On a mobile device? Try our mobile site, optimized for faster browsing.
Categories: Greek, Mediterranean [Edit]
Neighborhood: Williamsburg - South SideMetropolitan Ave-Lorimer St (G, L)
Hewes St (J, M)
What is WRONG with you, Manna?
Oh, I know, you're not Falafel Chula. But you are open 24 hours a day, and your coffee is aight.
Dirt cheap, fairly fast, fairly delicious. Good coffee and breakfast sandwiches to boot. Oh yeah, IT'S OPEN 24/7! Like its namesake, this place is a godsend.
Falafel: Not as good as Mamoun's, on the level of Oasis. It's also $3, and available 24/7. Adding hummus costs a buck more, but makes it even more delicious.
Doner ("gyro"): This is NOT a gyro. Get over it. It's basically just a pita FILLED with meat. Greasy, delicious meat. I think some veggies? I can't remember, all of that meat is clouding my memory (it seems like expectations about this dish is the source of a lot of the negative reviews).
Chicken shwarma: Might be called chicken gyro? This is the closest to a gyro you'll get. It's pretty good.
Chicken soup: This is actually the best thing on the menu. Chicken, potatoes, onions, carrots, celery, some other stuff. The perfect amount of spicy. $3.50. Already made and ready to go. Seriously, this soup is amazing!
I've also heard that this is a great place to buy cheap pockets. There's always enough space to sit down. Also, their playlist rules. Always afrobeat, soul, or funk.
I visited this place several times before checking the Yelp reviews and I'm glad I did, since seeing all the pans here might have made me think twice. The first time I ordered the shawarma which was pretty close to street meat, but have since switched to the falafel sandwich which is prepared Israeli style and is quite good, especially considering that it's cheap.
The rice pudding might be priced a little high, but I'm a big rice pudding eater and I think it's fine, and there are really two servings in there unless you're coming for the late night post-boozeahol snack.
Bottom line, I think there must have been some improvements made since some of these reviews were written because I've been served quickly every time and was pleased with the falafel.
Ladies and Gentlemen and Robots of the Brooklyn Yelp Community,
What is wrong with y'all? Unless you are all bonafide middle easterners, I can't imagine how you can't like this place. 24 Hrs. Food and Coffee.
They didn't have exactly what we wanted combination-wise on the board so we asked to create our own and the gal behind the counter happily obliged. We ordered Chicken Shawerma, Falafel, Tabouleh, Babaganoush, and it came with a delicious rice mixture, alleged salad, and Pita bread. $10 for this spread of delightful treats. The Falafel was well flavored and crunchy on the outside, soft in the middle. The babaganoush was great as was the tabouleh and the chicken. The rice mixture went very well with the falafel which was covered with a tzaziki-esque sauce. The salad was nowhere to be found and the waitress apologized and immediately brought out a large salad and extra pita bread. This meal easily fed two of us, was delicious, and was super cheap. The coffee was good and stout too, all in all a very very good experience.
Good falafel, until this is what happened one day that made me never walk into their business again:
1. It is late at night and I feel hungry; I remember about this falafel place and walk into it
2. I have to use the bathroom first, so I ask the woman there where the bathroom is
3. The woman very rudely says "bathroom is only for the customers!!!"
4. I reply, "yes I am going to buy, but first I need to use the bathroom."
5. She rudely shouts "You have to buy first! I'm sick of cleaning up that bathroom after people!"
6. I retort: "Really? Well then f** you and your business, b**ch", walk out to never again return..
7. I reflect on the stupidity of some people
8. I walk into a French restaurant nearby on Grand St, and after they kindly direct me to use their bathroom, and I order a big and delicious meal
I'm currently about a third through the "gyro" I just got from Manna, and I'm seriously considering throwing it away.
While walking toward Falafel Chula down Grand, I saw this place and thought, "let's try something new!" I'm never listening to my instincts again.
I was curious why it was priced the same as a street vendor, but thought I would get some very special surprise. I should have known not to order something called Doner (Gyro). They are NOT the same thing! Then teh guy handed me the smallest bag I have ever seen a Gyro come in. I knew what was going on, but just made a comment about probably having to get something else to make a full lunch and left.
