Chickpea

Of course, when it opened I just «had to» try it. Well, I did. Just look at that shining star.

I discovered this place by chance because I was killing time. On a weekday morning, the place is not even crowded. You can take all the time to do whatever you please, including having coffee, a sandwich. I noted mentally that I have to be back here lunch time so I can try their offerings. Staff are helpful when you show interest in what they offer. I am curious to know more about chickpea for sure…

Last time i was in this area someone crossed me and it was a wrap… ironically i decided to order a chickenWRAP with baked fries im astounded at how fresh the vegetables are here

Was excited that this place opened but it’s hard to tell what the hours of this place is. There is literally no sign outside. With the shaded window, you can’t tell if the lights are on or if there are people in there.
Otherwise food is good if slow.

I was really excited to see this being put into Journal Square. With the exceptions of the delis, there aren’t many places for me to grab quick, vegetarian fare and/​or a smoothie or juice on my way home.
Chickpea does offer vegetarian fare and smoothies. They are not quick. In fact, the process of getting service at all is very confusing. The registers are in the middle, with the Red Mango offerings to the left and the Chickpea offerings to the right. There are lots of lovely options to choose from. In addition to the standard menus, they sell some pre made salads and hummus dips, kombucha and a wide variety of other beverages, snacks, desserts, etc. I have not tried anything from the Chickpea menu, so I can not speak to the taste and quality of those menu item, with the exception of the pumpkin hummus on a bagel, which was quite good. (They have several different flavors of hummus to choose from. I don’t generally like pumpkin anything, but I wanted something different. I wasn’t over the moon about it but I didn’t regret my choice.)
The service was friendly but lackluster. My husband I ordered a juice, a breakfast combo, a bagel with hummus, and then we had a few of the beverages and snacks to purchase. The guy behind the Red Mango counter looked genuinely confused about my juice order. We waited and waited. When I looked over, he was laboriously preparing a yogurt parfait. Why had he not even started my juice yet? We weren’t sure if we should order the Chickpea stuff from another guy or wait for the juice guy to finish. I’m not even sure if Juice Dude ended up preparing our food, or if someone different jumped in to start the other part of our order. He seemed shocked that I didn’t want my bagel toasted and it took them forever to smear the hummus on the bagel and then prepare a small coffee and a breakfast sandwich for the combo. Juice Dude finally finished, and I had pretty much finished that by the time we were paid up and had everything in our order. (It was good but didn’t taste like what I chose, despite the fact that I watched him put the stuff in the juicer. It was supposed to be a Morning Mojito with mint and it tasted more like straight pear juice with a bit of greens.) Beginning to end, it probably took twenty minutes. Thankfully it was a weekend and we weren’t in a particular hurry. I haven’t returned during the week because I do not want to risk being late for work.

I believe that this restaurant got off to a slow start and that it is finally catching its stride. The staff is friendly and accommodating. Middle-​Eastern cuisine isn’t always the easiest to explain. And for me, personally, was not something I was at all familiar with, but I decided to give it a try.
The prices do appear to be high, but you will get a sufficient amount of good food. I know many falafel purists stick their nose up to baked falafel, but I personally enjoy it.
There is also a Red Mango and juice bar in this restaurant. I’ve never tried the yogurt, but the juices are always good, the fruits and vegetables are all fresh juiced to order.
If you want something quick and cheap, this isn’t your place, but if you’re looking for a good variety of Middle-​Eastern made-​to-​order style food, give Chickpea a shot.
Unsure of what to order? Start with a pocket. The Roasted Red Pepper hummus is key.

I’ve been looking forward to trying this place out and boy I’m glad I decided to today! I was thinking of having a juicy burger and great fries. However, couldn’t think of a place to pickup or deliver to me in route home. I was only going to look and head home but the wonderful food preparing began describing the various options of falafels, hummus, vegetables, etc. Next thing I knew I’m ordering: spinach & broccoli falafels, in a pita pocket with chipotle hummus. All topped with black olives, corn, … side of baked bean ranch chips. For drink I had a Red Mango strawberry and banana smoothie! Oh my goodness! What a WONDERFUL experience for my taste buds. DELICIOUS. I highly recommend stopping by for a healthy and delicious option especially after a long week surrounded by heat and humidity… ughhhh. I’m a happy camper now and ready for the weekend. GO CHICKPEA @PATHTRAVELPLAZA

The dish I tried for lunch was ok (quinua falafel), I will try a different dish next time. The employees could be friendlier. I didn’t like that an employee was not wearing a hat and touched her weave several times with her latex gloved hand. ;-(

Got 2 wraps, a coffee, and parfait this morning. Took 10mins and we were the only ones there. The iced coffee was watered down. The parfait was watered down and missing half the advertised ingredients. Obviously these guys have no idea what they are doing, and don’t see them lasting long at this location.

It’s nice to have vegetarian options. You can get this at Chickpea, and now there is a Chickpea in the Journal Square Transportation Center.
I thought this Chickpea location was clean, and the workers behind the counter were friendly and moved quickly. The food was fresh and has consistently tasted good whenever I’ve picked up orders here.
You enter the doors and move to the right side of the counter, where you place your order. Preparers will make your order in front of you as you move to the left towards the cashier.
If you don’t have time to go through this queue, then you can pick up ready-​made packages of various menu items in the cold case to the right. There are lots of cold drinks to select, too.
Also, Chickpea also has a breakfast menu and lunch/​dinner options. The Chickpea at JSQ is a convenient food option to have in the area.

Go here once a week almost. I have to drop some stars this time because the chicken kebab was not good! Threw out the other half. It had some fat and I was pulling skin off. That’s a NoNo for me. I’ll stick with the grilled chicken pieces. And when you add toppings that have liquid or sits in liquid please drain it a lil before throwing it on my wrap or the wrap gets too moist and runs down. Ok but I’m still coming back. Love the baked curly fries!

I was excited when I saw the overhead sign for this establishment installed; it meant a new place to eat in the Journal Square area, which is unarguably a rare occurrence.
Months later, I finally got a chance to visit the place. At 7pm, there were no customers present with the exception of the lady that walked in shortly behind me. Perhaps at least one member of the staff is a Unilocal enthusiast because unlike the previous reviewer, I received an explanation of the full array of options available for consumption.
I ended up ordering a wrap with grilled chicken and a wide array of vegetables and sauces. The wrap was fairly sizable following assembly, and I was anxious to try it.
My anxiety soon turned to angst as I arrived home and tasted something that had absolutely no taste. I could not detect a hint of the chicken, vegetables, sauce, or the spices at all. I at least should have been able to taste the cilantro I had chosen as well. It was as if I was consuming a bowl of lettuce that had just been washed, for all I could taste was water from the vegetables.
If it were not for the dog-​and-​pony show given by the staff with regards to the options, I would have given this establishment a dreaded one-​star review. I will try this place again in a few months, if it is even still open during that time.
My personal recommendation is to walk over to the Halal food cart near White Castle. For $ 2 less than the $ 8 you would spend at Chickpea, you can get a delicious meat and rice platter. While such a platter only includes lettuce, I’d rather have tasty meat and lettuce rather than a large quantity of vegetables that is completely devoid of flavor.

Looks good. Looks like NYC. But the experience is pure Jersey City. :-/​. Trying to get a clear explanation of how the menu is set up and what the options are leads to a hostile exchange. I shrug and walk away.