African, Ethiopian
Non-veg
Serves meat, vegan options available. Ethiopian cuisine where the vegetarian dishes are vegan by default. Offers an Ethiopian Love cake which is served with soy yoghurt and Ethiopian coffee. Owner is vegan aware. Open Tue-Sun 12:00pm-10:00pm.
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30 Doveton St N, Ballarat Central, Ballarat, Victoria, Australia, 3350
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- Outdoor seating
- Accepts credit cards
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Last update on 19 Jun 2023 by PlantPal
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21 Reviews
First Review by MichelePaes
Mantra
Points +15
Wooow! - Edit
Delicious and healthy vegan food from Ethiopia. Authentic feel
Read moreGuest
lauraspeechly
Points +22
5/5 - Edit
Would give 5 stars if app allowed it (this place serves meat). The owner is lovely! All of the veg dishes are vegan and there is a vegan cake!! 5/5
Read moreGuest
MarcusXVX
Points +92
Friendly service and amazing food - Edit
Always a pleasure to dine in at Merkama, as the owner is incredibly friendly and welcoming, and the vegan options on offer are truely incredible. In my opinion, this place is easily one of the best places to eat in Ballarat.
Read moreGuest
NilsHeymann
Points +819
Delicious - Edit
The vegan mixed place was great! Nice flavors and good service.
Read moreGuest
JamesA
Points +110
Delicious variety - Edit
We had a lovely lunch there thanks to the owner Temam. The tasting plates can be vegan only and is very tasty especially if you combine it with injera
Read morePros: Variety of tastes, The Ethiopian Vegan Love Cake, Temam, the owner
Cons: Can't do coffee with no dairy milk
Guest
emmac41
Points +80
Absolutely unreal - Edit
My partner had been waiting to take me here for ages and he had hyped up the love cake which we were too early for!!! So sad but that didn't dampen our meal. Vegan sharing plate wow. Absolutely delightful, delicious and substantial cuisine. I loved the relaxed atmosphere and it was very quiet when we were there (just us two). Can't wait to get back and try some of that love cake. Highly highly recommend
Read morePros: Well priced, Absolutely delicious, Wonderful and friendly owner
Guest
smolgeorge
Points +16
Best vegan food in Ballarat! - Edit
Absolutely adore this place, it's such a hidden gem! Almost all of their dishes can be made vegan and they have a delicious vegan Peruvian love cake that is to die for 🖤 I highly recommend the tasting plate (ask for it to be made vegan). The owner is the sweetest guy ever and I would recommend this place to anyone wanting a fun experience and delicious food! 10/10
Read morePros: Lots of vegan options, Wonderful owner, Delicious food
Guest
Pednek
Points +18
5 star worthy - Edit
great service, great food, cozy atmosphere
Read moreGuest
TianyaDuerden
Points +48
Yummmmy - Edit
Every single vegie dish we had was amazing and the injera is so delicious! The owner is so kind and helpful. He allowed us to make the tasting platter completely veg / vegan and gave us plenty for the amount of people we had
Read moreGuest
lianemills
Points +1800
First ever Ethiopian food and loved it! - Edit
We ordered the tasting plate which had all the different dishes in small tasting plates. Absolutely enough for two. It’s served with a soft Ethiopian bread which was so Interesting and tasty. Every dish was different but all were flavourful and some quite spicy.
Read moreWe enjoyed the Ethiopian tea with it. A great meal!
Pros: Lots of vegan options, Fast service, Open from 12 noon ti late so 4pm meal was useful!
Cons: Expensive, Not much atmosphere in the restaurant, Talk show radi was on which didn’t add anything g
Guest
sourdoughbutch
Points +74
Vegan Ethiopian deliciousness - Edit
Definitely a restaurant to go back to next time I'm in Ballarat!! Delicious Ethiopian food, with all of the vegetarian options also being vegan.
Read moreWe were greeted and served by the owner who was lovely. He brought out shai tea after seating us which was a great addition.
We got a vegan tasting meal for two, which came with eight dishes and injera bread. All were amazing, I highly recommend the split peas, the silverbeet and the foule if you only want to pick a few dishes!
Got the vegan Ethiopian love cake as a takeaway and it came with coconut yoghurt. Really delicious, similar to a tart and made with almond flour.
Just a note-- they don't have EFTPOS but they are really happy for you to transfer money via your banking app.
Also a 7 minute walk from the station/art gallery!
YUM!!!
Updated from previous review on 2022-01-06
Pros: Lots of vegan options, Easy menu choice, Service with a smile
Guest
Gallicgirl
Points +102
Good vegan food - Edit
Lovely food - nicely spicy and generous. Vegan tasting plate was a good choice. Friendly and helpful- even though we turned up way past lunchtime.
Read morePros: Lots of vegan options for a shortish menu
Guest
CharlotteMarie
Points +22
So Lovely - Edit
This is such a beautiful place, we were coming in late- driving from Adelaide and we were so axcomadated for, I called up and ordered ahead and we were welcomed with such a smile! The tasting plate (vegan) was so good! They also have a vegan cake with soy yogurt, I didn't try this but next time!
Read morePros: Lots of vegan options
Guest
Hilke
Points +174
Delicious variety - Edit
Friendly service from the owner, who greets customers with a complimentary Ethiopian tea. The food is delicious and healthy, not too oily. Couldn't recommend more highly!
Read moreGuest
Special_K
Points +16
Brilliant - Edit
So good! The owner is just lovely and all the vegetarian dishes are vegan friendly. Loads of options and the Persian Love Cake is amazing!! Check it out!
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2019-05-06
Pros: Beautiful food, Friendly, vegan aware owner, Affordable
Guest
SharonBrookes
Points +22
Deliciously Different. - Edit
We ate here a year ago and still remember how impressed we were with the food...now we're back for more scrumptious deliciousness.
Read morePros: Vegan food is amazing, Love cake, Injira bread
Cons: None apart from 'it's not close to home'
Guest
thesweetpotato
Points +24
authentic - Edit
Very cozy and authentic with very friendly and informative staff. We arrived early and not many people there, but filled very quickly would recommend booking reservation l. Food was AMAZING and delicious, we got the taster option to share between 7 and we were a bit hungry afterwards. However if it would be shared between 2-4 it would definitely be enough.
Read morePros: lots of vegan options, complimentary welcome tea, authentic cuisine with instructions on how to eat, very friendly staff
Cons: hard to find, no music?? , wasn't enough for our large group
Guest
IvonneTadi
Points +31
Amazing food & range of vegan options - Edit
All vegan dishes were amazing. Came here several times when I was in Ballarat and the vegan persian love cake was so good!
Read moreGuest
veganfood47
Points +20
Ethiopian delight - Edit
Ethnic atmosphere. Interesting variety of Vegan choices. Meat choices too.
Read moreGuest
huskyberry
Points +131
Special experience - Edit
The host makes diners feel very welcome, more like house guests than just customers. There are plenty of vegan items to try.
Read moreGuest
MichelePaes
Points +67
Delicious meal - Edit
Tried the tasting plate with split peas, red lentils, silverbeet and cabbage, potatoes & carrots. It comes with a flat bread. For desert I had the Ethiopian Vegan Love Cake with soy yogurt. Great food and friendly staff.
Read moreGuest
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