I Suck At The Falafel King

today, i had the opportunity to go out for lunch during work. of course, i chose the best day to of the week to go out for lunch (with the dark and dreary sky and the drizzling rain and all). and naturally, i did not have an umbrella today. i actually didn't even have a jacket on when i went out for lunch. you'd think i'd learn my lesson by now.

anyway, i decided to go to the falafel king. now i suck at the falafel king. the falafel king is a tiny take out place located on winter street on the way to downtown crossing in boston. while you wait in line to place your order, the "king" gives you a falafel to eat. he's such a nice guy. i usually order the falafel sandwich. in fact, i have only ever ordered a falafel sandwich every time i have been there... which is a testament to how good the falafel sandwich is. (the place is not called "the falafel king" for nothing.)

i was first introduced to the falafel king by my former boss (brian). he had always raved about the place during lunch time. in fact, i never even knew what a falafel was when i first heard of the place. when i first heard the word "falafel", i thought it was a waffle-like item of food... for no reason other than the fact that the words sounded similar. i have come to find out in my wise years that a falafel is a fried patty of chickpeas.

according to my friend wikipedia, the word falafel is the plural of the arabic word meaning pepper.

"Falafel is generally served in pita bread, either inside the pita, which acts as a pocket, or wrapped in a flat pita. In many countries, falafel is a popular street food or fast food. The falafel balls, whole or crushed, may be topped with salads, pickled vegetables and hot sauce, and drizzled with tehina (tahini). Falafel balls may also be eaten alone as a snack or served as part of a mezze. During Ramadan, they are sometimes eaten as part of an iftar, the meal which breaks the daily fast after sunset.

Falafel has been part of the diet of Arabs and Mizrahi Jews for centuries. It is also considered a national food in Israel where it has become a common part of the Israeli diet. Now a popular street food in many countries around the world, it is sometimes offered as a vegetarian alternative to Doner kebab."

speaking of jews, the falafel king is also the first place i had ever had lunch in town with my friend (hot amy). we were running an errand for my other friend (andrea) by taking pictures of cows. (for anyone curious, hot amy is not jewish... but she is apparently revered by the jewish community.)

anyway, i had a good lunch today by myself. going to the falafel king allowed me to get out of the office and enjoy the dreary drizzly day. i got to be all pensive and stuff... which is sometimes trouble as i like to reminisce.