North Avenue Falafel

-Grubbing in Chicago  
Egyptian Street Food in Galewood

It's been a hot minute since I came upon a spot like North Avenue Falafel - the type of place that feels like a real food find. It almost feels like a flashback to 20 years ago to the heyday of LTHforum. A time when there was still a lot of stuff left to be uncovered in terms of Chicago's food scene as a whole. During it's time of peak usage LTHforum users would flock across the city seeking out interesting and unique spots like North Avenue Falafel. Coincidentally I learned of this place through Robert Gardner aka 'Local Family'. Rob was an LTHforum regular who also goes by @LocalFamily on Instagram which is where I first learned that North Avenue Falafel is not your typical Middle Eastern spot.  

Locals Favorite in Galewood

The setting of North Avenue Falafel feels more like the suburbs than the city as it sits in a strip mall on a busy street. But it's address is in Chicago all the way west on North avenue just before it turns into Elmwood Park. I don't know exactly when it first opened but online reviews go back nine years. I'd actually never been here before though I had driven by many of times. I'm sure I looked it up but it must not have done much for me as I never made it in. Back then it was a pretty typical looking shawarma and falafel spot with a pretty typical menu but that was then and this is now...

Amar from Alexandria

At some point in the recent past North Avenue Falafel introduced an Egyptian Street Food menu. I had no idea it was Egyptian to begin with but Middle Eastern food like shawarma and falafel is fairly common in Egypt so it's not surprising. I've visited North Avenue Falafel a handful of times now and it's always been the same two guys in there. There's one that's usually at the register who's name I forget and another who's commonly stationed on the right where he's most often playing with dough, that's Amar and he can be seen in the video above. Amar is from Alexandria, Egypt's second largest city, and he's responsible for making most of the stuff on the Egyptian Street Food menu. Many of those items are made with fresh dough which Amar assembles every morning. He uses it for a variety of items including pizzas, pies, and sandwiches. But first things first they also have Koshary - Egypt's national dish. Koshary, also spelled Koshari, is the definition of "carbs on carbs" as it's a combo of rice, pasta and lentils each of which is individually cooked before it's all tossed together with cumin spiked tomato sauce and topped with crispy fried onions. Koshary is almost always served with a tangy garlic vinegar sauce and a peppery hot sauce called shatta. For some the mixture of rice and pasta seems all sorts of off but I've enjoyed Koshary the few times I've had it now. It reminds me of a both a Midwestern comfort food dish and a Tex-Mex one too. The version served at North Avenue Falafel seemed pretty textbook to me. Every component was on point and I could not stop eating it. 

Koshary at North Avenue Falafel

Hawawshi is another extremely popular Egyptian dish eaten both in homes and on the street. It's a pita stuffed with meat often mixed with onions, peppers, parsley, and chilies. If not for Koshary this would probably be Egypt's national dish. According to Wikipedia there's two variants of Hawawshi 1) "baladi" (standard) and 2) Alexandrian (common in Alexandria). In most of Egypt Hawawshi is baked by filling flat Egyptian bread with the meat mix and baking it in the oven. But in Alexandria the ingredients go between two circular layers of dough, then baked in an oven. With Amar being from Alexandria he makes that style at North Avenue Falafel. You can watch the entire process unfold as Amar starts with a ball of dough that's slapped and stretched and eventually enclosed with a raw meat mix and topped with sesame seeds before a visit to the oven. I've tried one with ground beef and another with the sausage, both of them with cheese, and each of them was very good but I might've slightly preferred the sausage as it always goes so well with peppers. But make no mistake it's the fresh bread that makes this worth the ride to an area where both Johnnie's and Mr. D's reside. 

Hawawshi at North Avenue Falafel

The Egyptian staples on offer don't stop with just the more well known offerings like they do at other Egyptian restaurants I've been too. I was very intrigued and interested in trying one of the Oriental Pies which I read is used in a broader context to describe pastries with similar characteristics. Egyptian Oriental Pies, or Feteer, are a traditional Egyptian pastry known for their flaky, layered texture and a variety of fillings. Again when you order this you will get to watch the entire process as Amar folds and crimps the thin dough before stuffing it and inverting it and placing it in the oven. About ten minutes later it comes out of the oven and is sliced like a tavern thin crust pizza into squares allowing it to be shared. All pies include cheese, tomato, and green pepper with your choice of filling. I tried the ground beef and it was a real treat though not something you want to eat solo as it's heavy and a tad bit oily albeit in a good way - there's lots of beefy flavor up in there. 

