Food by Stef - Falafels

FOOD..................by Stef

Falafels

Fulfilling on student budget

"No more ramen noodles!" the flyer read. It was posted last fall on a telephone pole along South University. Closer examination revealed an ad for jobs in the university's dining halls. It offered the chance to make some cash, make some friends, and eat unlimited meals for free - hence the promised deliverance from ramen noodles. Now, it has been many years since I had to eat college cafeteria food, but I imagine it wouldn't be too long before ramen noodles seemed a welcome relief. On the other hand, a lean student budget needn't preclude an occasional quality meal prepared in a restaurant. And one meal which is reliably cheap, nutritious, and plentiful in Ann Arbor is the falafel sandwich.

Falafels sound great on paper: they're Lebanese, which is a hip cuisine; they're vegetarian, and they're portable - ideal for the busy, backpack-toting crowd. The only problem I've had with falafels over the years is that I don't always like how they taste. Do you ever have that trouble with a dish - sometimes it seems delicious and other times you're not so sure? Maybe it's the preparation, or maybe it's just your mood? With this in mind, I decided to draft a few friends to help with a falafel taste test. I wanted to find which falafels in town were most likely to satisfy a craving and let you know where to order up this affordable lunch or dinner (whether you're living lean or not).

We quickly learned that falafel sandwiches do indeed taste different everywhere you go, even though they are all similar in preparation. Every falafel sandwich starts with falafel patties, a ground mixture of beans and spices spread into small, flattened balls, and deep fried to be soft on the inside and crunchy on the outside. The core ingredient possibilities for the patties are garbanzo beans (often called chickpeas), fava beans, onion and garlic, mint and parsley , and sometimes pepper flakes or allspice. The patties are then wrapped in a large round pita with lettuce and tomato, and tahini sauce - a thin, creamy mix of ground sesame seed, garlic, lemon juice, and sometimes yogurt. Additions to the long, burrito-like sandwich may include onions and pickles; some people also order hommous (a thick spread of pureed garbanzo beans, tahini sauce, and more lemon and garlic) or tabbouli (a salad of parsley, cracked wheat, tomato, and onion).

One of the best in our taste test was from Ali Baba. This version (at $2.99, $2.50 on Monday) carne neatly wrapped in foil around a thin, soft pita. They didn't stint on the falafel patties which were heavy on the spicy red pepper and light on the parsley. The sandwich carne with shredded romaine lettuce instead of iceberg, and the delicious salty pickles were a highlight. Falafel sandwiches can be dry, but Ali Baba's liquidy tahini sauce and moist falafel created the right texture. My only disappointment was that the pita bread was not warmly grilled which Ali Baba has done before on sandwiches I 've had there; it's a great enhancement. 

The rendering from Shahrayar was made with the best pita bread - thick and fresh and warm - but you don' t get much falafel in your falafel sandwich (also $2.99). The patties were small and mild and rather sticky, and it came with iceberg lettuce and not much tomato. The tahini sauce, however, was excellent, overpowering the falafel flavor with lemon and garlic.

In contrast to this version was the huge falafel from Jerusalem Garden. If the most food for your buck is your goal, this $2.79 sandwich leads the pack. It's loaded with falafel patties, iceberg, and tomato, and the pita bread is thick, making for a heavy, wide, filling sandwich. The patties were made of coarse grains and were drier than others we tried. They were also dominated by parsley so that the inside of each patty was a dull green color, and they tasted rather bitter. This seemed to be the flavor that I don't like about some falafels, but you may feel differently. We ordered it with hommous which came spilling out both ends. Since this monster sandwich was sloppily wrapped in foil, it was a messy two-hands-full, so get extra napkins.

For a distinct, and fine, flavor, the falafel sandwich at Oasis (a strictly take-out establishment) wins the prize. Their patties are made with allspice - that kind of cinnamon nutmeg/ginger sort of flavor you might put in pumpkin pie or curry. It tastes surprisingly good in this sandwich with its thin, grilled pita and loads of tahini and lettuce. However, Oasis's version was dry in texture with almost no tomato, and it cost a bit more - $3.50 for the large which was similar in size to the others we tried. (They also offer a small for $2.50 if the fewest pennies is your priority.)

So far in our taste test, we stuck close to campus/downtown where any hungry pedestrian with shallow pockets might find a filling meal. However, I'd also been hearing about an independent Lebanese restaurant near Briarwood Mali called Azure The falafel taste test seemed a good reason to check it out, so we waited until we were hungry again and drove out there. Azure is attractively decorated with blue accents (of course) and lovely wood tables, and the menu is full of interesting options. Steadfast in our purpose, however, we ordered the "Felafell King" ($4.99) which claimed to be made with chickpeas, jalapeno, onion, parsley, and garlic. Before it arrived we were treated to warm, puffed-up pita bread and a plate of olive oil topped with zatar (thyme, sumac, and sesame seeds). If you've never had pita bread straight from the oven, it's a totally different experience, and Azure's is excellent. I could have made a meal out of it.

Before long, though, our very attentive waitress brought the falafel, which came stuffed in two pita halves with tomato, cucumber, and tahini sauce. Also on the plate was a pile of mixed greens in a vinaigrette dressing and a selection of pickled vegetables (carrots, turnips, radish, and celery). This falafel was the spiciest of any we tried, with a burn that snuck up on you after you swallowed. It was delicious and moist and even better with some of the dressed lettuce and pickles added.

For my taste, I'd tend toward Ali Baba, Oasis, or Azure the next time I desire a falafel sandwich, but even then, the one I choose will depend on the kind of flavor I'm seeking. Your choice will depend on your taste, but for nutrition and affordability, any falafel makes the grade.

Alas, Stef and the Chef recently parted ways when the Chef decided to try cooking and eating on the West Coast. Stef is hoping readers will still appreciate her admittedly inexpert observations about local food and drink, since she still wants the excuse to go out to eat a lot.

RESTAURANTS REVIEWED

Ali Baba 601 Packard, 998-0131.

Azure 625 Hilton, 747-9500.

Jerusalem Garden 307 S. Fifth Ave., 995-5060.

Oasis 1106 S. University, 665-2244.

Shahrayar 330 Maynard, 741-1827.