Falafel
A street food that has been part of the Israeli experience since the establishment of the state.
Falafel itself is a type of patty – made from ground chickpeas and processed into a round mixture, deep-fried. You can eat the patty as a food item in a meal or even snack on it during a sudden hunger pang, but that’s not a "falafel serving" (a falafel portion or a falafel meal).
In Israeli discourse, when people talk about a "Mana Falafel" ("Falafel serving,") they mean a small, round pita bread stuffed with four or five falafel patties, along with finely chopped vegetables, and topped with a little tahini.
The falafel serving is a popular street food.
In Israel, it's eaten by the rich and the poor, Jews and Arabs, religious and secular.
The most authentic serving is bought at a "falafel stand" and eaten standing, walking, or sitting on a chair next to the stand. You hold the stuffed pita with both hands, bring your hands close to your mouth, bend your head down, open your mouth, and when the pita and falafel meet your teeth – you take the first bite. Then another bite, and another, and you continue until the entire serving is in your stomach, filling it with many hundreds of calories.
This is the classic posture for taking a bite.
Anyone who has eaten a falafel serving on the street knows that the tahini sauce in the pita has a tendency to drip out and spill. Sometimes vegetable bits fall out, and even a whole patty.
This happens to children and it happens to adults too.
Adopting this posture ensures that the tahini will drip onto the floor or the table, and not on your clothes or shoes. And if it does happen – the pita is served with a paper napkin attached to it, for precisely that moment. So you'll have something to wipe with and try to remove the stain.
The classic posture for taking a bite
Falafel stands are scattered all over Israel.
Authentic, old-school falafel vendors are content with a small shop with a minimalist setup that hasn’t changed since falafel hit the streets. At the front of the shop: a marble counter for serving, bowls of salads, on which there is a zigzag metal rack to hold the prepared serving.
The process of buying a falafel serving is also standard and hasn’t changed for three generations: the vendor pulls out a round pita, slices its edge so it can be opened, and stuffs it with falafel balls, salad, more balls, more salad, and at the very end, right on top of everything and at the tip of the serving: a tahini sauce.
While preparing it, a short dialogue takes place between the vendor and the customer.
“What would you like inside?” the vendor asks, with a pita in one hand and the other waiting for your instructions. The standard selection is not large – there are the must-haves: tomatoes and cucumbers, cabbage salad, carrots, pickled cucumber, eggplant, Amba, and of course, a variety of spicy sauces (S'chug, Harissa, garlic, and more).
From there, everything is open and depends on the variety the vendor was willing to invest in.
The more 'invested' vendors will offer more and more types of salads, spicy sauces, and large quantities of French fries, fried eggplant slices, or small bread croutons for a side bite. And there are those who offer you to take as many salads as you want, in any amount you see fit.
"Falafel Armon" in Haifa
In the 21st century, falafel's status as a national dish in Israel has dimmed.
On the street, it's forced to share its place with Shawarma, and it's hard to decide which of them is more beloved by the public. There are also those who sell both at one stand, and offer a falafel serving wrapped in a "Laffa" (an extra-large pita), or as a plate serving.
In Israeli media and social network discussions, some even question its authenticity as a national dish, and there are debates about the history of falafel, its origin, and where the most delicious falafel is made.
A queue for a falafel serving at "Falafel BaRibuAh"
in Givat Shmuel.
Historical Bits
Falafel existed in the area of the Land of Israel even during the Ottoman period.
It has no connection to the original Jewish cuisine. It was a street food sold in Islamic countries all over the Middle East. Even after the British ruled the area, and the British Mandate managed the affairs of the land's inhabitants, both Jews and Arabs.
It didn't have any special magic. People ate it just like they ate bagels, corn on the cob, hot dogs, kebabs, or shish kebab in a pita.
After the state was established, its status changed.
Hundreds of thousands of Jewish immigrants flocked to it from all over the world and encountered the Israeli street and its foods – corn on the cob, nuts and seeds, hot dogs, and falafel.
