I have been eating Falafel King since 1984 and it is still as good today as it was back then. I was introduced to it by words that became a staple every time I walked in, "My friend. Come and enjoy a falafel!" It was 1984, I worked at the Florida Bookstore and was sitting out back in the courtyard behind Chaucer's during my lunch break. That's when I heard those words. It was a smiling man sticking his head out of a kitchen window behind Cafe Gardens, which shared the courtyard with Chaucer's. "...enjoy a falafel!" "A flawhatel?" I asked. The man was Ghassan Chehab, and after serving me my first ever falafel, I ate there nearly every day. He soon moved out of the small shared-kitchen window to the famous 13th and University location, next to Burrito Brothers and Goerings Book Center - which I eventually moved to myself - and a block from my house. Falafel sandwich, spinach pie, strawberry-banana smoothie, and complimentary baklava - that was my go-to meal, always accompanied by great conversation with Ghassan. I left Gainesville in 1992 and The King moved out to Butler Plaza. I returned there a number of years later and was not only delighted to see the place still existed, but it was as good as ever! Ghassan was no longer there in person, but he certainly was in spirit. I continue to eat there whenever I pass anywhere near Gainesville, and always take home a bundle full of the falafel and pies. In fact, I'm actually writing this review with the taste of that falafel and spinach pie in mouth right now because I recently made one such trip. My friends, go eat a falafel at Falafel King! read more

Falafel King is a hidden gem in Gainesville. The owner, staff and service are all very friendly and wonderful to interact with. The food portion size to cost ratio is well balanced. We got the lamp chop platter and the lamb shank platter. Both were very yummy and came with big hunks of meat on a bed of rice with sides of tabbouleh and hummus to go with fresh warm pita bread. We also tried the mint lemonade which was incredibly refreshing but not overly sweet. We liked shopping around the grocery area while we waited for our food. There were so many fun treats and cool things to browse. Highly recommended with you enjoy halal Mediterranean food! read more

This was my first time trying this location as I'm not a local to Gainesville. Initial impression when I walked into the restaurant was it smelled absolutely amazing! This location only has a few tables and also a small grocery. I ordered from the counter so I'm not sure if they offer table service or not. The food came out quickly and I had it to go. Picture doesn't do it justice as it got shifted during transport but it was very flavorful! I will definitely return if in the area. read more

Falafel King - Falafel Platter - Middle Eastern Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

They gave me food poisoning and they double charged for our meal and when I called the owner and he said "I don't give a shit" when I called to asked for half the money back read more

I had the falafel platter and it was excellent. I also bought some exotic teas at the grocery store. I will definitely be returning. read more

Falafel King - Outside - Middle Eastern Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

Used to be the best falafels in town, but it changed owners recently. It's not that the food quality slipped a little, my regular order (falafel wrap) is now inedible. It used to be fried falafel in a wrap..simple, right? The first time I ordered it since the change over, it was a smashed falafel crumble, maybe cooked on a flat top but definitely not as good as it used to be. But the last time I ordered from there, it was raw, cold falafel paste - RAW! Not fried, not baked, not even microwaved. It went right into the trash, with any prospect of a future visit. I would give the new food one star, but I'll add one more for the memory of delicious falafels. RIP read more

Very delicious food, excellent service. Love it and strongly recommended. Thank you falafel King

This small place had some of the best gyro meat I've had in Gainesville. Great portions and very generous with the meat. We ordered the gyro platter and the kafta kabob platter and both were incredible (I liked the gyro better). The only thing I would say is I would've liked a bigger portion of taboleh. We also tried the hummus and babaganush and both were incredible. The staff was kind and helped us decide what to get and it's a small cozy place to eat. Definitely recommend if you like Mediterranean food and are craving some good meat. read more

Falafel King - Kafta Kebab Platter - Middle Eastern Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

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I am really into Middle Eastern food. I grew up around Greeks, and was transformed, when I had my first falafel plate. Falafel King is in a strip mall, so how good could it be, right! Well, it could be AMAZING!! The tastes, textures and aromas are delicious!! If you have not tried this place, go for it! I approve!! I ordered my food throughYelp, and when I went to pick it up, he asked me if I was from Grub Hub. I said no, and he put the food back. After a few moments, I realized that he was talking about the Yelp order that uses the Grub Hub website to sell food. I thought that he thought I was FROM Grub Hub for a delivery. I was like, " No way man; this is MY food!" He was grateful and nice, and after that little encounter, I tried not to speed home to dig into my gyro platter with extra bread and meat!! Oooooooooh! It was so good!! Get you some... read more

Falafel King - I forgot to take a pic, before I got the first bite... - Middle Eastern Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

