Ali’s King Falafel

I went in for falafel last night for the second time.
My first experience left me feeling sick but I decided to write that off as a stomach bug. It wasn’t a bug– same thing again.
When I got home to unwrap my falafel it was totally undercooked. The lettuce inside tasted a little like metal– maybe it was unwashed? The turnip was soggy.
No third chance for this place.

My last lunch visit, the owner was not working there and my falafel sandwich was not very appealing. There was new person working there and he didn’t fry the falafel long enough, so what I got were raw mushy falafel balls, not very appealing.
I will only get my falafel sandwich here when the owner is present (for a 4-​star falafel).

This place is a hidden gem and I feel like they deserve more love and support from the local community. Ok, so the atmosphere is a tad depressing and the TV seems to always be tuned in to TVO. Forget all that… let’s talk about the food! Because that’s King Falafel’s strong-​suit. I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say that it is the best Middle Eastern food in the west end of the city (in the under $ 10 price range). The care that the owner/​operators take in preparing each dish is a lesson to us all. Like the first reviewer said, it’s like they are food designers at a food photo shoot. With that in mind, i’d say that the chicken shawarma is the sexiest little dish they have on the menu ;)
If you’re looking for a generous, delicious and sexy meal… visit Ali’s King Falafel… but get the shawarma: P
p. s. you *have* to try the spicy fries… so addictive.

I think I need to be drunk or debilitatingly hungover to sit inside Ali’s Falafel again. The lighting is depressing, the couch up front rates an ⁸⁄₁₀ in terms of griminess, and the episode of Deal or No Deal blaring on the television set certainly didn’t help matters.
However, the guy on staff was so thorough and seemed to treat every order with care — it took some time to compile my falafel platter, but I felt like he was putting in the effort of a food designer at a photo shoot. The platter was pretty and huge — enough to sustain me for two meals. However, despite being freshly made, the actual falafels were a bit too dry — even the hummus and garlic sauce included in the plate weren’t enough to dampen the taste. However, the chicken shawarma looked nice and juicy, and the roti selection here is vast.
My suggestion? Get whatever you have to go. My hum-​drum experience may have been improved sans Howie Mandel.