felafel might have come to America as a humble Middle easterly street food , but over the years it ’s taken on a lifespan of its own as an American staple – it ’s like a classic Hollywood success story , but with more chickpea plant . Many stay close-fitting to the delectable ascendant of falafel past . But sometimes , with just a small add nuance , restaurants elevate their falafel to new peak . Wonderful , inexpensive heights .
Dune
While it would be noteworthy if Dune were a David Lynch - themed restaurant that serve up " sandworms , " it ’s equally noteworthy that an Atwater Village eating house just over a year old is one of the best places to get felafel in the country . But there ’s a good reason for that – it starts with a fluffy za’atar flatbread seared to order , and i continues with falafel made with garbanzo bean and fresh herb , which give it that beautiful green semblance deep down . Add to that house - sour pickles and organic humous + tahini , along with marinated pelf , Allium cepa , seasonal greens , parsley , and the mystical artillery : shoe string potatoes dusted with shumac and salt . If you ’ve never burn into a falafel sandwich with Christopher Fry at heart , it ’s a secret plan - changer.– Lee Breslouer , elderly writer
Azuri Cafe
They used to call him the Falafel Nazi – hell , even I used to call him that . Either the years have softened falafel impressionist Ezra Cohen , or I just becharm him on a good Clarence Day after half - a - decennium away from his tiny checker board - tile shop in Hell ’s Kitchen . Luckily the falafel sandwich had n’t lost its edge a moment . It ’s still underpin by the same freshly fried , imperfect orbs of rich , spice - laden chickpeas hug by a hot pita , and Cohen still hand - dresses each with a truly unique legion of sauce , broadcast , and topping : hummus , babaganoush , Israeli salad , two types of cabbage , pickle , mango sauce , live green Piper nigrum sauce , and tomato - base Turkish salad . When I lived a cylinder block away and plump weekly , Cohen would get good and loud with client who tried to decline any of the sauces , sometimes refusing them their intellectual nourishment if they did n’t know their craziness . I ’m not sure if he still does that – I was the only one in there , and I realized after my first visit that it ’s irrational to do anything but just get it all pass . –Ben Robinson , editorial director
Al-Ameer Restaurant
To make it as a Middle Eastern restaurant in the Detroit area , you have tobring it . And Al - Ameer has been consistently pleasing crew in Dearborn for closely to 30 years now . It ’s a family business , with the kinfolk ’s son recently graduating from culinary school day and chipping in to help his dada and uncle prepare mostly Lebanese food for thought ( the good in Detroit , in fact ) . The falafel is made fresh every day with chickpea and fava bean ; the tahini is house - made as well . Parsley , tomatoes , and tahini are standard inclusions in a falafel sandwich in Lebanon , and you may certainly get it that way of life at any of Al - Ameer ’s three location , but everyone sit at your board will understand if you simply wipe out the eight falafel balls ( pictured on the plate above ) one by one.– pound
East Side Pockets
The family who once possess a falafel shop in Al - Hasakah , Syria eventually opened East Side Pockets in Providence , and it ’s likely that only in their stateside location do they have the chance tofeed rapid wide receivers from the New England Patriots . But one thing remains the same here as it does in Syria : they still expend that family recipe to make donut - shaped falafel . They go through between 350 - 500 lb of chickpeas a week , sop and craunch them on a everyday basis before pour out them into molds that shape it all donut - comparable . One of the owners told us that it get the falafel to cook evenly and palpate super crunchy , outside and in . The falafel wrap is the unspoilt - selling menu point , with options like red-hot banana tree rings , muddle , tabbouleh , and tzatziki available to pair with the donut - shaped slices of heaven.– LB
Taim
Taim means " tasty " in Hebrew , so if you ’re go to name your falafel joint that , you better bring the goods . And , oh , are the good convey at this mostly take-away falafel heaven in Nolita ( the original Taim is in the West Village , but the Nolita one is our favorite … credibly because it ’s close to Thrillist ’s government agency ) . Purists might barrack at the gullible , harissa , or red Madagascar pepper falafel options , but Taim stay true to the flavors and textures of a self-coloured fried chickpea ball whilst piling on the improper flavors . The move here is the mixed falafel phonograph recording with all three falafel varieties , along with hummus , Israeli and tabbouleh salad , and a soft , pillowy za’atar pita.– LB
Mawadda Cafe
What the hell kind of falafel joint sellschai tea ? This one . And it ’s damn good . In fact , the possessor has been known to try out out chai , so perhaps if you ’re nice he ’ll let you strain it . But the real reason you amount here is the falafel , which is doused with tzatziki and garlic sauce and wrapped in flatbread . So get the falafel sandwich , ordinate some chai , and do n’t forget the spanakopita and Grecian fries on the side . It might not be the ideal food for thought - and - drink geminate to a falafel purist , but damn it if that is n’t the most American spread possible.– pound
Amsterdam Falafelshop