Oriental Pie

Making my way thru the menu meant giving the sandwiches a try on my third visit. They start with fresh sesame rolls baked each and every morning by Amar. The rolls are soft but quite sturdy and come stuffed with a number of different combinations including a beef liver option. Me being me I opted for the most unique offering which is called a Rocket and described on the menu as "Pastrami, Sausage, Hot Paper, Tomato, Onion" with hot paper being a spelling error that's supposed to be hot pepper. Amar warned me this would be spicy but I don't take those warnings too seriously outside of Thai food and and a few other cuisines so I wasn't worried. I watched as Amar stir fried all of the ingredients together before putting it into a roll. It was almost like a guisado or a stew in that it wasn't very wet but not completely dry either. The steaming hot mix of meat and vegetables made for a great sandwich but again it was the warm and soft bread that took this from good to great. It works so much better than a Turano roll would. It's a real treat finding a sandwich place that still bakes it's own bread and no Jimmy John's doesn't count. The menu also lists a Philly Steak which I thought would be great made with the same bread but when I asked about that Amar told me his was made "Cairo Style" which he explained was rolled into thin phyllo dough and is big enough for two - intriguing indeed. 

Rocket Sandwich

It didn't take long for me to find someone to return with as my brother joined me for a dinner visit the very next day. As soon as I walked in they knew why I was there and got started on this Egyptian style Philly Cheesesteak I couldn't wait to try. We took a seat and watched as Amar stretched and rolled out the dough into a large rectangular shape. From there it was layered with cheese which was topped with a mixture of stir fried chopped steak with peppers, onions, and mushrooms which was all rolled into a long log and sprayed with some sort of liquid before being baked. We were asked how many pieces we wanted it to be cut into and I told him to do what he normally does and he proceeded to cut it into four different sections each a tad smaller than a pizza puff. I forgot to ask what type of cheese he uses but it was a very good melting cheese as it stretched extensively with each bite. We both really liked this slight variation on America's most well known regional sandwich but again it's not something you want to eat solo. Also of note is it's listed on the menu with the rest of the sandwiches which are $7.99 but because this is basically double the size of the others it's also double the price. 

Egyptian Philly Steak at North Avenue Falafel

On the same visit we ate the Philly Steak we also got some shawarma and falafel and I was quite surprised with both of them. The falafel are a tad tinier than most and also a bit more greener inside. I read Egypt has it's own style of falafel and the main characteristic is that it's made with peeled and split beans and not chickpeas although I don't know if that's the case here as I just learned this before I started writing this post so I never had a chance to ask. I also read Egyptian falafel is greener than most due to the addition of fresh herbs and onions and the falafel here is herbier than most. A six piece will set you back just $3.50 - the prices are very favorable. Chicken shawarma is marinated in a yogurt sauce and stacked fresh daily. It's sliced to order but they still give it a trip to the flattop which I don't like but in this case they cut it up into such bite size pieces that crisp up nicely so it works well mixed into the rice. It's served with vegetables and a side salad and if you ask for the vinegar hot sauce as well as the jalapeno one and mix it all up it reminds me of an NYC style chicken and rice bowl only better. One last tip before you make the trip - most of the stuff on the street food menu is made Amar and cant be made unless he's there but it also takes an hour or so to get the dough ready so I suggest going in the middle of the day rather than at the very beginning or the very end of it. 

Falafel at North Avenue Falafel

Chicken Shawarma Plate

North Avenue Falafel
6814 W North Ave
Chicago, IL 60707
(773) 688-5388
Website

The Colorado Mountains

Eating like a local:
Regional food specialties
- Where to eat in the Colorado Mountains 

We took a trip to Colorado last year part of which was spent in Denver as reported HERE. But the real reason for our roadtrip out west was to go hang out somewhere in the mountains of Colorado. My wife had never been and it had been years since my last trip. We ended up getting an AirBNB in Silverthorne which is about an 1.5 west of Denver. We chose it based on the quality of the spot as we filtered it out so that we had a rental with a wooden fireplace. Highly recommended if you're planning a trip out to the mountains at any point but especially in the beginning of October when Fall was just hitting the area. We loved how it was jacket weather see your breath cool in the early morning and then short sleeves and sunny in the afternoon. The Silverthorne area is located in a good location as far as getting around and seeing different towns and doing different hikes. This was the first trip in forever where food wasn't the focus. We did a few trails a day using the AllTrails app. I've always loved the outdoors but never been big on hiking though this trip may have changed that. 