The kids were at Grandma's so my wife and I took a leisurely morning (which turned into an afternoon) and decided to stop in Gainesville for lunch. We hadn't had Greek food in a while so we tried somewhere new: Falafel King. I will say, first impressions are such a horrible thing when dealing with restaurants. The place was far from impressive on the outside, stuck in a strip mall next to an empty store front and a tailor's shop. But the smell when you open the door! Screamed a combination of Greek and overall Mediterranean foods! There is seating for less than 25 people and they apparently do a pretty steady carry-out/Grub-Hub business (as it seemed while we were there). But the food! My wife got the falafel platter and I got a gyros platter. Wow. That was some flavorful food!! Amazing! Easily as good as the food in Tarpon Springs or even Detroit's Greektown! Thankfully, the platter comes with a piece of baklava because that was the only thing I remembered to get a photo of! The food is served in styrofoam containers, so if you have leftovers, you can close it and go. Probably not the fanciest of serving dishes, but if you want some great tasting food and are willing to bypass the lovely trappings of an establishment like a Cheesecake Factory, this place has truly delicious Greek food! read more

Falafel King - Baklava - Middle Eastern Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

Falafel King is one of my favorite local places that you have probably passed by plenty of times and did not know how delicious it is! You'll see the picture I posted are 3 sides. I get a small yogurt, small Baba ghanouj, large tabouli, plus a fresh jar of tahini & some pita. I take it all home & split it up for lunches during the week. Their gyro platter with tahini on it & a side of yogurt sauce is also my favorite thing to eat there plus I always have leftovers. The wild garlic chicken panini is also so so good. They have a little store too if you'd like to take things to go. I also HIGHLY recommend a mint lemonade which is blended fresh to order. Definitely check this place out! read more

Falafel King - Left: Yogurt Sauce (added dill) Middle Brown Bowl: Tabouleh. Right: Baba Ghanoush. Tahini Sauce & Pita. - Middle Eastern Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

Delicious food in a no-frills setting. This small place isn't fancy, but the food is fresh and delicious! The falafel wrap was great, perfectly made and tasted fresh! There's a small area with items for purchase such as canned stuffed cabbage and stuffed vine leaves, great for those that want to try at home. read more

Falafel King - Market area in the back. - Middle Eastern Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

Wild garlic chicken panini, cheese pie, and falafel were all great and the prices are super low!

Sinie's order for take-out includes #4 Falafel Combo Platter Baklava, soda 9.90 Gyros Platter 9.50 Zaatar Pie 2.50 Side order pita (2 halves) .95 read more

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If you want to try some authentic Greek cuisine in Gainesville, come to falafel King and you won't be disappointed. The presentation was lovely and the customer service was very nice as well! read more

Falafel King - Hummus & Pita - Middle Eastern Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

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Please disregard my previous reviews of this place they've changed ownership. Tonight I got a mint lemonade or lemon water with a hint of mint. It wasn't sweet like lemonade at all it was extremely bitter and undrinkable. I called to let them know that it wasn't something I was going to be able to drink and there was no offer for a refund. I also tipped the guy that made my drink three dollars I'm so annoyed. He is East Indian and he claimed to be the manager. There is a Lebanese woman in the back kitchen on her phone that doesn't seem like she cares if the food is good or not. I got yogurt sauce with my Gyro platter and it was expired and not even cold it was room temperature. Garlic sauce is Lebanese delight. It's olive oil, a little bit lemon, and many garlic cloves blended until it makes like a creamy sauce. That was terrible too it was mostly a lot of salt and lemon with just a tiny bit of garlic it was terrible and not traditional. Please don't Americanize your food to what you think we will like! The tabouli salad was kind of craptastic as well it wasn't fresh it was older and too wet. Now there was a place that I could've used a lemon taste yet there was none. IF you want East Indians making terrrible middle eastern food that is so bitter you can't eat it you've found it! I hope they see this and fix it. So terrible! I'm disapppointed! read more

Falafel King - Overpriced receipt - Middle Eastern Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

This place was amazing. The gyro wrap and lamb shank was delicious and filled with chicken. They gave me my food right away and made no mistakes on my order. They have a very friendly owner. They also had nice artwork on the walls. Overall I have no complaints I would definitely recommend and come again. read more

The owner was very kind and made sure we were satisfied the whole time. The ladies were also very sweet. The food came out very quickly and tasted fresh. The establishment was very clean, and the food was delicious. Would definitely come here again. read more

Falafel King has a good variety on their menu. I enjoyed their kebabs, tabbouleh, grape leaves, and baklava. They also have a small market to purchase ingredients or other food items. I ordered to-go, but I was treated well during my pickup. read more

Great food, excellent customer service , and you can find your essential middle eastern groceries inside the restaurant supermarket read more

