Street Eats: Downtown Falafel

I think that the best falafel in nyc is by yummy shawarmy !! falafel is so fresh and taste so good....pita is hot and baked at the spot....mmmmmmm so good......ask for extra home made hummus! for the girls to let u know that some hot guys working at yummy......give it a rate of 10 out of 10 !!

To Dancing girl ......I just visit yumy shawarmy and had totaly different thought about Yummy !! the place is soooo clean , food so fresh and good, prices u'v been saying r high ?? are you kidding or what?!.....falafel for $3.50 or shawarma for $5.50 .....are expensive?? dancing girl i guess you just had a bad day so please take it out on someone alse like your self .....by the way the meat is kosher so i find it the best in test and in price in all NY state.....

mamoun's mamoun's mamoun's.

stop in to watch the guy play his spoon song as he throws the falafel batter into the hot oil- it's fascinating and takes your mind off of the claustrophobia/coziness.

Shayna, I just went to Yummy Shawarmy http://www.yummyshawarmy.com. Although the food was good (I had a Sabich with eggplant, salads, and hard-bolied egg), I was HORRIFIED by this place. It represents the absolute worst of Israeli culture exported to the U.S., polluted and shlocked up to tap into the American consumer market, in this case rich hipster/tourist white kids who troll 7th Ave. drunk at 2:00 a.m. on Saturday nights. It is overpriced, with loud music, a plasma TV playing American music videos, and a gaudy pastel color scheme. It makes me ashamed and embarrased to be an American and lover of Israeli culture to see this kind of consumer exploitation. The most disturbing thing is their menu! They have a picture of an AH-64 Apache 30MM M230 chain gun Hellfire Missile helicopter (the U.S. sells these to Israel) with the caption "Let our special forces deliver to you" Does anyone else find this INCREDIBLY DISTURBING?

humus, chips, salad?

I have to agree about TAIM on Waverly and 7th Avenue (sort of on Perry too, right near Doma). Their falafel is so delicious. The service is a bit slow, but it's worth the wait.

The "old standby" Chickpea? What, they've been around for like 2 years now? Try walking a block down St. Mark's to Cinderella Falafel, who not only has better falafels than Chickpea (IMHO), but has been around for uh years longer.

What about HooMoos Asli on Nolita. They have tasty stuff.

Although a bit different from the rest, I really like the place on Ave. A next to San Loco's. You can get their falafel rolled in a thin spicy red flat tortilla-like bread which they call their homemade pita. They also throw in some pickles, parsley, etc.

Ever since I've had it, the whole normal dry pita pouch and nothin' but tomatos, lettuce, and onions that everyone else serves just seems so bland and boring.

Damn, now I want one.

A new spot just opened on 7th Ave @ Bleecker called Yummy Schwarmy. Haven't tried it yet, but I read that it's Israeli/Kosher. Has anyone been there?

www.yummyschwarmy.com

Yatagan on MCDougal at Bleecker.

what falafel would nell want?

then that's where you wanna go.

if you are looking for falafal outside of manhattan, there is a spectacular cart in astoria.

it's at 30th and broadway - a block from the broadway stop on the N/W

everything is fresh, tasty, not too greasy, and very cheap.

South of Azure at 51st & 10th, Taim is the best. They have this crazy good Saffron Aioli that they give with their fries...which makes the $4.00 totally worth it. Not to mention the homemade iced tea...

Thanks, sbs.

I was disapointed with Chickpea, so that is why I asked.

Taim on Waverly just west of 7th ave is run by Israelis and is AMAZING. Same style as chickpea but smaller volume, so everything's made fresh to order. YUM.

#10 - Chickpea, as it was started by Israelis. Not sure who runs it now though...

Now where can I find good Israeli style falafel?

I agree that the cart has some of the best falafel and they serve it wrapped in pocketless pita.

Chickpea I also agree has some very tasty falafel and the sauce is even fresh.

Alphanoose had possibly the worst falafel I have ever had. Over-cooked and very greesy.

dudes... chickpea is definitely good for "haute falafel," but don't front on mamoun's. they've been doing it right forever, and their hot sauce is astoundingly good. still. no falafel beets ali's at kebab cafe in astoria.

I surprisingly found a streetcart that has very impressive falafel...on the SW corner of 48th & Park. Cooked to order, really crispy, and a great flavor. It ranks up there among all the different falafel I had on a 10-day trip in Israel.

they have the worst attitude, like they're doing you a favor for serving you. fuck them ... i go to mamouns.

Mamoun's is far inferiour to Chickpea. Used to frequent Mamoun's back in my drunken NYU days. I will now walk from Macdougal to 3rd ave. to get Chickpea after a night out with the sister and her college friends. It's just that much better.

How can you talk about downtown falafel and not mention Mamoun's?!?

I have to second the emotion on Alfanoose.

I've been eating there since before 9/11 and was saddened to see him have to close. He worked so hard, but didn't have the capability to seek the rebuilding funds that were available to downtown businesses affected. Now, he's reopened and his food is better than ever. Probably NYC's best falafel and some veggie specialties that I enjoy

(try the vegetarian kibbeh). Leave room for dessert (or more than one).

Chick Pea ousted St. Mark's Pizza. I can never forgive them for that. I still haven't found pizza as good as in that crappy, hole in the wall, cockroach infested dump. Sigh. Spent many a drunken night there and then headed up to Ben & Jerry's for a dippity dough ball for dessert.

I'm not sure if this is in the geographical bounds, but I have to recommend Alfanoose, which is at 8 Maiden Lane, between Broadway and Nassau. They take real pride in their cooking, and I haven't had better felafel anywhere in the city. And, their sides and other dishes are fantastic. They've been working hard to rebuild after losing a lot of their clientele after 9/11 (they used to be on Fulton St. and got a lot of WTC business), and I'm just thrilled that they're still around and outstanding.