Tucked between a Payless and a branch bank in Uptown, there’s a tiny glass storefront, the most distinguishing features of which are the sacks of brown teff flour stacked by the dozens in the window.

The super crispy falafel and thick pita is what keeps us going back to Tesfa, a small, counter-style restaurant in the Plateau. The two owners are brothers who made their way from Eritrea to Montreal, ...