DIRTY TABLES, GOOD FOOD, POOR SERVICE
We went here for a very late lunch Wednesday, July 24, at 3:35 p.m. I ordered the chicken schwarma with hummus for $7.99 and my husband had the beef sandwich for $6.99. Where, oh where, do I begin?!?! The food was good, but the service was horendous. Not spectacular enough to get me to return again. My chicken, although flavorful, was dry. I even found bones in my chicken. The service was very, very poor -- almost non-existent -- in one word: Awful
When we walked into the restaurant it was very, very warm. It was actually cooler outside than it was inside! No matter which table we picked they were all dirty. A young man was on his phone taking a food order. We waited, waited, waited and were ignored for 5 minutes until he finished his phone call. No apology. No greeting. No smile. No personality. Nothing!
We requested 2 cups of water which they forgot to give us. We walked up to the counter and no one was at the front counter. Again. Waited. Waited. Waited. I wondered if they were in the back doing a hooka (...and I'm not talking about a hooker here).
Finally, someone came out from the back room and we got our H2O. OMFG! The water was almost hot to the taste. I couldn't even drink it because it was warmer than room temperature.
Their forks, spoons and knives are flimsy white plastic, and out in the open where anyone can sneeze or cough on them. Sanitary? I don't think so -- disgusting. Fortunately, I remembered I had plastic covered utensils from another restaurant with me. I used my own utensils.
The hummus was ok. I prefer the hummus from the Sultan Restaurant which tastes very, very fresh and is much more flavorful. I was eating my chicken when I realized I had a bone in my mouth. I spit it out into a napkin. I ate more of my meal and the same thing happened. Another bone! The pita bread was very fresh and served cold. Please serve it warm!
At that point my husband asked me, "What's wrong?" I told him I have never had chicken at a Middle Eastern restaurant that contains bones in the chicken. I couldn't eat anymore. My husband finished it off.
We ordered a 6 piece falafel "to go." I didn't want to sit in a very hot restaurant any longer than I had to. The falafel had a crispy exterior with a semi-moist interior. Flavorless. Bland.
When they delivered our food to the table there was no "Enjoy" -- not even a smile. Customer service here is non-existent. The food was good, but not outstanding. Portions were decent. The tables were all dirty. They weren't busy when we arrived, so there is no excuse for dirty tables with lunch crowd stains on the cheap plastic Dollar Store tablecloth. There was a young couple with two unruly screaming toddlers. I wanted to eat quickly and leave.
At one point, the mother stepped outside the restaurant with one of the out-of-control kids. I love kids, but if you cannot control your child in a restaurant hire a babysitter or order food "To Go !"
We went here based on the so-called rave Yelp reviews. We had high expectations and were excited to try a new place. Needless to say Falafel Dream did not meet our expectations. It was a huge let down. Based on the above I must give Falafel Dream 3 stars. Service and customer service: 1 star
Parking is free with a super small parking lot (only room for 6 or 7 vehicles). The restaurant is located on the west side of Harlem Ave. & across the street from a KFC, a tiny bit south of Irving Park Rd. Look for the large white sign with green letters: "Falafel Dream" read more