Three Little Birds Café and Ethiopian Cuisine offers drive-thru, take-out ‘food as old as time’

In October, a beloved Spokane Valley landmark got a new life and a new menu.

Mike’s Burger Royal has been reborn as Three Little Birds Café and Ethiopian Cuisine. Say goodbye to Stromboli and hello to doro wet (also known as doro wat or doro wot).

“This is my first restaurant, and I don’t have a lot of experience in the food industry, but I definitely enjoy cooking Ethiopian food for my family and friends,” said owner and chef Rebekah Meyer. “It’s a food as old as time and very unique because my country kept its culture, language and recipes.”

Born in Ethiopia, Meyer immigrated to the U.S. at age 12. She grew up in the Tri-Cities and lived in Seattle for a time before coming to Spokane with her husband to raise their three children.

“Our three little birds,” she said. “My husband designed the logo – each little bird is different, just like our kids.”

When she saw the restaurant location listed for sale, the drive-thru style appealed to her.

“We saw the potential, and drive-thrus aren’t something you come across often.”

Traditional Ethiopian dishes are rich, savory stews that are best prepared in advance and served later. Their flavors deepen with time, making them perfect takeout or drive-thru options.

Doro wet is a slow-cooked, spicy chicken stew that features tender chicken, deeply caramelized onions, hard-boiled eggs and berbere, a traditional spice blend.

“It’s the food I grew up eating, and it’s what ignited my desire to open a restaurant,” Meyer said. “I spent years perfecting my recipes. They are family recipes with my own touch.”

Operating a takeout -only venue forced her to hone the menu. In addition to Ethiopian dishes, she included a turkey pesto sandwich and a crispy chicken sandwich. With breads sourced locally from Alpine Bakery, she ensured more cautious diners would have yummy lunchtime options.

“We thought about the people who used to come here and didn’t want to offer just one type of food,” she said.

But so far, the most popular items have been the Ethio sampler and the butter chicken.

The sampler includes doro wet, misir wet (simmered lentils with Ethio-spices), Alecha (yellow lentils with spices), and Ethio-style veggies (cabbage, carrots, potatoes) seasoned and sautéed.

You can choose to layer the selections atop rice or the traditional injera.

Injera is a flatbread made from a small grain called teff. Its sourdough-like flavor and soft, spongy texture make it a perfect scoop for the savory dishes.

“The sampler is perfect for someone coming for the first time who’d like a bit of everything,” Meyer said.

It can also be customized to make it vegan or vegetarian.

“People appreciate that,” she said.

The butter chicken is also popular.

“It’s my favorite Indian dish, and Indian and Ethiopian food share similar tastes and spices.”

Those spices star in Meyer’s trademarked EthioSauce. The sweet/spicy sauce is served with fries or drizzled atop anything else on the menu.

The redolent aroma wafting from the drive-thru window is intoxicating, and Ethiopian coffee is part of that heady scent.

Three Little Birds Café serves espresso drinks made with Ethiopian coffee beans that Cravens Coffee roasts for them .

“The freshness and quality of Ethiopian beans is very special,” Meyer said.

Although I usually avoid coffee after 2 p.m., I succumbed to the aroma and enjoyed an amazing latte. The rich smoothness of Ethiopian coffee is something to be savored, no matter how late the hour.

That coffee can also be sampled over vanilla ice cream in an affogato, or blended into a milkshake featuring one of their nine ice cream flavors.

The small menu and limited operating hours are intentional, for now.

“Currently, it’s just me – that’s why we have limited hours,” she said. “I want to grow slowly, and I’d like to expand into catering.”

The café’s popularity has increased through word of mouth.

“I let the food speak for itself,” Meyer said. “I would love for this to become the gem of Spokane and Spokane Valley.”

Contact Cindy Hval at dchval@juno.com.