The crown of "the national dish" was bestowed upon it in the late 1950s. That’s when "The Falafel Song" was released – a song of praise for a food that was fairly unknown to most of the country's immigrant population from Europe.
The song was a hit, played many times on state radio and on records. Its melody is catchy, and the lyrics are simple with no pretense of being a topic for literary discussion. They "catch the ear" and roll off the tongue of Hebrew speakers.
Here, a YouTube video with the falafel song
Chorus:
We have falafel, falafel, falafel,
A gift for daddy, mommy also buys one here,
For grandma the old one, we'll buy a half serving.
And also the mother-in-law today will get Falafel,
falafel With lots and lots of pepper."
The timing was right.
The State of Israel was celebrating its first decade, and had not yet managed to formulate national symbols. Most of its citizens were immigrants from Europe, Asia, and North Africa – a mixture of people from different nations and cultures. On their tables were different foods from the best of the traditions they brought with them, each family and its tradition, each family and its taste.
Falafel was not a common food in every home. Those who came from Islamic countries (Mizrahi Jews) knew it as a street food. They weren't keen on preparing it at home, but on the street, they ate it and remembered their countries of origin with nostalgia.
From the moment the song became a hit, falafel took its place in the consciousness of Israelis.
Its lyrics created two stereotypes that were immediately absorbed:
The first was the explicit crowning of falafel as "the national dish," like macaroni for Italians, schnitzel for Austrians, and rice for the Chinese. And if the song determines it – it must be true, otherwise they wouldn’t play it on state radio.
The second stereotype established that falafel is a food of Jews who immigrated from Yemen. This was stated explicitly in the lyrics of the song and was reinforced by the soloist who sang it in Hebrew with a prominent Yemeni accent. There was no historical basis for this, but who looks for historical accuracy in a folk song?
The crowning of the national dish was underway.
Falafel stands popped up everywhere in Israel, and the most reputable ones were shops opened by members of the Yemeni community, bearing common names among Yemeni Jews, such as: "Yaish's Falafel" or "Zechariah the Falafel King."
The falafel serving also conquered the European immigrants, the Ashkenazis, who were enthusiastic about the "folk food" and stood in line for their serving alongside their Mizrahi brothers... and the rest is history.
For decades, falafel remained the king of street foods, a national symbol, until competitors like shawarma and hamburgers arose and threatened to take its throne.
In a desperate attempt to keep the crown on its head, an idea was hatched that was titled: "All you can eat" – you come to the stand, pay the price of a single falafel serving, get one pita, and can fill it with small or large quantities, according to your taste. Customers had access to bowls full of falafel balls and a wide variety of salads and French fries, bowls that were constantly refilled. You could stuff the pita with whatever you wanted and as much as you wanted, without anyone determining the portion size.
The idea did not last long.
The economic viability didn't pass the test, the system collapsed, and the falafel vendors returned to the old tactic of filling the serving according to a fixed portion.
Since the 2000s, falafel continues to exist in the Israeli space.
Israeli society is satiated and well-fed, and its citizens are looking for intriguing food brands from all over the world – in markets and on the streets. They are all descendants of immigrants from other countries, and many of them are joining the "return to the roots" phenomenon. This phenomenon has brought to the streets the "Sabich" from Iraq, the "Jachnun" from Yemen, the "Kürtősh" from Hungary, the "Injera" from Ethiopia, and a variety of tempting culinary offers.
Israelis will continue to buy falafel, but they won't remain loyal to it for long. The youth of the new generation have no problem shattering national symbols, and falafel is one of them.
It is in constant decline, but it hasn't given up yet.
It is not willing to settle for a place of honor in the national pantheon, or to be just an item in nostalgia groups on Facebook. Falafel is fighting tooth and nail to stay relevant and find a good place among all the culinary offers of Israelis.
This is part of "The Israeli Story 1948-2025" project.
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