2. Bunna Café in Bushwick, Brooklyn: Ethiopian

Photograph by Sam Saverance. Courtesy of Bunna Café

New York City has its fair share of Ethiopian spots, but in part what separates Bunna Café in Bushwick, Brooklyn from the pack is its strictly vegan menu. Although it might seem miraculous that a traditionally meat-centric cuisine has been able to go totally vegan and stay afloat, Bunna Café hasn’t only survived but thrived. Or as New Yorker reporter Nicolas Niarchos put it: “Bunna is well and rightly loved. It’s one of those vegan restaurants were the absence of meat and dairy isn’t obvious while you’re there, but when you venture out the door your step has a new spring in it.”

Another key staple of Bunna Café is the very product for which its name is derived: coffee. As the official website states, “Coffee is everything in Ethiopian. Not only does it drive the economy, but it drives everyday life.” Therefore, in order to honor what coffee does and means for Ethiopia, Bunna Café frequently performs the intricate coffee ceremony at their events and then serves the coffee for free.

See their menu.

Address: 1084 Flushing Ave., Brooklyn NY, 11237