Falafel King - Food is great, excellent customer service, and you can find essential groceries inside the small supermarket the restaurant have - Middle Eastern Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

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The food here is amazing. From the gyros to the baklavas it is all delicious. The service is great. The owner is attentive and very kind too. The ambiance includes photography from countries around the world where the food is from. It's a hole in the wall type place with delicious food I highly recommend. read more

This is the worst place that claims to sell Middle Eastern food. I ordered 3 Kofta Platters and 2 Falafel to take home. 1- The Kofta (Which has nothing to do with Kofta) was cut into very small pieces of burned meat. I threw up immediately after I put two pieces in my mouth 2- The Hummus that came as a side was super salty. 3- The only side that was ok is the Rice. 4- Was trying to reach the owner for hours, and every time the staff says" he is not there, call back) 5- What's funny is, when I called and complained to the staff that served me this crap, they said it is not their errors and that the morning shift was the one to blame. 6- When I finally was able to reach the owner, he was so rude and started making up stories into how his restaurant served 40 plates of that platter and everyone was happy, you'r right buddy! 7- Never Again! read more

Delicious gyro! The yogurt sauce is fantastic and super garlicky. I inhaled my food haha Service was quick and very polite :)

The ratings/reviews (on google) have to be from relatives & friends. This was some of the blandest Mediterranean food I've ever had. I ordered a chicken platter. The pita bread was stale - they warmed it up but it was obvious it wasn't any good and shoulda been thrown out not heated and served. The only thing edible was the hummus and tabbouleh but not worth going back for more. The chicken was flavorless. I heard someone turn on the stove but wasn't for my food - everything I as served was reheated in microwave then given to me. I visited around 5pm and expected freshly cooked food at a minimum from this establishment. The ambiance also needs some TLC = hot soapy bleach water and a rag. As for service it was ok - I came at a time I assume the owner was "training" his employees but he came off pretty aggressive in his approach (to me). read more

Pros: - Love the shopping area - good hummus - family business - good desserts - number of options - good tabouleh Cons: - the falafel is legit terrible. I forgot I'd ordered delivery from here before, and both times I took one bite, spit half out, and threw the rest away. - the pita is terrible. Cold, dry, thin, just terrible. Lots of potential but both times I've eaten here I've thrown away more than half my order because I just didn't want to eat it. read more

I made an online order for pickup. Paid online and added an 8 dollar tip for our order which consisted of a falafel wrap and a meal. When we got there, they didn't have our order. Considering we arrived about 40 after making the order we were surprised it wasnt ready. They didnt have any knowledge of it and we had to wait more. The place was empty and didn't have a lot of orders waiting or prepared. The food was too expensive for the price and really bad service. We won't go again. read more

I ordered through doordash ,and not only was my food delived cold it felt like it had all been in a refrigerator, and someone just tried warming it up.It was not just not warm but freezing cold. The menu says TWO pieces of chicken in chicken platter ,and I got cut up pieces of dry overl;y seasoned chicken. My pita bread was unedible. Dry, not fresh,and not even anything I could eat it was so hard. It was laziness ,and someone not even caring over sending me good food.Never again! read more

Delicious middle eastern food, and reasonably priced! The place is clean and service is pretty quick.

I regretfully must tell you that I had to edit my original review once there was new ownership. I think Lebanese halal food is hard to find in the area and this place is slowly deteriorating in front of our eyes. When I originally moved to the Gainesville area 3 years ago, I frequented this spot because of the attention to detail, now the owners are cutting corners (and onions) MANY MANY ONIONS.. TOO MANY ONIONS. I am not exaggerating when I say how many damn onions they put in my sandwich almost a 1:1 ratio to the gyro meat. ALSO before you think I am ridiculing this place out of spite... I am Bengali and I LOVE raw onion but there's like limits to it, slice it thin or maybe rinse it but these raw onions were cut THIKK with 2 k's and I wish I took a picture to show you how many onions I had to pick out of my pita. Totally disappointed and need to have to have a few words with these guys. read more

Food was made fresh & it was delicious. The service was great & my order was vastly made without delay. I had the gyro wrap w/ yogurt sauce & w/ a side of tabbouleh. The gyro wrap was HUGE it could feed 2. I added scoops of the tabbouleh to each bite of my gyro and it was soo good. This was my 1st visit but definitely not my last. read more

Falafel King - Small side of tabbouleh - Middle Eastern Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

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They have great customer service, food is great and the grocery shop has good price middle eastern food and priced comparable to shopping in big cities not ripping you off. The girl in counter has great customer service. read more

Incredible family-owned business that is absolutely delicious and at a great price. I highly recommend the chicken shawarma.