When I got home, my suspicions were confirmed. Instead of tender strips of lamb and beef (not even good old meat-hive meat), folded in a large pita with tsatziki sauce, onions, tomato and lettuce, I have a regular size pita, top cut off, a greasy stain at the bottom indicating the location of the meat. One bite revealed that there was no tsatziki or white sauce of any kind, and the meat was (is) shredded, crunchy, over seasoned and overcooked.
There is red cabbage, which is a plus, but doesn't come near to balancing out the sins of this sandwich, which currently lies like a lump on my plate, staring at me, taunting me, as if to say, "What did you expect? You saw the clueless hipsters in the restaurant! Those shaggy-haired skeletons, glued to their Macbooks, were just there to drink overpriced coffee and use some free Wi-Fi because their neighbors have gotten wise and started using a password!" Or something to that effect.
I may be biased, because I am from Cincinnati, which is about as Greek as Astoria, and I've known since I was five years old that "It's pronounced Yee-ros," but this sandwich is a travesty. I am so angry at this sandwich, I need to punish it somehow. I certainly can't bring myself to eat anymore of this greaseball. The thought of putting it near my mouth makes my lips burn. I think I may have to wrap it up n napkins before I throw it away so it doesn't offend the rest of my garbage.
Seriously. Manna, stop calling this a gyro. It very well could be Doner Kebab, which I've never had, but if so, I pray for the English people. I shudder to think what their falafel is like. I picture a spongy, greasy ball of barely processed chickpeas.
Restaurants in general do better when they focus on one region of cuisine. And guess what? Shwarma and Doner and Gyros come from different countries. Middle Eastern food is a joke. I'll take Greek or Lebanese or Turkish any day over some mishmosh. It's as bad as "Southern" restaurant that serve Memphis ribs and South Carolina barbecue. OK, I could be ranting because I'm still hungry. Think I'll make a salad.
For 12am to 4am I would give this place 3.5 stars.
for the remainder I would give 2.5.
Not bad, not great. I would say the ambiance, the staff and the clientele are a trip and add a nice quality to the place.
the food is totally inauthentic and most middle east foodies would dislike. but the casual mid east eater may enjoy. I would say they do provide a lot of food for a fair price
I've only been once, though the below reviews make me wary of returning. I've been meaning to check it out every time I stroll by, because 24/hr falafel should automatically be a win. I went in and asked for a schwarma/falafel combo pita. The fellow who took my order was friendly and it was made fast, and it was pretty decent, though the meat was a smidge greasy. Hence the "meh" rating.
yeah, not so much. it's a place that embodies everything right about eating cheap late night post drinking...it's also the place that will make you (well, me at least) hate life the next day. i'm picky about my falafel and while they serve up a cheap tasty plate, there's something about it that never sits well with me.
maybe i've just been spoiled by the goodness of oasis?
it's open all night and it's not horrible so that says something!
What! Hummus at 4am, there is nothing better! The people are nice and they have lots of to go items, salads muffins ect.
Stop by, its worth it!
24 hour falafel! Close to the L, right next to the 48 bus stop. Sold!
I believe their falafel platter is $5 or so? Last time I ordered it, I had food for three days. No lie, and I can eat a lot of food, especially after work! I'd recommend getting the platter instead of the sandwich. When I've gotten the platter it comes with the pita, so you can just make your own sandwich and eat the rice that comes with it!
Really nice people working there. No decor whatsoever, but who cares for 24 hour falafel?
More like 2.5 stars-- This is a good, useful spot for a quick snack/mid-eastern-med food fix. Hours are a huge asset. Food is good, but not great.
Best thing I've had here is the Shepherd salad- really fresh and nicely chopped. The Borek's are a bit dry, the dolmas aren't bad but not my favorite style. The spreads range in flavor, but are nice with the fresh pita bread.
Service can be a bit spotty- sometimes quick, sometimes fast. But I would definitely recommend for a quick fix or snack. A nice asset for the neighborhood. If I were entertaining guests and wanted to grab some finger food in a pinch, I would definitely swing by Manna.
