Mac Falafel

Very average. Portions not that big either. Similar to fast food places. I tried the chicken and will not be trying it again. It’s okay for when I am very hungry but otherwise eating at home is probably better.

This place was ok for a while, but they microwave falafels and have skimpy portions with bland toppings. Plus one particular woman there has a pretty sour attitude that is not inviting to come back.

This is a great neighbourhood spot for a quick, inexpensive, filling meal. The location itself is very basic, nothing fancy. The chicken shwarma wrap is delicious and filled with an array of veggies and sauces. If you are looking for a quick dinner, this is good choice.

When I lived nearby, I used to eat here once a week. I love this place myself but I do understand the negative reviews. It is not the tastiest shawarma around but the combination of hot sauce and tzatziki is light but satisfying. If you don’t like both, maybe this isn’t your kind of place. You might be better off at a joint where they secretly put msg into everything. That being said, the chicken is the best seller and I have to admit that it can be inconsistent. Most of the time it is served right, moist and slightly charred at the ends. Sometimes they might leave it too long or short, depending on busy-​ness.
#1 baklava. Beats every Greek restaurant I have ever been to. Loaded with nuts and perfectly flaky.
Favorite order is the Shawarma (chicken) platter with tzatziki and hot sauce. House dressing for the salad. (Sometimes can be oily though if they don’t shake it enough.)

I stopped by here on my lunch break. First the good stuff — the place is clean, staff are friendly and the food is very fresh.
However, #9 combo (chicken shwarma) was absolutely tasteless. The meat have no flavor in it. For 8 dollars, I would rather get a big mac combo from mcd’s.

Even for drunk food it’s inadvisable. Greasy and gross. Go to Al Basha a bit further down Broadway instead.

microwaved falafel = crumbly and dry. don’t go here.

best food hands down… Atta the owner (might be miss spelling it) is a God among men… if you want food go to this place… ORDER THE BARBARIAN WRAP… my own wrap and its for the bosses. I have been going here for a long time… TO the other people that gave this place a bad review. you have no tongues or brains and should just eat cat food because they don’t know what good food is.

Positive Review:
For the previous negative reviewers; Im not about to say ALL their food here is amazing but the chicken here is the best Ive ever had. Hands down. No joke.
Order a CHICKEN PLATTER. Not a wrap, not a falafel, not beef. A chicken platter. Im telling you that you cant go wrong!
It is possible to get dry chicken that has been sitting on heat after the lunch rush and the chicken will be not as tasty. So show up here at 11:30−12PM or 2PM+ to get the juicy, freshly carved stuff.
The salad is just iceberg lettuce, but get the House Dressing and its damn tasty. The rice doesnt come with the classic frozen peas/​carrots/​corn mixture that so many places have. Plain jane. But flavorful and moist.
Feel free to hate on their other menu items, but the chicken platter here deserves love.
They also have a new location at 1859 w 4^th Ave. Im still on the fence about that one.

I am a huge falafel fan, and I recently went to the one on 4^th (the same name anyway) to have a falafel wrap. It was pretty good! I have tried falafel in many countries, and this one was not bad at all! a lot of places just warm up factory made frozen falafel in the microwave to serve, but this place makes their own.
The staff there was friendly, good price, quick, and good for take-​out!

The place was packed with hungry men and «workers» but not a single female customer could be found on the premise. I don’t usually judge by gender when reviewing a place, but I should have known that I was going for some «hearty gristle that would put hair on my chest» after a quick survey of the clientele. And I should have stopped right there.
I also should have read Cathy’s review, first. I used to go here when it was… good? Under a different name and owner, perhaps or perhaps my palette has changed since I am no longer a poor student? I had a chicken shawarma that was so «gristled» on the first bite that I almost gagged. Unlike subway, they hide the food from you as they make it so you can’t see what you are getting. I was a bit disappointed as instead of fresh veggies, it was covered in pickled cukes and I couldn’t really see any hummus or tzatsiki. So I’m not sure what I was eating. I managed to eat the rest as I was starving and at $ 5.25 it was okay I guess. My friend ordered the lamb plate and he had no complaints; in fact, he boasted about the authenticity of the place. If this is authenticity, I’ll take a pass next time, thanks.
I went to the back to wash my hands… what a horror show. I wouldn’t touch anything in there. I don’t think that it had EVER been cleaned. I walked in, took one look and walked out. I was better off eating my food with dirty hands. I shudder to think of what the counters and cooking utensils looked like. Come to think of it, I’m afraid to look at the health inspection report now. What a waste of calories!
Anyway, I left feeling a bit ill (yet full) and while a shawarma isn’t exactly healthy to begin with, I don’t think I’ll be craving one of these for awhile. Yuck.

