Falafel’s Drive-In

Photo courtesy of Stephen I. (Yelp)

I used to work down the street from this place and I’ve never been. Shame on me, I know. Especially since I love myself a tasty falafel sandwich. It’s even been featured on Food Network on more than one occasion.

That’s it. I needed to go.

So my hubby and I drove down to the Falafel Drive-In in San Jose for lunch and waited in the long line (that never seems to dissipate) for about 10 minutes before ordering. It moves quickly enough.

It’s a typical outdoor burger joint (and they do serve burgers and fries, too), except they serve falafels, gyros, hummus and other mediterranean specialties.

I ordered a large Falafel Sandwich and it was stuffed to the brim with iceburg lettuce, tomatos, tahini sauce, four falafel balls and their famous hot sauce, all in a pita. It was yummy and the falafels were fresh, hot and crispy. Great texture, freshness, and blend of herbs. I wish I could say the lettuce and tomato were fresh too, but they weren’t.  Better veggies would really have made this sandwich even better.

My hubby got the Gyros Salad. It had the same lettuce and tomato (not great) and the gyros had a really good, clean flavor. It didn’t blow him away, but it was definitely tasty enough to order again.

We also got a side order of hummus which is served with some veggies and two large pitas. Very tasty with again, with good clean chickpea flavor. I personally like my hummus with more garlic and olive oil, but if you don’t, you’ll love this.

All in all, the food is indeed, very good and I’d definitely come back. And I love how none of the food gave me that horrible MSG headache or aftertaste that can sometimes come with this type of food.  It was certainly one of the better falafel sandwiches I’ve had in the Bay Area, but not the best I’ve ever had. (That title goes to the ones I’ve had in NYC and Paris!)

Falafel’s Drive-In – 2301 Stevens Creek Blvd., San Jose – 408.294.7886