Fabulous. This little mom and pop (literally; I saw both) shop is the proverbial hole in the wall (tiny space with four or five small tables) and it is a gem. I arrived just before their three o'clock lunch break and was accommodated by their daughter (who was really friendly and kind). I ordered a chicken shawerma Haifa sandwich, and I watched my pita being toasted over a charcoal fire (she used a fan to literally fan the coal fire). I needed to use two hands, and from my first bite I was in nirvana. I asked and was given a fork and extra sauce. Remarkably good falafel, delicious chicken, and oh, that secret sauce. It's right on Speedwell (a busy street) near a funky intersection that gets tied up quickly. Do yourself a favor and park on a side street a block away: you'll whet your appetite on the walk there, and float in bliss on your way back. Superb. Great value. Just a gem. I will most definitely return and highly recommend it. read more

Carmel Haifa - Middle Eastern Near Me - Morris Plains, New Jersey

A gem!!!! The food is delicious and authentic. It's in the heart of Morris plains, NJ right across from the NJ Transit station. The owner is extremely sweet and will walk you through the menu. You can immediately pick up that he's attentive and cares so much about his food and how his customers are taken care of. There is some seating, but not a lot so keep that in mind. I didn't mind as I did take out. Highly recommended! read more

Highly recommend this little treasure. It's very small inside. Only 2 or 3 tables but most of their business seems to be take out. The food is delicious.. always fresh and generous in serving size. The people there (owners?) are very helpful with order questions, patient and friendly. The Shawarma Platter with rice is so delicious !! And I must add everyone I have gone with LOVES this place! Go! And Enjoy!! read more

I love Carmel Haifa and here's why. They actually cook over real charcoal. Not gas or electric. What they turn out is authentic middle eastern barbecue with a twist. That is fresh ingredients. Simply prepared with love. Shish kebab sandwich for me please read more

I have gotten the falafel platter with rice here every time I come to Morristown for work. It is always SO freaking good. The falafels are super crispy with great flavor, some of the best I have ever had. The hummus and baba are both also excellent. The salad is a nice romaine with a light, creamy dressing that is not just an afterthought of crappy lettuce thrown in as filler, but a perfect accompaniment to the rest of the platter. The rice is perfectly cooked and also lends its own flavor. The platter comes with two pitas, and is a really great value for the money. Service is always super friendly! I highly recommend you try Haifa Carmel and get the falafel platter!! read more

Carmel Haifa - Falafel platter with rice - Middle Eastern Near Me - Morris Plains, New Jersey

Its a pretty average middle eastern no frills takeout place. Lamb Kebabs are well seasoned and cooked over fire it seems. The flavor is outstanding. The rice is moist and perfectly done. The portions are quite small considering the prices are comparable to a sit-down restaurant. Pitas are a little bit dry like it was reheated after sitting out for a while. read more

I'm usually a fan of Carmel Haifa, but was really disappointed by my most recent order. I ordered a Tabbouleh salad and was given an actual bowl of parsley. There were a few really teeny cut up pieces of tomatoes, but otherwise it was a bowl of herbs. Definitely odd to receive when this salad should have grains, tomatoes and cukes. Herbs are for garnish, but not the basis of the salad. The salad that came with my platter was also soggy and the pita was hard. Maybe it was just a one time thing but I was bummed about this order and would be hesitant to order again. read more

Carmel Haifa - Mix Shawarma Platter - Middle Eastern Near Me - Morris Plains, New Jersey

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This is a really small and cozy restaurant. There are 3 or 4 small tables. I would not go here with a big group. The food here is worth a try. It also has a small market with mostly desserts for sale. The counter service was friendly enough and we didn't have to wait too long to get our food even though there was a lot of take out going on throughout our meal. I ordered the veggie sampler plate. The hummus and the garlic sauce were phenomenal!!! The baby ganoush was flavorful and well seasoned. The pita was ok and so was the rice. I did not like that everything was served in styrofoam. I also wish they had a side of veggies to dip into the hummus as part of the veggie platter. read more

Carmel Haifa - Veggie platter - Middle Eastern Near Me - Morris Plains, New Jersey

My son-in-law got us the shawarma platter for lunch here. Delicious! small place you could drive right by, but don't miss it! Yum!

