Nanoosh Mediterranean Cuisine in Greenwich Village, NYC, New York

Still looking for cheap places near Union Square, we ended up at Nanoosh, a restaurant serving Mediterranean food. The place was packed so we imagined that there was a reason for it. The dining room was pretty big with high ceilings adding to the impression of volume. They sat us at the communal wooden table. 

The menu is supposed to be on the healthy side, featuring salads (Greek, greens, tabbouleh, quinoa...), hummus plates (with falafel, chicken, beef...), wraps or for an even healthier version, bowls, that are in a way or to simplify this post, a different version of the salads or hummus plates they propose. 

We decided to go for hummus plates. The hummus can be plain (original) or made with roasted red peppers. It is made daily with fresh organic chickpeas. 

Jodi decided to go for the falafel hummus plate. 

And I ordered the chicken hummus plate.

Sandwiches at Bite in the East Village NYC, New York

Continuing our exploration of the cheap eateries near Union Square, we ended up at Bite, a small restaurant that serves Mediterranean / Middle Eastern food.

Their menu offers and interesting variety of dishes: salads, soups or sandwiches, chili (???)...I was surprised however that they did not serve falafel!

We decided to order two sandwiches. The first one was the Middle Eastern mushrooms:

It was composed of sauteed mushrooms, hummus, goat cheese and Middle Eastern salad. The bread was ciabatta. The first bite was good, especially because they put a lot of goat cheese, but I could not get past the texture of the mushrooms that were probably canned. They would have used fresh mushrooms, this sandwich would have been fantastic!

The other sandwich was the Sabih:

Hummus Bowl at the Hummus Bar in Hoboken, NJ

How many hummus joints will open in Hoboken??? Well, after I guess a tough competition, two of them already closed: Ibby's falafel and Maoz. I have been a big fan of Mamoun's falafel and was eager to try his competitor, The Hummus Bar, located not far from it! I was more eager when one of my colleagues, Sonnali, mentioned that she went there and had some Indian flavored dish that was apparently delicious. So I was wondering what the menu would be as I imagined before, that a Hummus Bar would simply serve the traditional Middle Eatsern dishes: hummus, falafel, shawarma...Looking at the menu, I realized that it was not the case and that they showcased some interesting combination: Italian, Indian, Greek...

So we decided to try it. We picked two different Hummus bowls. A Hummus bowl is a the equivalent of a plate rather than a sandwich where the bottom of the plate is spread with hummus (classic, black olive and herbs...). You can even decide to replace the hummus by guacamole (not sure I would try that there) or babaganouj. 

Jodi ordered the Hoboken Hummus Bowl with classic hummus.

The Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia, PA

You cannot go to Philadelphia without visiting the Reading Terminal Market! This place has some incredible food! Not all the food is good, but they have some little gems there!

I love going to this kind of places where there are so many different merchants that you do not know where to go and what to eat! They serve: meat, fish, vegetables, ice cream, pastries... And then, you can eat French (crepes!), Thai, Italian, Middle Eastern...

Each time we went to Philly, we stopped there!

Afghan Kebab House #1 in NYC, New York

Few weeks ago, we met a lovely couple in a wedding and we ended up (of course) taking about food. They mentioned the Afghan Kebab House as being a good spot to eat some kebab. I love kebab because of the incredible aroma that the spices will give to the meat while cooking.

So we decided to go. We enter in the restaurant; it is dark inside and there is one only guy sitting at a table, waiting for his food. The decor is made of murals and carpets. I noticed immediately that there is no music in the background; the only noise we hear is the one from the construction outside. 

When they give us the menu, I understand from the cover that we are at the Afghan Kebab House Number 1! Yes, there are several in New York City. At the time of writing this post, I count eight of them.

Happy 4th Of July! Don't get the Crisp!

Hoboken is going to be crazy today as it is the best spot to see the Macy's fireworks! Imagine that people already started to setup their spot in the parks along the Hudson river in this heat!

Smartly, the city allowed some food trucks to settle next to the ferry. Considering the number of people who will come in the afternoon and tonight, they will get some good business! The trucks we saw are:

Falafel at Azuri Cafe in NYC, New York

We decided to try Azuri Cafe in NYC, New York as some say that it is the best falafel in the City; better than Taim, Mamoun's, etc...

The place is very small with only 4 tables. We saw the owner there who not only did not say hello, but was very grumpy. Well, we went there for the food, not the owner! Anyway, they play on it as they quoted the NY Times who in 1999 said:

"With just a few rickety tables, Azuri Cafe, a kosher Israeli restaurant and takeout shop, is not the most stylish place around. It's not the friendliest, either. But when you taste the food, you can see where the gruff owner, Ezra Cohen, puts his energy. ".

Then, on their website they wrote: "A place you want to call home"! Really? Maybe for the food, but not for the owner for sure!

The place serves vegetarian as well as non vegetarian specialties. You can find Shawarma Gyro (isn't it kind of the same?) that is made with chicken, beef or chicken shish Kebab (where is the lamb?), chicken liver or falafel. The problem is that they do not describe their menu and a lot of dishes clearly either needed a description or a definition! Considering the personality of the owner, I could not picture myself asking him questions. Especially after I ordered the Shak Shuka plate (I wanted to see if it was the shekshouka) and he responded in a growl that it would take 25 minutes! So we just ordered falafel.

