Refugees to restaurateurs – Trio from Ethiopia overcoming challenges after opening amid a pandemic

The pandemic has shut entryways for some eateries, however we’ve likewise observed some have achieved, including the proprietors of Habesha Restaurant, another Ethiopian-Eritrean spot on Cleveland’s west side. 

The three of us,” Jamal Musa, co-proprietor of Habesha Restaurant, said. 

“We generally had an arrangement to open an eatery. 

A fantasy that at last materialized for Musa, his better half Tigist Gebremichael and their closest companion Hirityi Weld-esalasi. 

“At the point when I left at the time there was a war going on,” Musa said. 

About a year back, they connected up with the US Together Microenterprise Development program, which helps displaced business visionaries in Cleveland to begin chipping away at that fantasy. 

From that point, they set up spring up shops at nearby ranchers markets prior to taking a major action to Lorain Avenue in Kamm’s Corners, opening Habesha Restaurant a little more than seven days back. 

So that is the reason we thought of that name,” Musa said. It’s the main Ethiopian-Eritrean café on the city’s West Side.