Great little family owned Mediterranean restaurant. There is both paid parking in the front and back of the restaurant. The day that we came there was a young kid taking our order and he was such so pleasant. I applaud him because my cousins who are around his age would not know to make small talk with customers like him. We came in right when they opened so when I ordered the mushroom Cream of Wild Mushroom soup, he had to go into the back to make sure they had it ready. He came back and said "it's your lucky day, we have it". We also ordered the Combination Platter With Rice (Shish Tawook, Shish Kebab & Kufta Kebab). Food was fresh and tasty. read more

Carmel Haifa - Middle Eastern Near Me - Morris Plains, New Jersey

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Highly recommend the Chicken Shawerma - so delicious! We ordered the Veal & Lamb Shawerma Platter and the Mix Showerma Platter (chicken, veal, and lamb) and while all the meats were excellent, the chicken is definitely the best! You get a lot of food in each platter - rice or fries (we got the rice and it is plentiful), a (hearty) salad, marina bread (i think these are the mini pita sandwiches), and a massive pita. Everything was perfectly seasoned and very tasty. All this food can probably be at least 2 full meals. The food comes with three sauces - Tahini, Garlic, Hot. The garlic sauce is amazing - would recommend getting some extra (2 for $1) Located in the downtown of Morris Plains - there is street parking out front. The guys working were super friendly and the food is awesome! I'll definitely be back again and again - would give 10 stars if I could! read more

Carmel Haifa - Mix showerma platter - Middle Eastern Near Me - Morris Plains, New Jersey

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Good fresh food at reasonable prices means VALUE. Dropped in for a quick lunch and ordered from the countermand. Waited 10 minutes for a Kufta Jamileh Special, one kebab skewer served with hummus, salad and marina bread. Kufta was juicy and delicious. Bread was nothing special, room to improve. Salad was better expected. With soda and tip still under $20. Take out is the move here because few tables. Jamileh Special read more

1st timer here. For awhile I had my eyes on this restaurant but I like 25iah minutes away so that was 1 of the main reasons why I hadn't tried it. But I decided to go for it after running an errand around the morris plains area. Plus I had been craving Mediterranean food for a while. I scoped out the menu online and then went in person to order. I ordered the Mix Shawerma sandwich. It's chicken, veal, lamb in a pita pocket like bread with lettuce , tomatoes, sauces. They have a variety of bottled drinks as well as variety of sweets and foods that are Mediterranean that you can buy. I picked out candy bars and I was so happy they had seltzer cans ! There was a sign that prices had gone up and to add $1 to menu items. Honestly for what I got and paid I was super satisfied. The sandwich was tasty not bland at all and it legit filled me up from 1230p till about 6pm not bad I wish they were closer to me but a definite must try recommendation for you my friends. Enjoy! read more

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Still the best. Without a question this is gotta be the best. The baklava is made by the mother. It is beyond. There is no better baklava in my opinion. The hummus, the kebabs, all of it. My opinion over the years has not changed. It's still without an equal anywhere. read more

Carmel Haifa - The best baklava on the face of the planet - Middle Eastern Near Me - Morris Plains, New Jersey

I was looking for something healthy yet tasty and satisfying, and after a quick Yelp search, I found myself at Carmel Haifa! Being Middle Eastern myself, I'm always excited to try a new spot! I ordered the Mix Shawarma Platter (~$14). This Platter comes with chicken, beef, rice, salad, Marina bread, and fresh pita bread. It also came with a tahini sauce, yogurt sauce, and hot sauce. It took about 10-15 minutes to get my order and I began to dig in. The chicken and beef shawarmas are both seasoned well and were deliciously tender! Typically, if cooked for too long, the beef shawarma can get chewy but that wasn't the case here. It was on the drier side, however. But the sauces did help with that! The rice was nice and light. The salad was not authentic at all. It gave the whole plate light component but if you're expecting legit Arab-style salad, definitely keep your expectations low. The Marina bread was a unique add to the plate. The Marina bread is stuffed pita bread with onions and a tomato spread. It actually complemented the chicken and beef very well. The pita bread was also super fresh which I loved! Overall, Carmel Haifa is affordable and the quantity of food is great. This one plate lasted me 2 meals! If you're in the area looking for a quick Middle Eastern bite, I definitely recommend Carmel Haifa! read more

Carmel Haifa - Mix Shawarma Platter (~$14). - Middle Eastern Near Me - Morris Plains, New Jersey

I used to count on them for the best falafel anywhere. I had falafel all over this country and in Israel so I know what good falafel is. Sadly, they have gone downhill. The falafel balls were rubbery and not freshly made as they were in the past and the side salad was not fresh as the lettuce was wet and wilty. Not a good experience. I yearn for the good ol' days when people had more pride in their work. I'm not happy to say "another one bites the dust." read more