Sights from hikes in Colorado 

I guess if there's anywhere where one can warm up to the trails it's Colorado and it's massive playground of outdoor activities. Aside from hiking somewhere near our rental each morning we also tried to take one both in the afternoon and then around sundown too. Some days we didn't make it to the third hike due to the first two being decent stretches of uphill movement. But the harder the trail the more spectacular views. We went as high as moderate as the expert hikes in Colorado are truly for the specialists. We had a chance to stroll through a handful of towns that were within daytrip distance of Silverthorne. That town itself is pretty corporate in that there's a ton of businesses there including an outlet mall but it's also close to some other nice towns such as Dillon and Frisco. If given the option on a future trip I'd stay in one of those over Silverthorne but this was a pretty last minute trip and we got a nice spot so no complaints. One of the highlights was an afternoon stroll through the mining town of Georgetown. I've always been fascinated with these due to HBO's Deadwood. 

Sights from Georgetown, CO

Another highlight was the drive from Silverthorne to Fairplay (another old mountain town). The drive along Route 9 was one of the prettiest I've ever taken. Other towns we got to check out included the Disney-like campus of Vail and the much hipper Edwards Colorado next door. The latter of which seems to to be an area that more younger people (skiers, chefs etc) are moving to instead of Vail. We did some hikes in Breckenridge but never ended up eating anywhere over there. The food wasn't abundant on this trip in terms of spots I wanted to check out. There's no doubt that the dining scene in this part of the Colorado mountains is lacking. That said I can lead you to some pretty good places. 

Sights from Fairplay and Alma (home to the highest weed shop in the world...literally)

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Sunshine Cafe (Silverthorne, CO)

This little hidden diner was to my gathering one of the best food stops in town. When you think about how Colorado is a big outdoors state it makes sense there’s great breakfast spots abound. Fuel is needed whether hiking, skiing, or biking. Lots to love about this locals favorite in a Silverthorne strip mall. Pan fried ruby red trout with eggs and hash browns and the ‘Ski Tech’ special served with two sausage patties, hash browns topped with melted cheese and green chili sauce with an egg on top. Both of which were made great. You can’t get a more classic Colorado breakfast session than that.

Breakfast at Sunshine Cafe 

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Cafe Profusion (Silverthorne, CO)

Speaking of hidden gems Cafe Profusion sits on the 2nd floor of a business complex and was only doing takeout on our visit. That's fine bc 1) there's no restaurant good enough to risk catching covid in and 2) they do Asian type fusion food so it takes out really well. It's also a gluten free restaurant but the menu is interesting enough compared to most of the generic spots out there. Run by an older couple inspired by their travels or something to the likes. I got the 'Pot Roast Penang' which the menu describes as beef brisket braised Malaysian Spices, vegetables and a side of Basmati rice. Not bad at all. Really good actually. The tender pot roast took to the Malaysian inspired sauce really well. Maybe not authentic but they tell you that in the restaurants name. Also surprising was a top notch hot and sour soup. One of the best I've versions I've tried actually. It was a bit of a letdown that they wouldn't be open the rest of the days we were in town bc we would've gone back. One minor complaint would be the size of it compared to the price but you expect pay a mountain type tourist tax up here. 

Pot Roast Penang + Hot & Soup at Cafe Profusion 

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The Blü Cow (Vail, CO)

Vail is like Disney World’s Epcot in the mountains. Not for me. That said the Swiss Hot Dogs found at The Blü Cow are quite the treat. Two pork and veal brats are griddled and placed between a French baguette and dressed with arugula, brown mustard, curry spice, and chopped onions with parsley. These have been served in the area in one form or the other since the 1960’s. In a town with a ton of overpriced and average food this old school bar from another era was a really nice surprise. 