This place will fill you up for a really decent price but don’t expect anything fantastic. I eat here once or twice a month and have done so since they opened quite a few years back. The food here is consistent but definitely won’t blow you away. When you’re paying $ 4 for a shawarma — i don’t think you can complain to much. I enjoy the food every time and I’ve never had a bad experience. The Falafel here isn’t the best but their chicken shawarmas are good and the beef with sweet sauce will hold you down as well. They’re open til midnight which is nice and the food is generally healthy.

Cooked in oil that may well have been used to power a tractor, the falafel were frightful bits of beaten batter force marched into a stale pitta. The taste did not hearken to authentic street food of the middle east.
They do have CNN on constantly. Watch to see if a new segment on Israel gets broadcast. The family who staff the joint will become very agitated.

This place is great for a quick bite– my boyfriend lives across the street and I love Donairs/​Gyros etc.
I always get the beef, they basically put the regular ingredients on it, and send you out the door for less than $ 4 or so. I enjoy it, i’ve never had a bad experience.
I don’t like that they are closed on Sundays, especially since they are so close to the UBC area and beside a 7 – 11 so I bet they could get some pretty decent business. There is a Browns in the same lot– but sometimes you just want a pita full of meat.
I will continue to eat here as often as I can remember because it is on the bus route, very well priced and very convenient.

Memo to self: If the restaurant starts with «Mac», immediately turn and flee.
What a nasty chicken shawarma. The chicken was plentiful but bland and seemingly fried to a jerky-​like state. With just lettuce, tomato and a little tzatziki, it had as much excitement as a Tim Hortons wrap. Two bites — trash — never again.

I wish I could give this place NO stars. I love shwarma. I love it so effing much because it’s flavorful, healthy, yummy and the best «fast food» you can get. This was the first time that I stopped eating a shwarma wrap after the first couple bites, unwrapped the pita to inspect what exactly was in it that tasted so horrible and then refused to even feed it to my cat in fear that it might actually kill her (she’s 16 years old, I don’t want to be the reason she dies.)
My cat ended up finding a gelatinous piece of chicken (?) that had fallen on the floor while I was inspecting the contents. She batted at it for a minute then walked away. She sometimes eats actual garbage, and she wouldn’t even eat this crap. Good call cat, good call.
My garborator ate the whole thing though, so that’s something at least.
Mac Falafel, What the hell.

MacFalafel is a decent no frills place to grab a quick, cheap and healthy bite. It’s a good place to stop on the way to or from UBC or Jericho Beach.
The restaurant is family owned, which is a nice option in a chain dominated niche. It serves classical Mediterranean fare in generous portions; including their namesake falafels. The restaurant’s interior ain’t trendy or even all that comfortable, but it’s clean. Take-​out seems to be the preferred option for most. Food is affordable and fresh.
Heads up that it’s cash only.

This place is horrible. Imagine crappy food + crap service + crap place + cheap price added together. What do you get? WELL CRAP RESTAURANT OF COURSE!
Anyways I ate here yesterday and it was really bad. The price is cheap alright, $ 6 for a falafel or chicken swharama (I forgot what it’s called… hehe) platter. But the taste? Yeech. It tastes dry and bland. Portion’s not that big either.
Even the service was really bad. My friends and I were ordering, then one of my friend and I forgot to bring cash (oh yeah, they accept CASH ONLY) and I told my other friend to pay. Then the cashier just calculated everything and said «$ 19 please» but my other friend is not even done ordering. Then she proceeded again «$ 19 PLEASE». What?! Lady, can’t you wait?!
Don’t go here. Unless you are starving your balls off. Then again there’s a 7 – 11 beside it, might as well get food there.

I hope nobody out there reads ALL of my reviews because I must sound like a broken record sometimes, repeating my mantra and proselytizing: «order and select food with a contextual perspective»
In fact, this does not just apply to food… it applies to all services. Whenever you enter a commercial transaction, know what you want to get out of it as a consumer.
A quick once-​over of Mac Falafel should reveal that it is a poor place to order falafel. One look at those sad, rancid little croquettes should communicate the fact that some little garbanzos have definitely been mistreated. Mac Falafel does offer some fresh and pleasing items, you just have to scope things out first. Their *chicken* donair, spinach pies and chicken buns are cheap and fresh. Their beef donair, cheese pies and falafel are pretty terrible, I admit. If you are disappointed in something here, let them know! This is a local, family-​run hole-​in-​the-​wall that needs your support and will appreciate your feedback. Really.
Try Mac Falafel, just avoid putting those neglected greasy balls in your mouth. This is just good advice, in general.

When my boyfriend returned with takeout from Mac Falafel, I think I looked a little horrified. Throw the word «Mac» before anything and I automatically think Scottish, which leads me to the unappetizing thought of haggis.
But Mac Falafel, thankfully, takes things on a completely different tangent. This family-​run Mediterranean restaurant cooks up classic falafels (well, if you name your store after it it’d better be a good one heh?). We had the falafel platter and some humus, which was plenty for two with leftovers.
Pretty decent as far as a quick, filling dinner goes, but not so special to make a trip for this spot alone.