How Does Falafel At Alan’s Halal Stack Up Against The Competition?
A while back I was busted by a street cart owner enjoying a falafel platter from his competition across the street, Moshe’s Falafel Truck. The man told me the falafel at his cart, Alan’s Halal, was better. Then, this discussion popped up in the forums about this awesome falafel at a cart on Water & Old Slip which turns out to be none other than Alan’s. This sounded like something worth investigating but it wasn’t until this week that I was able to both check out the cart owner’s claim that his falafel was fabulous, and see if it was a good deal. Update: Turns out there was some confusion about the name of this cart, and it’s Alan’s, not Adel’s.
A lot of people are already fans of this cart if I’m judging solely by the length of the line when I got there. The man who had suggested I come to his cart was hard at work inside with a woman who I’m guessing is his wife that Alan informs me is not his wife. I placed my order for falafel over rice, and he turned around and got to work scooping balls from a container and putting them into the fryer. This was a promising sign because how many times have you gotten soggy falafel that had clearly been fried ages ago?
I opened the container and was greeted by a tan sea of tahini. When I said yes to tahini, I also said yes to it being dipped out of a container with a ladle and dumped all over everything. They’re clearly proud of what’s being served because it was mentioned more than once while the ladling was happening that the tahini was not only very good, but homemade. In addition to the eight falafel balls, there was also some homemade hummus scooped into the corner. The hot sauce was barely noticeable but it’s thin with a vinegary flavor.
The falafel were really phenomenal, and I can’t often say that about things I try from carts. As a couple of you lunchers noted, there’s a distinctive flavor in here that makes them a bit tangy and there’s also some black pepper flavor. The tahini was light years ahead of most white sauce you find at a standard cart that tastes strongly of mayo. For once I didn’t mind that my food was drowned in sauce. The hummus was also really good, and the rice was top notch and not dry at all.
At $5 this is truly a bargain and if you work nearby and like falafel it’s definitely worth checking out. I also agree that Alan’s falafel trumps Moshe’s, and is a lot cheaper, too.
THE + (What somebody who likes this place would say)
- The falafel are fried to order, and you get eight of them.
- Homemade tahini sauce is way better than the standard “white sauce.”
- They automatically give you hummus.
THE — (What somebody who doesn’t like this place would say)
- The hot sauce is kind of weak.
- Why do they have to drown my food in tahini?
Alan’s Halal Cart, Old Slip at Water St.
Posted by Andrea H at 9:30 am, July 20th, 2011 under Alan's Halal Cart, Cart, Falafel, Financial District, Vegetarian.
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I work in Brooklyn now. One off the things I miss the most about downtown is Adel’s. The falafel is as awesome as advertised but the street meat is even better. The best downtown since I lost sight of Zack. Big Bonus with Adel’s. There is a building with a big public atrium right behind it. So Adel’s has an air-conditioned dining area! Nothing to sneeze at in July. And the cab drivers pull up and eat at Adel’s. That should tell you something. Top recommendation.