I really wanted to like this place. Palestinian owned (I believe) and local which are amazing! But sadly it was very sub-par. I'm Palestinian and normally go to Paterson for authentic Arab/Levantine food but this is only 5 minutes from my house so I wanted to give it a try. Falafel- not crispy probably old. rice- too salty but not the worst. chicken- mine was okay but my husband's was undercooked. Not that great of flavors. Veal & lamb kufta- per my Egyptian husband, the meat had a weird smell and wasn't good. Didn't seem fresh compared to Paterson or any other place we go to. hummus- eh. Not bad not great. pita- store bought and not even the good kind. They left 1 pita uncovered and it got really hard (not sure why they did it). falafel sandwich- pretty good but same issue with the falafel. Very messy and not at all put together to stay together. Also a little soggy. garlic sauce- not bad but Had a artificial taste. tahini sauce- fine. hot sauce- tasted too much like tomatoes. Overall, I wouldn't recommend this place. I see a lot of potential and if they decide to change their recipes/practices I would LOVE to try it again. read more

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Tiny mom/pop hole in the wall with some excellent Middle Eastern food. I went here with one other person. I ordered the Jamileh Special which came with a skewer of Kufta Kebab as well as hummus, salad, and marina bread. I asked whether I could substitute rice for salad and the nice woman there just said she'd add some rice to the dish. I tried the Chicken Shawarma from someone else which was moist and good. The kufta was tender and the rice was also good. The hot sauce which reminded me of shug had some good flavors. The hummus had some good consistency and the salad was also fine. Outside of the meat, a special note goes to their "marina bread." It reminded me heavily of lahmajoun minus the meat as it was flavored really well with onions and hot sauce. For dessert, I got a ma'moul for cheap as well as some Turkish wafers they had there and I tried their Halawa/Halva. The Halawa tasted homemade and as with everything, the piece given was large for the price. Excellent local place. read more

Great value, delicious take out. We order from this place often and usually pick it up ourselves. Very tasty without being too spicy hot

Food is okay. I'm disappointed in the portion size and the prices. As for prices they are not listed on the menu in the dining area. Shady. Very shady. As a regular customer, every time I order the same items the prices are different. Portions have really gone down in size while the prices have gone way up. I ordered 2 platters and 1 sandwich and an order of falafel and it was 62.00. They forget to add the sauces also. You have to ask and double check. 2 garlic and hot sauces used to come with a platter. Now you have to beg for one! read more

The lamb kabob sandwich was amazing. Delicious falafels and the tahini dressing. The best. Husband had a kofta sandwich. So good. I didn't know I could eat so much. read more

I've been in love since the same to town. Tucked in the MoPo strip this gem is bursting with flavor. It is not what this town is known for, and creates a phenomenal answer to the question of "what should we eat?". There are no bad items, only better and particulars. I'm a falafel gal, extra pickles and hot sauce. But that "marina" bread is my crack. Warm pita, filled with a tangy red sauce and onions I could just eat that with humus daily. Please locals support this place because we need culinary diversity in our area. And they are part of the solution!! read more

With my most recent interaction a couple things still make me sad: 1) I am still mad about the "toum cap", 2) I miss the charcoal rice, however over the time we have lived in Northern NJ we have found that Carmel Haifa is still one of the bests in terms of the quality of the food you are eating. Me and my husband like to cook, we make a dish until it gets very refined, so we hold restaurants to high expectations: they must be at the same level or better than what we make in order for us to order from them. Carmel is a rare place we keep going back. read more

Nice place in Morris plains. Everything is always consistent. Their platters are great- we liked the chicken and combination platter best.

One year later and still the best. Wish I could visit Morristown more often just for Carmel Haifa. C read more

Carmel Haifa - One year later and still the best! - Middle Eastern Near Me - Morris Plains, New Jersey

Family-owned mom-and-pop shop with delicious food. I came here once, and tried the Mix Shawerma sandwich. Meat was tender and seasoned perfectly.. Definitely recommend this spot if you're looking for some good Middle Eastern food. read more

Sad to say they've gone downhill. My chicken schwarma was soggy and the hummus was no better than what you get at a supermarket.

