Hummus Place — Restaurant in New York

I want to start by saying that my family and I have been "regulars" at this place for at least 18 years - it's been our favourite Mediterranean spot food wise despite of rather simple interior - the place where hummus was "to die for" and 100% worth a commute from Brooklyn. The owners and staff were like family. It was always a warm, happy and yummy experience - until today.

My husband and I were so very looking forward to devouring delicious brunch - the usual poached eggs with eggplant for me, and eggplant Shakshuka for him. When we stepped inside the restaurant the first thing we noticed was strange smell inside - almost reminding me of a hospital which was a bit of a turn off but I brushed it off. The place was half empty on a Sunday afternoon which was rather unusual - especially because restaurant right across from it - Miriam - was full to the capacity . I also noticed that staff was COMPLETELY new - no one who we knew from years back was present. When the server arrived he was very neutral, matter of fact, nothing warm or pleasant about him. I placed my order but was already feeling uneasy. When the food arrived, and i started trying my eggs which used to always be amazingly tasty, beautifully complimented by juicy thick slice of eggplant and hummus - I was shocked to realize that eggs tasted mediocre and were far from what I was expecting, and the eggplant - a thin slice of eggplant per egg - was bland and tasteless! And to make things even worse, the food arrived BARELY WARM - almost cold! The taste was 2/10 - just unbelievable! The hummus was excellent - but that was one tiny part of the large platter which was pretty much inedible! It is because of hummus I rated my experience as 2 and not 1! And side salad was all leaves - I have no idea what that even was!

And so in summary: both eggs - bland, cheap eggs hands down, no taste whatsoever. Eggplant - undercooked, tasteless, barely present. Food temperature - inappropriately cold further affecting the taste. Service- below average.

I am baffled because I don't know the reason behind such disappointing experience - perhaps ownership has changed or the chef - I can only keep guessing ... but it is definitely a big difference and a huge...

Wow. This place has some of the best falafel and shakshuka I’ve had!

I highly suggest going for brunch on a weekend as they have some options that come with a combination of several things.

We got one of their brunch shakshukas (2 eggs in a tomato sauce) as well as a side order of babaganoush (eggplant dip) and falafel (fried chickpea balls).

The main dish came with sides of salad, hummus, pita, roasted potatoes, orange juice, and your choice of coffee or tea. It is a great value for what you get.

The hummus is excellent - so smooth and lightly seasoned so you can enjoy the freshness of the ingredients. Paired with pillowy-soft pita, it’s an excellent side.

The salad is good - nothing too special about it.

Roasted potatoes are good - nothing special about this either.

Shakshuka is amazing. The eggs are served over easy, and a generous amount of piping hot and chunky tomato sauce are spread all around. I highly suggest cutting the eggs to let the egg yolk mix with the tomato sauce and cook a little with it. This dish doesn’t have too many spices as you are really supposed to enjoy the simple flavors of the eggs and tomatoes.

The falafel was excellent. Some of the best falafel I have had. So soft and moist on the inside and excellent flavors, including the little sauces they put on the plate itself.

The babaganoush was good. Nothing to mind blowing from other ones I’ve tried around the city. Personally I don’t think the quality of this that you get is worth the nine dollars that you pay.

In the end, this was an excellent restaurant to enjoy some really good food. I definitely recommended if you are...

Hummus Place gives Mamouns a run for their money.

Their falafel sandwich was 🤌. They layer the ingredients in the sandwich which makes for great bites. The hummus gets wrapped around on the inside of the pita, then they add veg salad, dressing, sauces and falafel pieces and repeat until the sandwich is full.

The pita - so soft and fluffy - I personally really liked the whole wheat and couldn’t tell a huge difference.

The falafel - very green (which I tend to think is a good thing, more herbs, flavorful), soft and not very fried; they also pack them in nicely and don’t skimp which makes it great in every bite as initially mentioned

The sauces - fire. It’s like a blend of a few - a dressing for the chopped tomato and cucumber, tahini, a green sauce and hummus. Makes it so flavorful and moist. The veg add a nice subtle crunch and health.

I ordered mine with mixed green salad which I would recommend for one person unless you’re splitting a pita sandwich with someone in which fries may help get you both full.

Very much so recommend this spot. I am definitely planning...