214911 Tue Oct 12 00:30:05 -0700 2004 32 18 Manhattan 0 1144337 2 questions - first off, whats the difference between israeli falafel and other falafel? i fell in love with it in israel, but cant find any that i love here...am i eating the wrong kind? where to get amazing israli style falafel in nyc? 5 star or street vendor...dont care, as long as its good! Tue Oct 12 00:30:05 -0700 2004 0 m.g.l. 1 1144343 I've never been to Israel (but have been elsewhere in the Middle East). I've found that Chickpea on 3rd Ave just off St. Mark's, in the old St. Mark's pizza space, serves falafel that is delicious and a bit different than the usual run of NYC places. It's also definitely Israeli-run, so maybe it's close to what you're looking for. Tue Oct 12 01:37:28 -0700 2004 1144337 0 Detroit-NYC Al 2 1144346 Agreed. I'm at Chickpea 5x a week. Falafel is the best in New York. Turkey Shwarama is amazing as well. Make sure to get lots of hot sauce and tehini. Tue Oct 12 02:23:59 -0700 2004 1144343 0 Josh 3 1144391 I personally prefer Azuri to Chickpea. Tue Oct 12 11:18:18 -0700 2004 1144346 0 a&w 3 1144407 Chickpea is good but I think Azuri is slightly better- everything is made with a bit more care. Tue Oct 12 11:47:51 -0700 2004 1144346 0 josh L 3 1144821 I admire the place, but I'm not a big fan of the turkey shawarma. The meat is cut up in small pieces that have a bit of a rubbery texture. I do enjoy the falafel and the lentil soup. Wed Oct 13 19:47:21 -0700 2004 1144346 0 Peter Cuce 1 1144345 Here's a link that explains some of the differences between the types of falafels out there. Link: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/191247#1021365 Tue Oct 12 02:03:17 -0700 2004 1144337 0 Eric Eto 2 1144397 Eric, I've seen similar information before, but I have to admit I'm confused. Azuri is run by an israeli, but the falafel is dark and green (I'm not sure if it's fava or chickpeas). I also seem to recall that Chickpea serves dark green falafel but it's obviously made with chickpeas. Is the distinction Jim describes really accurate? I've always thought Israeli style was more a reference to the different salads that go into the falafel. Never having been to israel, however, I'm certainly no expert. Can anyone explain the distinction more? Also, here are some other excellent falafel places: Azuri (51st off 10th Ave) Hoomoos Asli (Kenmare off Lafayette) Alfanoose (check board for new location) Penguin Cafe (15th off 8th Ave) Tue Oct 12 11:28:00 -0700 2004 1144345 0 a&w 3 1144406 Israeli falafel isn't either green or chickpea-colored. It can be either. The way that I differentiate is more by flavor. Israeli falafel tastes much different than say, Jordanian falafel. I wish that I could isolate the spices for you, but my palate isn't that refined. Next time you're at Chickpea or Azuri, ask about which spices are used, and then compare those to the ones used at Jordanian/Egyptian joints. Tue Oct 12 11:46:22 -0700 2004 1144397 0 EMA 4 1144421 I will ask, but not at Azuri. Ezra already hates me because I always order his stuff sans Israeli salad. I think he takes it personally. Tue Oct 12 12:14:52 -0700 2004 1144406 0 a&w 4 1144431 "Israeli" falafel is a misnomer. Israel is a country of immigrants. It depends on whether or not the Israeli making the falafel is from Egypt or Syria or Lebanon or Morocco, or... Tue Oct 12 12:54:17 -0700 2004 1144406 0 Nina W. 5 1144442 Ridiculous. Almost anyone here can testify that Israeli falafel is distinct from other Middle Eastern falafel. If you want proof, head to Israel, then go to Jordan or Turkey. Absent that, try Chickpea or Azuri Cafe or Olive Tree Cafe for that matter, then go to Mamoun's, or Yatagan. Tue Oct 12 13:30:06 -0700 2004 1144431 0 Josh 6 1144449 I lived in Israel for 2 years. I