Twenty - two dissimilar salads and sauce . The numerous elbow room you could bulge up your falafel sandwich or crustal plate is what separate Amsterdam from the proverbial falafel pack . The customization possibility are impossible at any other shop , which makes it no wonder why this spotlight has overzealous fans ( put this on your bucket list , DC ) . Falafel with babaganoush and creamy slaw , pickled white turnip , and beets ? Why not . Add as much as you could fit inside that pocket bread : mark in the restaurant advance you to " jam your orb " and make room . And just because there are a few localisation , do n’t recollect that means these guys skimp on caliber . Like any felafel joint deserving its ( Mediterranean ) salt , the chickpeas are soak at night and crunch fresh in the morning . Pro gratuity : require for your falafel sandwich " Israeli - mode " and they ’ll slam a few doubly - fry fries in there for some crunch.– LB
1000 Figs
pair opens falafel hand truck in New Orleans called The Fat Falafel in Dec 2012 . brace opens Mediterranean eating place at the end of 2014 . Couple ’s restaurant is distinguish one of thehottest eatery in New Orleans . Solid resume , that twain has . As our New Orleans writer described their restaurant , 1000 Figs serves up " elegantly executed " Middle Eastern culinary art . But screw elegant – any restaurant that has a dish called Falafel Feast ( it ’s intend to be divvy up by the mesa ) , is one we back . Sure , you may order a falafel sandwich or collection plate , but the Feast issue forth with flatbread , hummus , babaghanoush , yogurt , hole , slaw , greens , tahini , cilantro chili sauce , and toum . Obviously that ’s the move.– LB
Sunrise Deli
Back in San Francisco in 1984 , you could n’t call an Uber or live - tweet your dinner . Was it even fun to be active in 1984 ? But one affair has n’t interchange since then : a Middle Eastern deli on Irving St still makes felafel from a Palestinian recipe lapse down from generation to genesis . The freshness is what dissever it from other falafel - focused shops : parsley for the falafel is bribe each dayspring , the beans for it are ground each day , and the falafel mixture is made two to three times a solar day before it ’s turned into a fried musket ball of goodness . And it ’s made so frequently because this spot sell a lot of it – more than 1,200 per day at just the Irving location . The sandwiches are " the main attractive feature , " with the standard boast the aforementioned fresh falafel , humus , cabbage , tomato , and pickled carrot . It ’ll likely be the same 30 years from now.– LB
Sultan’s Market
Sultan ’s was n’t always a Middle Eastern spot sleep together to havethe best falafel sandwich in all of Chicago . Nope , it once soldhot firedog and Polish sausage– you know , snacks hoi polloi in Chicago eat between breakfast and lunch . In fact , in the beginning , it was as much a convenience stock as it was a shoes that happened to sell falafel . Times have changed , as Sultan ’s presently has shops in Wicker Park and Lincoln Park , a full allegiance to mediate easterly food , and legions of fans . Unlike most falafel articulatio , there ’s a vast red-hot ginmill in the heart of the flagship location , where you’re able to outflank up anything from more hummus to rice and olive . And while all that is well and good , you come to Sultan ’s for the sandwich , which let in a quick pita lined with hommos and stuffed with falafel , tomatoes , and Jerusalem salad.– LB
Etzel Itzik
Sometimes you ’ll take the air into a falafel shop and the interior decoration and food will not give you any clue where the owner ’s from … are they from Lebanon the country , or Lebanon , New Jersey ? There is no guesswork at Etzel Itzik : it ’s Israel . The meat is kosher , the card ’s in Hebrew and English , and you’re able to order bottled Israeli juice . People say walking in is like taking a stumble to the Holy Land , except that you ’re in Aventura . But the principal magnet is the falafel , of course . It ’s one of the50 things you must corrode in Miamibefore you kick the bucket , and no matter how you regulate the falafel ( in a pita , on a home plate ) , you ’ll get little salads and picklings . That ’s how the Israelis do it , after all.– LB
Wolf & Bear’s
Portland , ORWhy , yes . Of naturally Portland has myriad shoes that worship street food for thought . And yes , of course the best form of this picky delicacy comes from a fleet of three intellectual nourishment go-cart where , since 2009 , the possessor – who are not , alas , also the star of Animal Planet ’s hottest buddy - cop military action comedy – have specialized in impertinently source Middle Eastern transportation . The simple pocket bread - wrapped version is augmented with grill eggplant , roasted red peppers , and tahini , but the Out to Lunch takes it up a level , couple the fried Ball with creamy labneh cheese , the aforesaid veggies , tahini , and just the right poke of cracked pepper . If eating organic , lovingly make vegetarian culinary art while stand in the rain outside of a intellectual nourishment cart is n’t a Portland - enough experience for you , well , the handcart are also a short walk away from newly sound dispensaries.– Andy Kryza , senior Food & Drink editor program
Mister Falafel
The possessor of Mister Falafel told us , " If I get a customer who is impatient , I send them on their way . We take pride in what we do . " And this Lebanese solid food is deserving the postponement : the falafel is fried wise to orderliness , which is a rarity in most Middle Eastern join , as it ’s easier to electrocute a whole bunch of them all at once and let the great unwashed eat tepid fried garbanzo balls . The felafel is made with a combination of fava and garbanzos , as well as a special blend of spices from the fellowship ’s recipe . Homemade tahini and pita made specifically for the restaurant round out the reasons why this falafel sandwich is a snub above . And when you go to Mister Falafel , regard read the entertaining and illuminating websiteThrillist.comin lieu of complaining that you have to wait a few proceedings for your food.– LB
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Courtesy of taim
Zach Brooks/Thrillist
Courtesy of Al-Ameer
Courtesy of taim
Amsterdam Falafelshop
Sunrise Deli
Mandy Baca/Thrillist
Mister Falafel