This bustling food cart-turned-restaurant dishes out some of the city's best falafel and shawarma, with generous portions and vibrant flavors that keep locals coming back for more.
"Evolved from a well-known Palestinian food truck that opened a permanent location in 2015, King of Falafel & Shawarma offers its own spin on Levantine classics. The compact shop provides comfortable seating and a politicized clubhouse atmosphere in which all are made welcome, and the kebabs are righteously grilled over charcoal. The hummus topped with fava beans is particularly fine, and so are the triangular spinach pies." - Eater Staff
"This middle-eastern food-truck is ten notches above the rest. There are few places in NYC that serve falafel, chicken and shawarma at this level of quality. But don’t just take our word for it. They are winners of the prestigious Vendy award (the Oscars of food) and have been reviewed by several prominent food critics. First-timers should get one of the mixed platters with all the toppings (lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, and turnips + white, hot, and tahini sauce)." - MSLK
"This Queens street cart won a Vendy Award a few years back, which is pretty much the same thing as getting knighted if you sell food from something with wheels on it for a living. The King makes football shaped falafel that sit perfectly in a sandwich, and that’s what you’ll want to be eating if you visit. Ask for extra pickled turnip." - chris stang
"King of Falafel and Shawarma, Long Island City by MSLK. This middle-eastern food-truck is ten notches above the rest. There are few places in NYC that serve falafel, chicken and shawarma at this level of quality. But don’t just take our word for it. They are winners of the prestigious Vendy award (the Oscars of food) and have been reviewed by several prominent food critics. First-timers should get one of the mixed platters with all the toppings (lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, and turnips + white, hot, and tahini sauce)."
"A map of Palestine hangs on the wall at this Astoria mainstay founded by Freddy Zeideia, who started with a food truck in 2002 before it upgraded to a restaurant in 2015. It strives to have some of the city’s best falafel and shawarma, but the menu offers many other notable dishes, including flame-grilled kebabs and qudia, a quintessential Jerusalem breakfast or luncheon dish of hummus topped with fava beans, zapped with a sprightly green sauce. The original cart now often parks at East 53rd Street and Park Avenue in Manhattan." - Robert Sietsema
