The Halal Guys

I tried to lower my expectations due to the insane amount of hype about this place (albeit from the New York City original cart) but even after several visits, I have to admit that I'm just not a fan. The food just isn't very good.

The beef is so salty that all I could taste was salt, salt and more salt. I guess that's what the sauces are for but I'm not a sauce / dressing fan. I guess I'm sort of a purist because I think if the food at its core is tasty, you shouldn't have to drown it in sauce to make it edible -- and that's what is going on here. Heed the warnings about that hot sauce; it is H-O-T and that is not a myth that's overblown. That mess will light your butt on fire!

The sad pita bread was just gross. I'm a bread addict and even I didn't want to eat it. I'm not sure if it's made in-house, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's not. There was nothing fluffy nor fresh nor appetizing about it. It was bad. The tomatoes, lettuce and cheese were just your run of the mill, straight off the food delivery truck quality.

The ONLY good thing on my plate was the rice, and it is clearly the superstar. Flavorful, light and fluffy, it's worth eating (which is fortunate because it takes up the majority of the container)! This place is expensive and the portion size of the meat is too small for what it costs. I don't want to pay $10 for a lunch that consists mostly of cheap rice!

The employees are very friendly, competent and willing to help, and the crunchy falafels are a tasty vegan option (serious vegans beware: the line workers aren't as careful as they should be about cross contamination; I saw one lady scooping meat and then falafels with the same utensil).

Adding to the problem of the subpar food is the horrendous parking situation. There is quite literally NOWHERE to park. This place is located in a very busy Chinatown shopping mall so the spaces are almost always completely filled all day and all night, making this an inaccessible place to eat or to get takeout.