Ras Plant Based
Photos courtesy of Ras Plant Based
When Chef Romeo Regalli moved to New York eight years ago to pursue his filmmaking career, he landed a day job at the Brooklyn outpost of Awash Ethiopian Restaurant. The owner’s daughter, Milka, was tasked with training him in the family’s recipes...and she also captured his heart. They married seven months later. (When you know, you know!)
Romeo and Milka eventually took over Awash Brooklyn, but they couldn’t make the place completely their own.
“Her mom didn’t really let us change the menu or change the name because Awash is a brand,” Romeo, 33, says of the restaurant, which also has two Manhattan locations. “That’s when we started thinking, maybe we should start our own little project.”
This long held dream came to fruition with their opening of Ras Plant Based, an organic vegan Ethiopian eatery in Crown Heights, on March 7. The restaurant was in business for all of one week before COVID-19 evolved from ominous to an emergency — and statewide stay-at-home orders went into effect.
After initially shutting down to create a game plan for operating safely, the couple shifted to takeout and delivery only. “It took us a lot to get here,” says Milka, 39. “But being able to open a business means so much, especially as a Black couple, especially in these times. It’s been a huge accomplishment.”
“Being able to open a business means so much, especially as a Black couple, especially in these times. It’s been a huge accomplishment.”
“We wanted to stay true to our Ethiopian roots while still keeping it modern,” says Milka, who was born in Addis Ababa and raised in the Bronx. When it came to keeping Ras Plant Based vegan, the couple didn’t have to adapt much.
Ethiopian Orthodox Christians fast more than 150 days a year, they explained, breaking fast with strict vegan dishes. “This is not anything new to Ethiopia,” says the Addis born-and-raised Romeo.
Playing off his mother and grandmother’s recipes, and prioritizing organic, local ingredients, Romeo has crafted simple dishes that are deliciously packed with complex flavors. We recommend their platters of slow-simmered classics like savory beetroot, cabbage and carrot, braised collards, spicy red lentil stew and creamy ground chickpeas, all scooped up with spongy injera. We also enjoyed their tender mushroom tibs and sambusa, a flaky pastry with lentil filling. Newer to the menu are Mama’s tofu (named in honor of Romeo’s mama) and, back by popular demand, crispy awaze-spiced cauliflower “wings.”
“The vibe is meant to feel like you’re in an outdoor space,” Milka says of Ras Plant Based’s striking interior design, which features graffiti-style murals by Miami-based artist Ras Terms, a thatched roof “hut” and a sleek wooden bar with exposed red brick. More specifically, the co-owners want you to feel transported to Addis in the airy 65-seat space, as if you’re at their home.
“When our friends saw the decor, they said, ‘This is totally you guys,’” Romeo says before laughing at their current situation. “I can’t believe we did all this for it just to be takeout!”
As for the name Ras Plant Based, Ras means “head” in Amharic, a title given to a chief or prince. Symbolically, it’s another nod to Romeo and Minka’s efforts to fuse things ancient and authentic with their modern twist.
Taste this fusion for yourself by placing an order directly on rasplantbased.com if you’re in their coverage area (to avoid hefty 3rd party fees; otherwise you can find them on Caviar).
739 Franklin Ave, Brooklyn, 718-622-6220, rasplantbased.com
