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Tsion Owner Beejhy Barhany also founded the nonprofit Beta Israel of North America (BINA) to promote the culture of Ethiopian Jews and Jews of color.
By Shula Rosen
Tsion Café, an Ethiopian vegan restaurant in Harlem’s Sugar Hill neighborhood that recently received kosher certification, features an eclectic menu, including the spice and style of several traditions.
Owned and operated by Ethiopian Israeli chef Beejhy Barhany, the café blends Ethiopian, Israeli, and pan-African cuisines in a space that doubles as a cultural and artistic hub.
The restaurant, which opened in 2014, originally offered a wider menu, including meat dishes such as filet mignon and shakshuka, but has since transitioned to a fully vegan and kosher operation.
Located in the historic Harlem area once central to the Harlem Renaissance, Tsion Café is now one of the few kosher establishments in Upper Manhattan. Its menu features injera—a fermented Ethiopian flatbread—served with a variety of vegan stews such as shiro (chickpeas), messer (red lentils), gomen (collard greens), and atakilt (cabbage, carrots, and potatoes).
Appetizers include lentil-filled sambusa pastries with sun-dried tomato sauce, and desserts range from malawach with date syrup to halvah.
Barhany, who was born in Ethiopia and raised in Israel, describes Tsion Café as a place that “nourishes body and soul with food and art.”
The café regularly hosts poetry readings, live music, and art exhibitions, reflecting the neighborhood’s artistic heritage.
She also founded the nonprofit Beta Israel of North America (BINA) to promote the culture of Ethiopian Jews and Jews of color.
The restaurant’s walls display African artwork and shelves of books, while its bar offers Ethiopian coffee, spiced teas, and kosher wines. Visitors can also purchase house-made spice blends such as berbere and awaze, as well as injera chips.
With its new kosher certification, Tsion Café bridges diverse culinary and cultural worlds—bringing Ethiopian Jewish tradition, Israeli flavors, and Harlem’s creative spirit together under one roof.
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