The Swiss Dog at The Blü Cow

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Alpenrose (Vail, CO)

The wife didn't want hot dogs so we stopped for some "local food" while in Vail too. I use the quotes bc again it felt like we could be eating in the Switzerland wing of Epcot Center. Though we were seated outside so having the mountains as a back drop gave us that ski town feel. Alpenrose is one of a couple Swiss chalet type dining spots in town. The other was closed bc the staff that usually works there couldn't get visas to come from Switzerland. We tried two of the more common Swiss offerings in an order of fondue and also a Bavarian pork schnitzel with spaetzle and cream sauce. I liked the latter (not a big fondue guy) but we paid about 50% more than I would've liked. I'm not cheap but $36 for a smaller sized schnitzel was a bit much but like I said earlier in this post there's a mountain tax. 

Swiss Lunch at Alpenrose 

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Drunken Goat (Edwards, CO)

Like I was saying earlier the town of Edwards (20 min west of Vail) seems to be turning into a playground for the younger crowds as Vail is really an old money type place. The restaurants and grocers and butchers over here seem to be similar to that of other up and coming hip cities and towns. Places like the Drunken Goat where they have drinks, charcuterie, cheese and more. 

Happy Hour at The Drunken Goat 

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The Craftsman (Edwards, CO)

Here's another hip spot where the crowd was much younger than anywhere in Vail. The menu was also much more tempting with it's chef driven sandwiches and local craft brews and cocktails. The 'Green Chile Philly' seemed like a no-brainer for me and I was very happy with my decision. They used a really good roll with real shaved ribeye, chopped green chiles, and fromage américain. 

Green Chile Philly at The Craftsman 

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KB's Kakery & Dorothy's Tamales (Fairplay, CO)

I read about this little duo of a shop selling cakes and tamales while researching places to eat in the area. Locally grown chiles are life in the Southwest so I made sure to try my tamales smothered in sauce. Both the green chile and the red chile were quite tasty making it hard to pick a side. 

Tamales at Dorothy's Tamales 

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Salado (Fairplay, CO)

We took a ride down the incredibly scenic State Highway 9 south through Breckinridge and into Fairplay which sits at an elevation of 9,953 feet. It’s a small town with some big charm. But my main reason for visiting was for a meal at Salado which boasts an “eclectic Southwestern” menu and has a terrific patio outside along the towns sleepy main strip. The Navajo Taco is one of the more sad stories as far as a dishes history goes. But at the same time it’s a part of the Native culture and found in the Southwest pretty regularly. This one was made with ground beef, pinto beans, green chiles, roasted corn, sour cream, cotija, tomatoes on classic Indian Fry Bread. Served with a cup of smoky green chili. Tempura Fried Cactus with sweet onion prickly pear sauce for both of us as an app and Blue Corn Encrusted Ruby Red Trout with saffron rice for her. Cool spot in the middle of nowhere. 

Dinner at Salado 

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See ya next time @chibbqking

Flippin Flavors

-Grubbing in Chicago  
Black People Eats in Beverly

It's nice to see people putting more stock into supporting Black owned businesses. Thanks to the food account @blackpeopleeats on instagram I was tipped off to a new sandwich shack in Beverly. Flippin Flavors just opened last month and word seemed to be spreading fast. There was about four or five groups of people patiently waiting to enter and leave with their food. It's a family affair here.

Newly Opened in Beverly

According to some digging I did Flippin Flavors sells bottled sauces and such at a store on 53rd street too. Everything that the @blackpeopleeats account posted looked good so I made sure to make plans with a friend so we could meet and try a couple things. After placing our order and waiting for 10-15 minutes we headed across the street to a big empty lot where the Beverly Farmers Market is held on Sunday's. They had already ran out of menus after a busy first week so ordering was pretty easy in that it was the pictures of the sandwiches that were speaking to me. The Southside has it's own Sandwich Culture and they call them Hoagy's over here. We ordered one Steak and Turkey.

Philly Steak Hoagy at Flippin Flavors

The Philly Steak was super satisfying. I kind of consider this style a Chicago thing all it's own even though I know plenty of places outside of the city make them this way. They don't include bell peppers in your cheesesteak unless you ask for them in Philly. But in Chicago and lots of other spots it seems like bell peppers and onions are standard. But what really caught my eye at Flippin Flavors was the turkey hoagy. They serve them "mild" and "hot" in reference to the peppers that come on it. The sandwich itself is served cold and most likely pre-made. But nonetheless it was as I imagined it would be - a classic 1970’s sub shop type sandwich. Then there’s the house made Banana Pudding ice cream. Totally worth ordering. In fact we had it as an app since it was liable to melt otherwise.