The cook (who was nicer) prepared them. He first fried the falafel. Then, opened a whole wheat pita (we did not have a choice between whole wheat and white as other customers who came after did) and stuffed in it hummus, red cabbage, taboule...and of course the falafel. They topped the sandwich with tahini sauce and pickles.

The sandwich was big for sure. You immediately notice the crunchiness of the falafel. They were very good and I did not detect any greasiness. The sandwich was overall good, but was missing some flavor. 

I definitely prefer Taim not only for the sandwich, but also because their menu is more original with sandwiches like the Shabish that was delicious! So, in the battle between Azuri Cafe and Taim, Taim won!

The owner would have been nicer, it would not have changed my mind...

Enjoy (I almost did)!

Falafel at Taim in NYC, New York

In my quest for the best falafel, I decided to try Taim (pronounce Ta-eem) in the West Village. Taim means in Hebrew tasty, delicious. Seems a bit pretentious, no? So let see!

First, the place is tiny and you can only sit on one of the stools near the window or outside, on a bench. If the restaurant is packed, as it seems it can be, this can be a problem....Especially as there is no park nearby where you can enjoy your sandwich!

Anyway, I am there for the falafel and even this small detail cannot stop me. 

Mamoun's falafel in Hoboken, NJ

Did you notice that there are more and more restaurants proposing falafel as the main specialty? There is Maoz, Taim and Mamoun's falafel, Moishe's falafels. Yes, falafels are definitely good when well done, meaning for me: good chickpea taste (not too many breadcrumbs please), cooked all the way through, crunchy and not oily. People debate about the benefits of falafels. The pros:

• it is only chickpeas, no meat.
• low calories: 50 to 60 per ball.
• High in protein, iron and fiber.

The cons:

• it is deep fried.
• a falafel pita can contain up to 550 calories and 32 grams of fat.

Ali Baba in Hoboken, NJ

This post has nothing to do with the tale of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves! It is a restaurant located in Hoboken, NJ, that I heard whose owner is of Lebanese origin. It is one of my favorite Middle Eastern restaurant in the area, with good food and good prices. The restaurant is nicely decorated and the service courteous and good.

The photos above are from their vegetarian party platter that serves 3 to 4 people. I love this platter, although I just realized that they closed to double its price(!!!): you can pick 5 different appetizers: from hummus to baba ganoush (both I believe homemade), to taboule or falafel. They always add delicious olives and peppers, and are very generous with the pita (packaged)! The falafel are small and crispy, never greasy. The taboule is typical, very tasty and fresh. A great platter if you have a party (hence its name!).

I also love their sandwiches that are served in a pita. My favorite is the tandoori chicken one. It is a bit messy to eat because of all the sauce they put, but it is so good that I do not care at all! They also serve other typical dishes like couscous or kufta (type of meat patty).

For dessert, they serve baklava: sometimes good, sometimes too dry. Not the place to go for dessert for me!

Last, if you want, you can enjoy some Hookah (instrument for smoking flavored tobacco in which the smoke is passed through a water basin before inhalation), but I cannot comment about that!

Leave me a comment to tell me if you shared the same experience or what you think about this post!

Enjoy (I did)!

And remember: I just want to eat!

My Shawarma! At The Halal Guys Food Cart in NYC, New York

I already mentioned a food cart SW corner of 53rd and 6 avenue in New York.They are called the Halal Guys. They are wearing yellow sweaters, but in fact, in each corner of 53rd, either on 6th or 7th avenue, you see the same yellow sweater.

I really think you should try it.
Here are few reasons:

- I have never been sick eating there. I know that some people are scared to eat at food carts. It is true that they do not have the grades like restaurants and not all of them maintain some hygiene standards.. 

- The food is delicious. The lamb gyro is my favorite! The meat is cooked perfectly and is very tasty. It is a bit burnt, giving a nice taste to it.

- it is cheap compared to a Shawarma you would eat in a restaurant.

I also tried the rice platter, but did not really like it: the rice was too dry. Definitely the sandwich is better!

The legend says that these guys are so profitable that they turned down a $1 million offer on their license! After seeing the number of people waiting in line, I am not surprised!

Try it and enjoy (I did)!

And remember: I just want to eat!

Restaurant review - Kosher Deluxe (NYC)

I love Shawarma! If you are scared of the carts in the street and their "side effects", I suggest you try Kosher Deluxe located midtown. Ok, this restaurant is serving a wide range of food: Middle Eastern, japanese, chinese...I have only tried the Shawarma and the falafel and they were delish! They serve it in different ways: pita, baguette or plate and you can pick Hummus and / or hot sauce. Each sandwich is coming with salad (there is a salad bar) also very good, for a little over $10.

So, what is Shawarma? It is a Middle Eastern sandwich with pieces of lamb, goat, chicken, turkey, or a halal mixture of meats that cooked on a spit for sometimes an entire day. The way the meat is cooked is very important: it has to be upright to give that wonderful taste. Some argue that Shawarma is different from a Gyro because a Gyro is a mixed of beef and lamb. 

If you are adventurous, try the gyro in the cart situated at the corner of 6 avenue and 53rd street. It is well known and very good. But make sure you go to the South West corner cart, otherwise, if you go to the South East side cart, you will probably understand what I meant by "side effects".

Enjoy!