Elfalafel — Restaurant in City of Edinburgh

Disgusting behaviour by a member of staff. If I could give this establishment zero stars I would, but here we are... one star. Our adventure with Elfalafel started while in line to order. We literally got shouldered out of the way by a gentleman as he entered the establishment, and got no response from him as we protested. To our surprise, he took a position behind the counter... We got shouldered out of the way my a member of staff! After ordering our food, we sat down and started eating, while a member of our party had yet to receive her food. We were suddenly told to leave the restaurant, as it was apparently time to close up. We protested, as one of our friends had yet to receive the food for which she paid. We also argued that they shouldn't have served us, had they been planning to close up for the evening. At this moment, the same member of staff who pushed people out the way (mentioned above) became aggressive, shouted at us and even became physically violent. We left having neither finished our meals, nor receiving the last of our order. This gentleman clearly thought we were his regular drunken clientele, and that he could treat us as such. To summarise - if you feel like sub-standard food, with a side of physical violence from staff, this is the place for you.

Reply to owner's response below:

You were indeed very respectful and polite, as you have always been. You always greet customers with a smile and treat them with respect. Thank you for that sir. The same cannot be said of your staff.

First, the gentlemen in question did not ask us politely to leave three times - He asked once, and proceeded to shout at us the second time.

Second, with regards to physical violence. As mentioned, your colleague shouldered people out of his way as he entered the restaurant (incident of physical violence 1). Thereafter, when you were stood behind the counter, and before you intervened, he pushed me as I was sat in the booth (incident of physical violence 2). This was witnessed by multiple people. This was the point where I stood up, and he walked away. He then turned around and shouted at me, and had to be restrained by you (you might recall).

Third, a member of our party was still waiting for her food when we were told to leave (sub-standard service). I did enjoy my meal, but the others at my table did not.

Finally - I understand that licensing laws prohibit you from serving customers past 3AM. As such, you should probably not serve customers at 2:55AM in the morning. The doors were still open, and you were happily serving customers who are not familiar with the legal framework under which your establishment operated.

A lot of people I know do enjoy going to El Falafel, but I will never be back. I will also make sure no one I know, or care about, gets verbally and physically assaulted...

The food was very tasty, we sat in and had a mixed kebab. Yummy! But then I went to use the toilet. I have NEVER used a more disgusting loo. There was blood and poo on the toilet roll dispenser, some stuff stuck to the tiles on the wall, just filthy all round. I'm a nurse, so I don't really get the boak from things, cast iron stomach, but this toilet made me want to throw up! I came back to my friends at the table and I was pale and honestly we had to leave straight away because there's no way I was going to vomit in that toilet. Absolutely disgusting!! Get it cleaned up! Environmental health should shut you down...

Was in Edinburgh for a day and found this place off Google when searching for halal near the Waverley station.

The gentleman who served me was very friendly and welcoming. He advised me on the lunch deal - a chicken wrap and chicken (perfect choice for a cold day)

The tables were clean and neat, the food tasty and filling considering the price (£5 for a lunch deal) and the customer service was excellent.

As I was a sit in, I observed regular customers coming in and it’s evident that there’s a good rapport built.

Would recommend a visit to locals and...