have spent time in Jordan and Egypt. I lived (in NY) with a Syrian-Israeli boyfriend for 2 years and traveled to Israeli with him several times. I just spoke to Ezra at Azuri, who agreed completely with what I said above. Tue Oct 12 13:48:13 -0700 2004 1144442 0 Nina W. 7 1144451 Interesting then, because your experience contrasts 180 degrees with mine. As for Ezra, not sure what he said, but I'd be interested in hearing a more full explanation from him. Tue Oct 12 13:50:41 -0700 2004 1144449 0 Josh 5 1144447 Israel is a country of immigrants, but that doesn't mean that all food produced in Israel comes from somewhere else. Can bissli and bamba be traced back to Europe or Spain?! Those fried balls of chickpeas which may have originated somewhere else were over time morphed into what I consider 'Israeli falafel'. It has many distinctions from those kinds that I tasted while in Jordan, Egypt, and Turkey. That's not to say that falafel throughout Israel is uniform, but overall, I noted a clear difference between Israeli and non-Israeli varieties. Tue Oct 12 13:39:37 -0700 2004 1144431 0 EMA 6 1144453 Can you elaborate on some of the characteristics of the "morphed" Israeli-style felafel? I hear what you are trying to say, but am trying to get a better understanding, especially in light of what some other posters are saying about the purported nonexistence of that style. Thanks, PDS Tue Oct 12 13:56:57 -0700 2004 1144447 0 PuertaDelSol 7 1144461 It's so hard because I can't translate the taste into words. The best I can do is say that it usually boils down to the spices and accompaniments. Israelis eat falafel with all sorts of things on top, most famously french fries, which differentiates their style from others. Tomatoes, cucumbers, hot sauce and tehina are pretty standard across the board. Also, when I was in Jordan especially, a lot of the falafel had a cinnamony taste to it which I'd never encountered on the other side of the river. In terms of preparation, in Israel I found that more often than not, the falafel was fried after you ordered it, so it would be crispier than the falafel I tried elsewhere which was sometimes served at room temp. Already mentioned is that the Israeli balls are always chickpea, while foul may be used in Egypt. I really enjoyed all of the different renditions, and always looked forward to a new variety. Hope this helps! Tue Oct 12 14:31:59 -0700 2004 1144453 0 EMA 5 1144579 Exactly, Nina! Read my post about the yellow/green thing below! Tue Oct 12 21:46:36 -0700 2004 1144431 0 Janie 3 1144409 I'm a big fan of Hoomoos Asli (particularly for the hoomoos falafel dish). And, for the record, the folks are Israeli (many of the waitresses are obviously recent arrivals) and the falafel is quite green. Tue Oct 12 11:56:18 -0700 2004 1144397 0 big o 3 1144411 Found an interesting article that may explain things a bit. Link: http://www.e-cookbooks.net/articles/chickpea.htm Tue Oct 12 11:59:45 -0700 2004 1144397 0 Raymond 4 1144420 Absolutely fascinating. It also conforms with my own limited experience: "Until recently, Israel's most notable contribution to its evolution has been to cram novel accompaniments, from shredded beets to French fries, into falafel sandwiches." Tue Oct 12 12:13:27 -0700 2004 1144411 0 a&w 3 1144430 "Is the distinction Jim describes really accurate?" Like all food distinctions, it's highly useful but certainly not hermetic. I stated it too absolutely. One thing's certain: there are two types of falafal: chickpea (yellow innards) and fava (greenish innards). Do some Israel chefs use fava and some Arab chefs use chickpeas? You bet, and for all sorts of reasons (including pandering to what they think their customers want). But in general, the Arab/fava Israelis/chickpeas is a