Despite being in the view of St James’ Park, Sunshine was largely empty a couple of hours after the Magpies’ 4-3 victory over Nottingham Forest at the weekend.
The restaurant took on the building formerly occupied by Home Flavours and Charlie’s Chinese Buffet on Gallowgate in April last year and has been the first taste of Eritrean and Ethiopian food for plenty of Geordies since. I tried it for the first time earlier this year, during January’s Restaurant Week.
Back then, it was rammed and we were seated at a table in the corner next to a printer – I took this as a promising sign. This time, we had our pick of the tables, and we chose just out of sight of the Liverpool vs Manchester City match – with the sound of Martin Tyler’s commentary vying for our attention with Eritrean tunes.
Sunshine has an eclectic mix of decorations – it’s no frills but the new owners have put their stamp on with some vibrant paintings and some disco lights by the bar. It has the vibe of a place you could walk into on holiday and instantly know you’re going to get a good meal.
We started off with a couple of drinks – my partner went for Suwa, a home-brewed beer made from roasted corn, barley, grains and flavoured with a buckthorn type leaf. Complex and unusual, it could be likened to Guinness without the cream, with a bit of coffee and bread in there.
I was less adventurous and picked St George Premium Lager Beer – which I preferred. Our starters arrived pretty sooner after, crunchy vegetable samosas were densely packed with a garlic, ginger and chilli infused filling; while the cumin-dusted houmous was so silky and smooth I was eating it like yoghurt once I’d run out of bread.
(Image: Newcastle Chronicle/Daniel Hall)
But that was nothing compared to the main event. Our food arrived in a messob, a handwoven round basket used as a dining table.
We’d picked the Sunshine Special Mix for two, which had a series of vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. Staff were very accommodating about keeping the veggie and meat dishes apart, yet still served them atop an enjera, a delicious fermented flatbread with a subtle lemon flavour.
Bright red dorho zigni (spicy chicken in a Berbere sauce) is topped with a hard boiled egg, lamb keyih tebsi has a satisfying crunch of pepper and pleasing hit of chilli, while three different lentil dishes are similar to dhal in texture, one take fresh, another sour, and the third spicy. The shro, a rich and buttery chickpea based curry, is a particular highlight.
(Image: Newcastle Chronicle/Daniel Hall)
Earthy and sour flavours run throughout the dishes, with sweet and spicy in abundance too. Using enjera instead of cutlery to grab the dishes is messy, but fun, and provides limitless combinations in one meal.
It leads to food that’s both familiar and new, with the whole mix making for the most exquisite comfort food – but outside of your average diner’s comfort zone. We rounded off the meal with a traditional coffee ceremony with popcorn, with enough in the pot to ward off any potential food coma.
I came to Sunshine not knowing much about Eritrean and Ethiopian food, and on leaving, I’m way off becoming an expert. But I feel that this has been the perfect introduction and I can’t wait to try more – and would urge anyone else curious about East African cuisine to give it a go.
Scores:
Service – 4/5
Atmosphere – 4/5
Value for money – 5/5
Food quality – 5/5
Sunshine Restaurant, 41 Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 4SG
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