Falafel and 99 Cent Pizza at the Prince Deli

*********THE PRINCE DELI IS NOW CLOSED*********

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DSC00177 I admit it.  This post should have been done a long time ago.  And I don’t have an excuse. I’ve walked by the Prince Deli (on 3rd Ave. btw. 43+44th) so many times in the past two years, and never once have I pulled the trigger.  Admittedly, I usually hate generic Midtown delis like this, but the Prince has two things going for it. 1) 99 Cent Pizza.  How can you not?  And 2) a falafel sandwich that was touted by the New York Daily News as “the best in the neighborhood.”  The article has proudly hung in the storefront for awhile now (although there is no date on it, so lord knows how long ago this was written.)

Anyway, I finally took the plunge last week, testing out their two signature dishes. 

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Prince is one of only three 99 cents pizza places left in Midtown, and it’s probably the worst of the three.  Even more unfortunate is the fact that one of the other ones (99 Cent Fresh Pizza on 43rd btw. Lex+3rd) is right around the corner.  The slice I had was pretty bad, and even though no 99 cent slice is going to be outstanding, the 99 Cent Fresh Pizza slice is fresher and better.  If you are lucky enough to get a fresh slice from Prince, maybe it would be slightly better… but overall I’d skip it. (Btw… Z Deli on 8th Avenue is the only other 99 cent slice in Midtown)

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The falafel was a completely different story.  I was kind of skeptical that this place was pumping out one of the better falafels in the neighborhood, but truth be told it was pretty damn good.  The whole wheat pita was kind of dry, and fell apart but the falafels themselves were really delicious.  A really good spice mixture gave the falafel a really interesting sweetness that you don’t get at many other places.  And most importantly it wasn’t dry at all.  Good bread or not, at $4.50 it’s kind of a steal these days. Since the pita left a little bit to be desired, maybe the falafel platter is the way to go. 

Lesson:  Don’t write off generic Midtown delis that have been praised by the New York Daily News?

THE +

  • A slice of pizza is only 99 cents
  • The falafel has a really good spice mixture, and is not as dry as you would expect
  • Great spicy red sauce
  • Falafel sandwich is only $4.50

THE –

  • The whole wheat pita the sandwich came on was a little stale and kind of fell apart
  • The 99 cent pizza is not that good, and not that fresh
  • 99 Cent Fresh Pizza (right around the corner) is better

Prince Deli, 690 3rd Ave. (btw. 43+44th) 212) 661-2240‎

20 Comments

  • Love the Blog, but Phish just announced their triumphant reunion today and all you can talk about is pizza and falafel? How about a Fish for Phish section counting down until the date of the reunion – focus on a bomb fish dish in Midtown or something. I don’t know, I just pheel like Phish needs a shout out on this blog. I mean, today is HUGE! Its happening all over again.

  • I love this falafel! They make their own pita, so if you go early, you can get one right out of the oven. Haven’t tried their other stuff, but it does look good.

  • It’s great that it’s just a few doors down from Crisp, which charges almost 10 bucks for a falafel sandwich. I can deal with a little dry pita for 4.50…Good looking out, Zack!

  • Phish? I hope not, why don’t you just put on your berkinstocks and go get high already, ya hippie! This place is about food not craptastic music.

    Now if the Pogues we’re playing….

  • Let’s hope the food is better than the signage.

    How much is a slice again?

    ….and WTF is Grill Chicken?

  • ive eaten here…the pizza tastes like they use government cheese…and ketchup.

  • Phish = whatevs, Prince falafel = YES

  • noooooooo, this is my secret breakfast place! okay fine, if you must know, they do wicked bacon-egg-cheese rolls for $2 in the morning. TWO BUCKS! you can also do sausage-egg-cheese for the same price. now you know. ::dramatic sigh::

    but i don’t like their lunch stuff.

  • Amazingly, your pizza looks better than the slice Brownie and I had there.

  • Mamacita, report to my office for Rum, Sodomy & The Lash

  • I like the wash of your jeans.

  • (Did that sound too romantical?)

  • The fact that Phish is back together is the only thing better than 4.50 falafel

    See ya at Hampton

  • YES! I knew I could find ONE person excited about Phish on here. lost in sydney, I will be there with you, buddy.

    Mamacita, done and done.

  • Phish? Really? All I wanted to do was learn about some great new eats and now there are Phish fans in my face. Fuck off get a job.

  • Yea – really in your face – You could have just ignored the comment. I happen to have a great job. Sweet life you have – I only wish I could be less content and more irritable, like you.

  • dont sleep on prince deli’s breakfast sandwiches either. bacon+egg+cheese for $2 is pretty sweet.
    and im with pretty much everyone else here when i say, “phish? really?”
    to open up a comment section on a food blog with a comment about phish is mind boggling. but maybe thats because i hate phish.

  • I had my first Prince Deli Falafel today. It was awesome. First, it is BS that they bake their own breads. All of their wraps and pitas come out of commercial plastic bags sitting right in front of you as you order. Second observation, everyone ahead of me in line ordered the falafel in a wrap and not in a traditional pita. Who was I to buck the trend? – so I did the same. They throw the wrap under a sandwich press for a few minutes – nice. Finally, take a bite and you will experience a flavor explosion in your mouth. They go heavy on the sauces (tabouli?, hot sauce, eggplant, homus) and they throw coleslaw and pickles on top of a bunch of other veggies. The spicey, vinergery, sweetness almost overwhelms the three tasty fried falafels. But it all works and it was really good!

  • PRINCE DELI IS CLOSED! I read this great long review on the place, and worked up a good appetite only to find they went out of business. I ended up getting a vietnamese sandwich from a new place a few doors down. Pretty good actually.

  • Sigh Rob, you’re not alone…I read this amazing review and walked over there drooling…I made the mistake of not reading these comments :(

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