Ethiopian-owned businesses enliven Baltimore neighborhoods

An Ethiopian immigrant group is adding lots of businesses to a neighborhood, making the area come alive again and helping the economy.  - - Donna Poisl

by MARY MEDLAND

Wander along the 300 block of Park Avenue, which once was the heart of Baltimore City's Chinatown district, and you will find that a few of its vestiges remain open, such as an Asian grocery store and Zhongshan Restaurant.

But the neighborhood in West Baltimore, about a block from the main branch of the Enoch Pratt Free Library, is sprouting businesses from another immigrant community.

Ethiopians own several shops and restaurants in the area. These include Tabor Ethiopian and Gojo restaurants; Kana Mart, which sells a myriad of spices, injera and other food products; and hookah bar Lucy Sports Café. About a dozen blocks away in Pigtown, wine store Espiritas, Cafe Jovial and Ebenezer Ethiopian Restaurant, all thrive under the auspices of Ethiopian-born entrepreneurs.
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