restaurant review: l'as du falafel (aka the best falafel i've ever had)

Don't worry - the lines move quickly...

(Paris, France).  Before I went to Paris this summer, I asked around for food recommendations and got several enthusiastic messages about L'as du Falafel.  It was relatively close to Notre Dame and the Centre Pompidou, so we decided to check it out while we were in the area.

Was it worthy of all the glowing recommendations?

Happily yes!

As we walked towards the restaurant through some charming little streets (with adorable boutiques), I realized I had found it when I noticed a huge crowd concentrated at the end of the street.  It was obviously a very popular restaurant.  (There was another falafel restaurant right across from it without the massive lines, and I noticed that they had a sign proclaiming that they were the best falafel restaurant on the street, but I guess the crowd didn't care...)

 

Man with meat...

It was a little confusing when we got to the crowd, but fortunately one of the servers explained in English that there are 2 lines - one for takeaway and one for a table in the restaurant.  (Tip: When facing the restaurant, the line for tables is to your right.)  It seemed both lines were about the same length and seemed to take about the same amount of time.. for us, it was about a 15 minute wait.

We decided to get a table and enjoy some wine with lunch.  Some New Yorkers ahead of us excitedly told us that this was their favorite restaurant in Paris so far and that this was their 2nd time eating here on the same trip.  That only made my tummy growl more.

When we were seated, we ordered the falafel combo platter and the schwarma combo platter.  It was served with delicious warm pita (that kept on coming), hummus, french fries, an eggplant spread and pickled veggies.  There were also some hot sauces on the table that were splendid.  My husband and I happily feasted and, although, I'm not normally a huge fan of falafel, I would have to say these were the best I've ever tasted.  Very flavorful and light.

Our Parisian friends felt that L'as du Falafel was a bit expensive, but they also acknowledged that the food was very good.  I'm assuming we could have gotten cheaper falafel elsewhere, but I'm not sure it would have been as tasty.   For two platters, a beer and a small bottle of rose, I think we spent about 40 euros.

Definitely recommended.