This place has been here forever, since I was a little kid. Most people get their orders to go, since there is not much seating. But, it prefer to dine in with my family because it reminds me of when I was young. There are some interesting drinks if you explore the grocery area, and they will give you a cup of ice to pour your purchased drinks over. I come here specifically for their falafel, minus pickles, and add feta cheese. They really do hook you up with quite a bit of feta here when you ask for it. They also make their own breads, which is why they hold up to being wrapped so tightly without cracking. Their Tahini sauce is also great, as well as their hummus. The Greek Salad is excellent as well. However, if you are looking for the best Gyro Sandwich, that may be at a different place. Like I said, I come here for Falafel only. read more

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So good. Had a hummus and tabbouleh wrap and it was perfect. Great flavor. Hubs had the falafel wrap and he loved his too!

I was in the mood for Mediterranean cuisine and I realized that Falafel King was closest to me. Falafel King is not the most fancy of restaurants. It's a small counter with a little grocery store in the rear. I ordered the Falafel Platter and it was about $9. The platter comes with pita, tabouleh, and hummus... the falafel comes with LOTS of tahini sauce... I didn't expect so much tahini but it had good flavor. Because of all the sauce the falafel isn't very crispy... Nonetheless, I found that all of my food had good flavor and the portion was a good size. I wish the tabouleh had been a bit larger. Definitely not a perfect experience. This place could be better, but it's fast and relatively cheap. read more

Super sad that I throughly asked if their grape leaves were mushy and was assured they were good. I ordered 25 of them and had to throw out most of them. Mushy and tasteless. We couldnt even eat them with hummus. Lots money wasted. I should have tried one first :( The hummus was okay but more on the watery side instead of thick. The baba ganouj was fine. I wouldn't recommend this place or go there again. I ordered to go, pick up. I wish I could get my money back. read more

The worst customer service I have ever experienced at a restaurant. The cook who works there ended up cussing us the F word. Never going back. The disputes started with us with the wrong order and they got mad at us, the guy with the beard who is also the cook cake out saying " you did not order that item sir" with a really rude word. We walked out, because we got cussed with no refund Worst place ever read more

The food was well seasoned and the hummus is so delicious: you can actually taste the tahini in it which says everything! The rice is incredibly flavorful and full of tasty veggies. The tabbouleh is a little earthier than I really like: it's more parsley than anything else which was a little overpowering. My chicken was very dry and so was my pita side. My boyfriend couldn't stop making "yummy sounds" while eating his beef gyro and cheese pie - he said it was phenomenal. So all in all I would go back for sure - even just for the hummus, which is seriously some of the best I've had in a while. read more

I just realized I'd never reviewed Falafel King before, which is amazing because I've been coming here for years now. Located in the old portion of Butler Plaza, they've become known for their quality Levantine food for quite some time. I guess the falafel is the main attraction however I normally get the kofta kebab myself. Their hummus is top-notch and I strongly suggest getting a dinner platter whatever main dish you select--you'll get hummus, pita, and very good yellow rice with the platter. In addition, they make their baklava in-house instead of ordering it from Jacksonville or heaven forbid, Michigan, as do many Middle Eastern restaurants in Florida. Most of the time, the baklava is very good however, they do have a large selection and look: if it doesn't all sell in a timely fashion you could wind up with a piece that is stale and tough. So if the baklava counter in the front seems about half empty, you've been warned that they are probably about to make more and what's there is kinda old. They have very good--and properly prepared and served--Turkish coffee, as well, and I'm quite picky about Turkish coffee, you see. Here it comes in its cezve as it should and often they'll bring out a very cute, fancy, delicate little china cup for it as well. Sometimes, you'll instead get a very plain white cup, but recently the china ones have been making more frequent appearances. Perhaps along the same lines, they've rather recently renovated so the rear part of the restaurant feels more open and the restroom no long is a case of nearly falling into the dishwasher to get in the door. In the rear space between the front counter and where that restroom and the kitchen are they have a small grocery section of imported Middle Eastern goods, including the Turkish brand Tamek's outstanding sour cherry preserves. I would suggest going and giving them a try if you like Levantine cuisine. They're by no means at all fancy, but they are certainly quality and the staff are friendly and upbeat. read more

Falafel King - Turkish coffee and baklava served. - Middle Eastern Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

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I ordered a gyro on line with 352 delivery. I am so upset. There was barely any taziki sauce at all. I was clear on my note no onions but its a 9 dollar sandwich that had 1/2 a slice of tomato, I am so upset. I have ordered from this place for almost 40 years and this is the first time I threw out the sandwich for no sauce!!@@ sloppy and lazy and expensive throw away lunch! the meat was uber salty without sauce. also the pieces of the baklava HAVE SHRUNK!!! charge me more for the regular size of desserts! don't rip me off further! I am so bummed and probably won't ever order from them again! its been an hour and I am still furious ! read more