The Halal Guys — Restaurant in Tempe

I'm a native New Yorker and I've been eating at the original Halal Guys NYC cart for decades, as it was parked right by where I worked for many years. And while nobody remembers the taste of anything exactly as it really was, the Tempe location tastes pretty close to what I do remember. I can't say if it's 100% the same, but it's close enough for someone who ate the original regularly for a long time.

I've also eaten at a lot of other Halal carts in NYC; they're all similar but not the exact same as each other. So if you think of this location that way, it's really no different than any NYC Halal cart. There may be minor differences from one place to the next but that's part of the fun.

My wife and I both got chicken platters, which is what we always got in NYC (technically "chicken over rice"). Of course I got the white and red sauce, which is all I remember being available at the original. The red sauce really is hot, so be careful with it if you're not used to it or don't like spicy food.

The white sauce, at least, is really important. Without it, it's just a plate of seasoned but dry chicken and rice. So make sure you get at least that, and my preference is for a lot of it. I told the counter person to just cover the whole thing with it, which is how I always got it in NYC. Ideally, it's best if every bite is wet with white sauce. The red is optional but I like a good amount of it too; I think of this as spicy food.

Everything on our platters was fresh, including both the hot and cold parts. If I had any minor thing to complain about, maybe the pita bread was starting to get a little chewy. But that honestly wouldn't have been unusual in NYC either...

Flavor-wise, my wife thought there was something unidentifiable that was missing but I didn't notice that. (She did completely demolish her platter, though.) I could taste the marinade on the chicken and the seasoning in the rice and it tasted pretty much right to me. Same with the all-important sauces.

The restaurant was clean and looked actually better than I expected given the pictures here. I was kind of expecting it to be like a typical NYC-style run-down little storefront restaurant, but it was more of a typical Arizona fast casual place. It's also not big but it's big enough. It is basically right in the middle of the ASU area so be prepared for a lot of college campus vibes and all that that entails.

It's pretty far from where we live in Mesa but we'll definitely go again, as this is really the only place you can get authentic Halal chicken over rice in the entire valley that I've been able to find. Of course there are lots of "mediterranean" restaurants where you can get chicken and rice, and Google will recommend all of them to you if you search for "halal chicken over rice", but that's a completely different thing. It's like comparing New York and Chicago style pizza, or something like Japanese ramen vs. Vietnamese pho. Superficially similar but not even close when it comes to the details or flavor.

If you want real chicken over rice, this is the only place I've found for it in the area. And it's...

Listen..

The staff here are absolutely HORRID! The guy Josè who is a little shift lead at the place is extremely rude and condescending! Josè talked down to me and treated me like I was not worth ANYTHING!

I ordered food through Uber Eats and put in the notes, “jalapenos” in which they CHARGE you for. Well, I get my food and guess what? No jalapeños! I am literally upset so I call and tell the manager how angry I am “JOSE” and he goes, “oh you’re mad about jalapeños?” Basically downplaying the fact that THE STAFF got my order wrong and acting as if my complaint was not at all RELEVANT. I am literally LIVID.

So, we talk on the phone and Jose says, “would you like me to refund the order?” I said to Jose, “No, I’d appreciate it if you would just remake my food” and he goes on to agree with this. Moving forward, I walk in the store tonight at 10:30pm to have my food replaced. Jose was at the register. I told Jose that I’m Jodi and I’m the girl whose food was messed up and I was coming to have it replaced and he basically was being extremely RUDE.. cutting me off.. telling me he never said he’d replace my food.. how he’s a “grown man” and etc. He was so disrespectful I am literally SICK to my stomach to have been treated so badly! Jose goes “I can refund your little 75 cents for the jalapeños, but that’s it. He was just so unprofessional and RUDE

Jose got loud and biligerent with me and speaking to me as if I was a nobody! It literally escalated to the point where I called police! The police never came in time so I left because of that reasoning, but I will be contacting corporate.

I will NEVER IN MY LIFE spend any dime here again my LIFE!...

L.A., Vegas and then here in AZ! Finally! There is a front and back entrance, and parking in the back lot. Walked in through the back entrance, and there were lots of people seated, and in line. The employees managed to go with the flow! Very friendly workers seemed to be holding up the fort pretty darn well. The line was due to the chicken being cooked and waited on.

Got our usual combo platter which is rice, chicken/Gyro meat with lettuce and tomato and yummy white sauce! Asked for extra sauce, no problem, no charge. The Manager, Stephanie was awesome! I had an email for free meals, dessert and drinks for a problem we encountered at the L.A. location, and she was kind enough to honor at this location, and took care of the situation. She also explained to the girl at the register, beforehand, so we wouldn't have any problems. Sure enough, she handled our order, and things went smoothly with no confusion. They were very busy, and she handled everything "Like a Boss!!" Some Manager's don't work very well under pressure, but she did! She was very nice and personable.

Took our food home to eat. Although, we live nearly an hour away, we will definitely be back! The food tasted just as expected!! Chicken and beef were both tender, rice had a nice texture, and lettuce and tomato were fresh. White sauce completes the meal! Add a dash of red sauce, and your good to go!! Try it,...