Queen Of Sheba Ethiopian Italian Cuisine

THE DRAW: Adventure-seeking diners have been waiting for the return of Queen of Sheba since the beloved Ethiopian restaurant closed its doors on Lemmon Avenue in 2002. Well, it's back -- this time in plush new Addison digs.THE FOOD: Ethiopian food works best for those who enjoy sharing. It comes on large flat rounds of injera, a moist, spongy, crepelike bread with a slight sour tang. If you want a fork, you need to ask for one; otherwise, you scoop up your food with strips of bread. Virgos and other neatniks need not apply, but the sharing aspect makes this a great place for dates and large groups.Boasting many vegetable and grain dishes, Ethiopian is also an excellent option for vegetarians, but even meat dishes come with an array of vegetables on the side.Whether you order beef, lamb or chicken, you usually get chunks of meat stewed in some kind of sauce, at varying levels of spicy heat. Doro wott ($13.95), spicy chicken stew, consisted of drumsticks, so tender that the dark meat slid from the bone. Gored-gored ($12.95) had bites of what was described as tenderloin, but they were surprisingly chewy and tough, not at all what you expect in a tenderloin cut.THE SURPRISE: Along with Ethiopian food, Queen of Sheba offers a selection of Italian dishes, including lasagna and chicken cacciatore -- all served with salad and French bread -- as well as desserts such as tiramisu.THE SETTING: The new location is just south of Addison's restaurant row on Belt Line Road, in a space that used to be a wedding catering company (with which the owners of Queen of Sheba are partnered). The space is quite beautiful, with wood floors, high ceilings and gilt fixtures. There's a small bar with a tiny stage in the corner for the occasional night of music.THE SERVICE: All bases were covered with courtesy and grace -- from diligent check-ups and water-glass-filling to helpful advice on what to order.