Pita Village

Wow. Did the woman actually just pretend to give us an extra quarter slice of tomato? Yes, yes she did.
Never have I met another shawarma restaurant owner who was so stingy. And never have I had shawarma that was not freshly shaved off. I should have known there was a catch to being able to have chicken AND beef in one pita!
I know cravings are powerful, folks, but just please don’t give into pita village.

I had just finished at the gym, and as a vegan, there really aren’t many options for a quick dose of protein.
I was craving falafels, and too lazy to walk down the street to the safe choice of Ali Baba’s. I decided to ignore the fact that I have NEVER seen anyone eating here, ever, in my entire time as a neighbour/​student, and give the desperate looking staff a chance.
When my bill came up to 7.50, I was a bit taken aback– Ali Baba’s falafel and drink combo is normally around 5 or 6 after tax. This has better be good…
Resounding «meh.» First bite was OK, but I couldn’t finish my sandwich. And I’m the girl who grabs your unwanted leftovers out of your hand, no matter what it is. I never leave a plate empty! I’m still so hungry, but every time I try to eat this sandwich the groggy feeling in the pit of my stomach cries and begs me not to.
Yes, there were a lot of toppings to choose from. But the selection seemed to have been left out all week. Everything was limp and unappetizing. The lettuce looked so unhappy that I couldn’t bring myself to add it to my sandwich. There’s weird little black specks in the hummus, but when I asked her what it was she asked «what black stuff?!» Ew. I decided to try the chick pea coleslaw in my sandwich, big mistake. The chick peas tasted like stale marbles, no moisture whatsoever. Every time I bit into one, I grimaced. That same weird black stuff was on it, and it ended up coagulating in the bottom of my pita.
The falafel balls are crunchy, but not in a good way. Like they’ve been re-​fried six times before they were served to me.
I added a star because the staff seems really sweet, and kind of depressed. But these folks need a revamp stat, this overpriced and underwhelming food just isn’t going to cut it.

This place is actually terrible. They have so many toppings to hide the fact that their falafels taste like shit. I am eating leftovers from earlier because Loblaws is closed, I have no food at home, and am a masochist.
My falafel (possibly the worst falafel I have ever had in my entire life, and that’s saying something) also cost me $ 7.50, which is almost twice the cost of a falafel anywhere else (ie Ali Baba’s, which even has two for one falafel deals! crazay!). I have always seen the people working here look sad that the places beside them got way more business, and I always felt a little sad for them, but no longer. The product is absolutely terrible, they probably have no repeat customers. Service was not very friendly either (eesh dude it wouldn’t kill ya to smile would it?), but honestly what I can’t get past is the combination of expensive and disgusting. Avoid this place, go to Karine’s next door. They’re way cheaper and it’s actually fucking amazing!

Pita Village boasts more toppings than ANYONE, ANYWHERE. Here’s their list:
1. Lettuce
2. Coleslaw
3. Onion
4. Hot Pepper
5. Tabouleh
6. Tomato
7. Beets
8. Turnips
9. Chick Peas
11. Cabbage
12. Carrot
13. Parsley
14. Pita Chips
15. Hummus
16. Sumac
17. Garlic Sauce
18. Tahineh
19. Hot Sauce
20. KETCHUP
Wow. Not sure why they the feel the need to emphasize ketchup, but they do. Anyway, Pita Village is still rocking the Pita World.