Ethiopian shop opens in Annandale

Annandale has a new shop specializing in products imported from Ethiopia. Lidya Market & Café opened in late February at 4544-A John Marr Drive.

The store offers pantry items, such as berbere, a mixture of ground chili peppers and spices; shiro, made from ground chickpeas; lentils; rice flour; coffee; dates; snacks; and incense.

Among other items, Lidya stocks injera, the spongy flatbread that serves as a platter for Ethiopian meals, as well as teff flour for people who want to make injera from scratch.  

“We want to bring Ethiopian goods to the public,” says Lidya Mohammed, who owns the store with her husband, Abdul. Members of the nearby Ethiopian community will no longer have to drive 20 minutes to Bailey’s Crossroads or Lincolnia to get the products they need, she says.

The couple has a wholesale business focused on importing food to Ethiopian restaurants, says Lidya, who’s also a renal care nurse.

When they get more equipment, they plan to offer homemade sambosas, Ethiopian pastries filled with meat or vegetables. And when it gets warmer, they will add outdoor seating.

The Mohammeds plan to host an open house sometime in April.