebrated by going to the Red Sea, our first stab at Denver Eritrean food. Â And I'm so glad we did.
The food is great African fare. Â Lots of stews of meat and veggies served family style on a platter lined with injera (the soft, spongy bread that's also used to scoop up the food; think a cross between a tortilla and a pancake). Â Our regular order is a veggie combo with either a lamb or beef dish (or both, if we're hungry). Â The food is delicious, and I've never been disappointed.
But let me tell you what takes the Red Sea above the others: the people. Â On our first visit, the owner, Benjamin, asked us if we had ever had Eritrean food before (quick note: Â to the best of my knowledge, there is no difference between Eritrean and Ethiopian food. Â Eritrea was part of Ethiopia until the mid-90's when it declared it's independence after a bloody civil war. Â The food of the two countries may be the same, but the countries are not, so it's best to know where you're at). Â Anyhoo, we told Benjamin that we were familiar with the food, and we ordered and ate to our heart's content.
The next time we returned, Benjamin recognized us and greeted us warmly. Â This continued every time we went. Â When my wife was pregnant with our first, she had chronic cravings for Red Sea, so we went almost every week. Â After our daughter was born and getting old enough to go out with us, the Red Sea continued to be a frequent destination. Â The staff always coddled her and never made us feel uncomfortable for bringing her. Â On one visit, she was acting up, making it difficult for us to enjoy our dinner, and Benjamin came over, took her in his arms, and proceeded to entertain her while we finished our meal. Â Can you see why such a big impression was made?
Benjamin no longer owns the Red Sea, but the current owner is just as great. Â Now that we don't live in the area, our visits are much less frequent, but when we do go, he always comes over, asks how we're doing, etc. Â Gotta love a place that makes you feel like you're really welcome.
Oh, and don't forget that the food kicks ass, too.
Cheers!
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