L'As du Fallafel — Restaurant in Paris

We came here for a late dinner on a Sunday night and there was no line. We got a seat relatively quickly, but the restaurant was still pretty loud and crowded inside. There is takeout, but we wanted to be able to enjoy our food without inhaling cigarette smoke emanating from a small crowd outside. Plus, pita sandwiches can be a little messy to eat on the go, so we enjoyed our meal over one of their square logo branded tables, which is pretty smart marketing if you want customers to really remember the name of your establishment.

We ordered from the English side of the menu.

5€ Panache: very tasty, sweet, and citrus-y, so much so that I don't think I can taste any beer flavor

4€ Israeli mango juice: also very tasty and sweet, a little too sweet, but complements the savory food quite well

4€ for 10 Falafel Balls: There was no way I was not going to try the falafel balls, and these are very good! I was concerned that ten falafel balls might be too much for Mr. Joy and I to share, but they are very small and bite sized, have a meaty, mild flavor, not too strong and garlicky. They're so satisfying that I think I could have polished off more on my own. The red and green sauces were also very good, savory and spicy but not too spicy.

11€ Grilled Chicken Pita Sandwich: This chicken pita is rather large and brimming with very juicy chicken pieces, a creamy white sauce, and grilled vegetables. This is a very satisfying sandwich, and also comes wrapped in their branded packaging.

I could imagine myself as a local Parisian making pit stops regularly for a snack of very affordable falafel balls, or to try other parts of their menu. The only thing I didn't like was their menus, which were difficult to read through the frosty...

I always have random places bookmarked in the event I ever visit that city, I can just pull it out of my back pocket. L'As du Fallafel was one of them. I've had this place on my radar for years (I don't even know from where) and now that I was finally visiting Paris, I was able to give this place a try.

We got there at around 5:30 on a Sunday. There's one line for takeaway and one for dine in. We decided to do takeaway. Don't let the line intimidate you. It's worth the wait and we only ended up waiting about 15 minutes. These guys have their ducks in a row. One person goes down the line taking orders/collecting payments. Then when you get up to the window, you give them your ticket and they make your order fresh. We ordered the Fallafel special sandwich to share, since we were still planning on having dinner later. This might be the best falafel I've ever had. It's freshly fried, so it comes out hot and crispy. I believe 6 falafels come in a sandwich. It also comes with all the fix-ins: lettuce, tomato, eggplant, some kind of red cabbage slaw that really balances out the whole sandwich, hummus, and garlic sauce. It's pretty messy to eat but it's so good. My only piece of feedback would be for them to layer the sauce/hummus. It just sits on top so when you get towards the middle/bottom, you don't get any of those flavors anymore.

I wish we got to try the shawarma. I guess this warrants a return...

Food was nothing special, line was long but staff had a system to keep the line moving.

My husband and son stood in line waiting for the food that we ordered while my toddler and baby and I moved to the outdoor seating area. I specifically looked for chairs with the shop's logo, and my toddler sat on one while I stood next to an empty one with the baby on my hip.

A man came up to us and started moving the empty chair. I grabbed the chair and said no. The man then grabbed my hand roughly, squeezed it very hard, and yelled at me in French. It was only then that I realized he must be a shop employee and asked my child to get off the other chair.

He then moved the chairs to the other side of the plaza. I asked him if we could sit in them and he responded in perfect English, "would you like to buy something?" I told him my husband was in line.

My hand still hurts about an hour later and is bruised.

Also, ironically, as we left, the man was sitting in one of the chairs, preventing a paying customer from sitting there!

This is what I ask of the owners: train your staff to be kind and not touch any customers or potential customers. Violence is a universal language, but your staff are capable of avoiding this. They can talk to a person before using their hands on them.

And for potential customers, avoid if you are not white or...