useful, though definitely not 100% consistent, rule of thumb. BTW, terms like "Arab" and "Israeli" are ambiguous and contentious. I'm hoping anyone inclined to take offense will realize that I'm just in it all for the chow, and mean no insult. ciao Tue Oct 12 12:53:50 -0700 2004 1144397 0 Jim Leff 4 1144484 Like some food distinctions, it's sort of wrong. Anyway, as others have suggested, the main differentiating factor (more so than the falafel balls) is the set of salads available in a typical Israeli falafel shop. Cabbage, beets (or turnips), onion and sumac, fried eggplant, tahini, green and red hot "salsas", mango chutney (amba) and other salads combine to create a dish that, as another poster wrote, is hard to define but easy to recognize. Village Shawarma, for example, produces falafel balls that are horrible, imho, but the overall flavor of their sandwich is as "Israeli" as I've tasted over here. Another point raised here was the use of cinnamon in Falafel, which I've seen in Lebanese and other recipes, but not in Israel. This is not to say that there aren't Falafel joints in Israel where you'll get a nearly identical sandwich to the one at Mamoun's, but they're the minority. Tue Oct 12 15:37:52 -0700 2004 1144430 0 Orik 5 1144489 Orik, have you been to Famous Pita in Brooklyn? Tue Oct 12 15:56:15 -0700 2004 1144484 0 Nina W. 6 1144549 That's on the outer boroughs board. (no, I haven't, I don't venture out to Brooklyn often enough) Tue Oct 12 19:01:25 -0700 2004 1144489 0 Orik 7 1144589 Ya gotta go. Better yet, we'll go together. It's just a few blocks from DiFara's :-) Tue Oct 12 23:24:51 -0700 2004 1144549 0 Nina W. 8 1144647 And it's newly renovated complete with a kosher sushi bar! Wed Oct 13 10:28:21 -0700 2004 1144589 0 josh L 9 1144688 Ha! Wed Oct 13 11:51:14 -0700 2004 1144647 0 Nina W. 4 1144578 I have several Israeli Moroccan and Israeli Iraqi, and Israeli Egyptian friends, and the statement that all falafel that is green inside is made with fava beans is not true. In fact, I am allergic to fava beans, and have had falafel prepared by these friends, and by several restaurants, that do not use fava beans, they use chickpeas and create a paste with onion, garlic, parsley and fresh coriander--this is what creates the green color inside. This is the falafel that I love, not the yellow dry tasteless versions that you see so many places. The difference between Israeli, and Arabic falafel, is that the arabic version is with fava beans, this is how it is preferred, and it is from the Arabs that the Israeli's and specifically the Egyptian Israeli's learned to make it. In fact, Israeli's that are Egyptian, prefer it with the fava beans. I had superb falafel yesterday, at Hapisgah glatt kosher restaurant in Kew Garden Hills, smallish round balls, beautifully green and fresh inside, not soggy, not dry perfect texture, and no grease outside or inside, just a crunch the way it should be. They know what they're doing there, and they are Israeli Iraqui's! Hope this helps clarify the yellow/green thing....! Tue Oct 12 21:44:42 -0700 2004 1144430 0 Janie 1 1144352 Ali Baba is Israeli & delicious. Tue Oct 12 08:38:49 -0700 2004 1144337 0 Raymond 1 1144402 Murray's Falafel on First Avenue near 15th Street serves superb Israeli-style falafel. Tue Oct 12 11:34:00 -0700 2004 1144337 0 jbeton 1 1144438 Though its origin is uncertain, it is believed that Falafel originally came from Egypt. The word "falafel" is actually an ancient Egyptian word composed of three sections: Fa - worked of, made of La - many, lots Fel - beans Tue Oct 12 13:12:17 -0700 2004 1144337 0 Hmmm 1 1145769 my all time fave is on Saint Mark's on the corner of 1st Avenue - hole in the wall - best falafel I've ever had Tue Oct 19 23:10:00 -0700 2004 1144337 0 emily