"Hot" Turkey Hoagy at Flippin Flavors 

Flippin Flavors
1848 W 95th St
Chicago, IL 60643
(773) 253-2680
Website

Stopping in at three Ann Arbor Favorites

Eating like a local:
Regional food specialties

- Longtime Ann Arbor Favorites

School is back in session. It didn't take long for the Michigan Wolverines to lose national championship aspirations. Nonetheless the show must go on up in Ann Arbor. Where they may not have an elite D1 football program but they do have a pretty fantastic campus within a beautiful town. I will say it never quite did the things Madison does for me but it's still one of the better college campuses in the country. Due to it's close proximity to places like Detroit and Dearborn it's got some really good stuff going on as far as food and culture. Today we check out three town favorites for food.

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 Krazy Jim's Blimpy Burger

There's at least two spots that pretty much everyone who's lived in Ann Arbor will tell you about. The first one up is Krazy Jim's Blimpy Burger. One of the more unique restaurants in not just Ann Arbor or Michigan but in the entire country. They play the mad at the world schtick and treat customers like their servicemen and women in the army. It's kind of annoying but also pretty funny. I watched some poor Asian students obviously new to America get rode up by the crazy lady running the show. Your best bet is to try and figure out and know what you're getting before you go. Then when you're in line you can practice the order form. it's been this way since 1953 which is when they first got started.

 a peek inside 

Obviously you're here for a burger. They dont make it easy by offering 100's of different variations all based off the toppings available. You even have to choose which type of bun you want. On top of the obvious stuff like how many patties, what type of cheese and do you want onion rings? The answer to that is always yes. Krazy Jim's makes some of the best onion rings out there. Or maybe I should say onion ring as it all ind of forms into one upon coming out of the fryer. Nice and thin and extra crisp which is just how I like them. Burger wise you should always go double when the option is there no matter whee you are. If so a single will always be small and never have a good meat to bun ratio. I got a double with American cheese, grilled onion, mustard, pickles, and bacon on a poppy seed bun. Man I must say I'd heard mixed reviews about Jim's and after eating the burger I can only assume those that didn't like it was bc of the Nazis who run the place. Bc the burger is a throwback classic.

Cheeseburger and Onion Rings from Blimpy Burger

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 Broadway Cafe 

Our next stop is much more lowkey than the other two. I'd venture to guess most Ann Arbor residents dont know of the Broadway Cafe. Despite it being around since 1986 there's not a ton of love out there. You look around and there just isn't much. Well I'm here to tell you that this should probably be your first stop in Ann Arbor. Owned by a Korean family they make a few Korean diner classics such as bi bim bop. They also do cheesesteak hoagies. These sandwiches are big around this part of Michigan. There's a few places that have been making cheesesteak hoagies going on a few generations. So the folks from Broadway cafe decided to bank on that fact and they too offer hoagies. But what they have that the others dont is a Bulgogi based hoagie. Bulgogi being the thinly sliced beef popular in Korean BBQ. Well it also makes for the perfect cheesesteak meat. Paired with gooey American cheese and grilled onions, carrots, mushrooms, green peppers it's a world class sandwich.

Bulgogi Hoagie at Broadway Cafe

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 Zingerman's Delicatessen

You cant make a trip to Ann Arbor and not stop at the most famous sandwich shop in town. Zingerman's is recognized on a national level as one of the best deli's in the country. It's an Ann Arbor staple that I had never visited until this past Spring. I'll start by saying it's a cool p[lace. They got alot going on. It's a full fledged grocery store as well as a deli. It's grown a little bit ever since they first opened in 1982. Today they're a full grown empire with a handful of offshoots as far as businesses including a roadhouse, catering company, coffee house, and creamery. Now let me say this. I wasn't crazy impressed with their selection of stuff which was really just a bunch of goods they stocked up on from elsewhere. I didn't see a bunch of housemade meats or the likes. But one thing they do make in house, or rather bake, is the bread. It's fantastic and was the highlight of my $20 Reuben sandwich. Maybe a tad steep in price I was still pleasantly surprised by it's deliciousness.

Reuben Sandwich at Zingerman's Delicatessen

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Krazy Jim's Blimpy Burger
304 S Ashley St
Ann Arbor, MI 48104
(734) 663-4590

Broadway Cafe
1139 Broadway St
Ann Arbor, MI 48105
(734) 769-8900

Zingerman's Delicatessen
422 Detroit St
Ann Arbor, MI 48104
(734) 663-3354