Great halal food. Small cozy space and with some tables on street. Near Arthur's and MoPlains commuter train station. And there's ice cream nearby for after :) read more

Been to this place several times over the last few years the food is always consistently great . I usually have the chicken shawerma sandwich with shutta ( pepper sauce) it's not too hot. I love this place it doesn't disappoint .The prices are also reasonable. And it's a family run establishment which is another plus for me. read more

Was at Morristown hospital and wanted to grab some Mediterranean food on the way home. Found this place on Yelp and ordered a few different platters. The chicken and mixed grill platter were extremely well seasoned and the rice and creamy salad complimented it well. The falafel was nice and crispy and the baklava was to die for. Wasn't a fan of the red sauce, thought it would be hot but tasted more like marinara. The Garlic sauce was a nice change from those heavy fake white sauces you get from other platter spots. Glad I tried this place! read more

3.5 stars for decent Turkish/Mediterranean food. Service was good and cooked on the spot. Had the lamb gyro which was good and very saucy. However, the lamb platter was hard and tough meat-wise. Sauce came on the side and there were plenty of bread. Also got the babaganoush which was good as well! Overall, I've had better but this is a good spot to go to if you are craving some Mediterranean food and are in the area. read more

Great food and service. I ordered the Shawerma Platter over salad. The seasoning was on point and tasted extremely fresh. I went home with the baklava dessert to top it off. I'll be back soon! read more

So much happier to work on a Saturday after grabbing lunch here. I got the veggie platter and it was so delicious and fairly healthy too. Am planning on going back soon and trying more items on the menu! read more

Fried food - typical. Minimal seating and music too loud. We had to push to get outside seating since they would not turn coming down

The food is great at Carmel Haifa, and the owner and staff are exceptional. I Always get the chicken shawarma sandwich with falafel and always look forward to returning for more!! read more

Food was great, homemade, and authentic. If you love hole in the wall, privately owned, establishments then this place is for you!

Only shawarma and falafel spot in town. Good flavor and service. Mixed grill over rice was delicious and cooked so the meat was juicy. Lamb shawarma tasted as though t the meat was pre cut and then crisped on the flattop. Would have preferred being cut off a spit. Falafel was ok. Spicy sauce tasted like pizza sauce. read more

First time here, I grabbed a shawarma sandwich and falafel (3 for $1?!). My coworker grabbed hummus and falafel. Why not get falafel? The owner asked us if take-out or eat-in, and when we didn't give an immediate answer, he said "Sit down! Eat in." and we collapsed at the open table right by the door. No, romantic it ain't, but once the food got there (about 15 minutes, not terrible for a busy lunch crowd), it became all about that. Falafel: Super-crunchy on the outside, flavorful on the inside. It comes with a nice dip that may have been tahini. The cups were too small to properly dip the large chunks of falafel, so I half-assed it and ended up chugging a cup. Hummus: Not your American hummus. It's much smoother, without the saltiness or tangy lemon. Just smooth chickpeas, with some olive oil and a dash of red pepper paste on top. It took me a little while to get the flavor out of it, but it's there. Subtly delicious, and I don't know if every palate will get it. The pita bread was a bit stiff, but not in a stale way necessarily - I mean, it wasn't made the same day, but it also might have been slightly overheated/toasted. Soon after came the main course, and I disappeared into my shawarma. It was an excellent portion for the sub-$7 price, chock full of meat and bursting with flavor. The only disappointment was that the sandwich was stacked vertically, so I started with meat and ended with lettuce. I guess I'll eat from the side next time, but that just makes it harder to hold. Still, delicious. Having spent far less than expected for such a good meal, I was obligated to get dessert. The baklava was dense and moist without dripping with honey (sadly, I like them drippy, but I'll live), very well done and authentic. At $3, it doesn't seem like as much of a bargain as the other food, but come on, you just saved so much money on your food, give them a bit more. I'll be back to try some more food, but so far, most excellent. 5 star service, 3 star ambiance (but really, who cares), solid 4 star food. Also, calling ahead is a good idea. read more

Absolutely outstanding food! My chicken was cooked to perfection. Reasonable pricing and the service was awesome -- a very friendly and welcoming atmosphere. I can't wait to go back! read more

Full of texture, full of flavor, inexpensive, and worth savoring. I've never regretted choosing Carmel Haifa. My early favorites were their falafel wrap, chicken shawarma wrap, and french fries... but really, nothing here is forgettable. The menu encompasses options with lamb, chicken, and veal shawarma, falafel, hummus, tabbouleh, baklava. The cast iron cookware and charcoal grill are used to great effect to infuse the food with flavor. Yes, it's a hole in the wall. Who cares? I've never seen a crowd or a line, and you'll get your food right away. Located directly across the street from the Morris Plains train station, and great for grabbing a bite before or after a trip to the city. read more