Sams Falafel & Shawarma — Restaurant in Somerville

The food at Sam's was so good, it took me on a trip to memory lane! I'm from a Lebanese family in Paris France and I'm picky about my food. I went to Sam's after reading reviews and I was expecting good Falafel and good Mediterranean food, but not GREAT Middle Eastern food. Sam is a great chef and cooks the best homemade style dishes from his native Syria. The Falafel was refined with just the right mix of spices (not loaded with cumin as people from other regions make it), a crispy exterior and a moist interior. It was sitting on a bed of tahini sauce that also had the perfect amount of seasoning. The foul madamas brought tears to my eyes because I haven't had one like this in so many years. It was the perfect warm temperature, the Middle Eastern fava beans were flavorful, cooked to perfection, and again seasoned with just the right amount of garlic, lemon and olive oil. The olive oil itself had a great flavor, a sign that this kitchen uses quality ingredients, which makes all the difference. I also tasted a roasted eggplant in tomato sauce that was delicious and not as acidic as I expected. My husband and a friend had Shawarma sandwiches that were huge and they said were outstanding, with all the trimmings including pickled turnip. Another friend had "Sam's Special Falafel" which he absolutely loved although it was really spicy.

Another sign that he knows his food: Sam's had 2 different of pita breads, including what is called "mountain bread" in Lebanon, a paper-thin type of pita that has a slight sourdough flavor. My only comment would be to add whole-wheat pita bread to the menu for those who eat only whole grains. Apart from that, everything was perfect!

Shukran! Thank you so much, Sam, you made my day! I will be...

I had a FANTASTIC experience with Sam's. It was raining this most recent marathon Monday, at around midnight. My mom and I were starving. We ordered on GrubHub. I got a call a few minutes before the delivery window was supposed to be up, saying they'd be a few minutes late because the restaurant was swamped. Totally understandable. The delivery person arrived a few minutes later, and was super kind and said "delivered by the chef himself". Incredible! We got the food upstairs and started eating, and oh my God, this is some of the BEST Arab food I've ever had (and I'm saying that with a LOT of experience with the Arab world). We had the falafel, the yogurt & cucumber salad, the hummus, the hot sauce, the tahini, the pistachio cake, garlic paste, rice, and the bread. My only complaint is that I'm pretty sure the bread is store-bought. It's not so good, but the quality of all the other food makes up for it. The quality of food and service are...

Went there today ordered 3 combo plates. Apparently jersusalem falafel puts tahini sauce on all their dishes, but does not say it on menu description. Ask nicely if chef could make dishes without tahini and was yelled at by owner. Told me to f**k off get out restaurant. I already payed, I got nothing being allergic to tahini sauce. Worst people on Earth and steal from their customers. I was harassed and threatened by the staff. I would never go there again. Terrible attitudes ....I have no bais toward other restaurants....I would rather eat gas station convince food than ever go there again. Don't waste your time! Staff,owner, is verbally abusive and threatens customers when order is not right. Restaurant should be closed down! I advise strongly against jersusalem falefela, Sam's falel. All I wanted was my food made without tahini, I guess tomuch to ask.

John...