I'll eat it on the way home from the bar, but I won't like it. It's not good. I mean it's not gross but I've had a lot better from a lot of different places. The people that work here are super nice, but the falafel was dry and flavorless. And there was too much pita and lettuce for the amount of falafel. At the same time, it is pretty cheap and it is open 24 hours. So maybe it's not so bad.
I don't think they have air-conditioning either
i was insanely drunk the other night and insisted the cab let me out at Manna which is still a good 10 minutes from my apartment. I got out, went into there and without even looking just ordered a shawerma.
What's so amazing to me, is that usually when I'm drunk and starving everything tastes amazing. This was merely just filling but all around not good. I kept looking into the sandwich wondering what the fuck was wrong. Mostly it was the meat. It was too dry and just not a good flavor.
But it's so easy, just order your massive hunk of mystery meat from another vendor, perhaps one that has a good track record, I mean they don't make those spits in the back collective scraps of meat and pounding it together, do they?
The baklava took the taste of the meat out of my mouth.
I still ate everything though
*shrug*
I probably should give them a couple of weeks to get it together but here goes...
There's a very good falafel place on Union and Metropolitan (Falafel Chula) but Manna is practically at my front door so I was very eager to try it.
Once the lentil soup was great. The other time I had to add my own lentils and hot sauce to give it depth. The falafel was crisp, not greasy--pretty good, but hummus pooped out of three splits in the stale(?) pita and all over my shirt. Plus, they are unbelievably slow--I literally could have ridden my bicycle to Oasis on Bedford Avenue and been back home in the time it took them to make my to-go order...
BUT
The Manna man walked around the counter and outside to where I was waiting to give me my order, a big smile, and "Thanks!" That alone guarantees that I will try them again in a few weeks after they've worked the kinks out.
Update: Still slow, still sucks.
I usually stop by around 4 am and the server is a really nice girl who helps me concoct some kind of combo plate. I really like the sides some of which are very unique. this is a different take on the kind of middle eastern food I'm used to but it is none the less delicious.
Im not a fan of the hummus, I'm not sure what its made out of LOL but everything else is great!
I walked in here one drunken evening and had one of those "OMG this falafel js amazing" experiences. So, obviously I was worried about going back minus drunken spectacles and being disappointed with the experience (haven't we all been there?). But I have since been back twice and it's not amazing falafel but it is quite good and CHEAP ($3 bucks!). The falafel is not greasy and dissolves into your sandwich, some people might hate that but I love it. And the salad in the sandwich tastes very fresh. They definitely get a couple of stars for being open 24 hours and cheap coffee. I'm planning to go back and trying their rice pudding one of these days, it looks delish.
***
Went back for the rice pudding. It was okay, not superb and definitely not worth 4 bucks. That said, I have discovered that if you're a procrastinator that does everything at the last minute, this is a good place to caffeinate and do work when every other coffee serving venue is closed.
I've been here twice in the last couple of weeks. It's usually pretty empty but the staff is very nice and friendly. The food is pretty good considering its open 24 hours. I've tried the falafel platter which is good and so is the gyro but the best was the fried eggplant side dish and the grilled chicken platter. The platters are really tasty with lots delicious rice (i think its rice, its good regardless of what it is) and the chicken was yummy!
It's cheap and tasty and open all night, how can you go wrong???
4 stars because I don't like orange collars. Oh well, to me, one of top 3 falafel joints in the city. Manna is cheap and well sits with Williamsburg. Sign says "Open forever". Its good enough to me. By right away, Manna's coffee better then Gimme's for sure and much better smiley faces.
Manna is a good place, and i hope it sticks around!
The vegetarian plate is such a deal, and its good Mediterranean food, just try and if you like it, great! If not -- well at least you tried it and people can't persuade you otherwise...
Desserts! Baklava! Just go for it!
This is a weird addition to Williamsburg, however much needed. I guess the thing it has going for it is that it's open 24 hours. The falafel is mediocre. The chicken platter is amazing but only weekend late nights, when there is Mexican kitchen staff. The Turkish cooks do make great Tzadiki, (They call it cacik), but it's really good.
Inconsistent service and speed. However, they are new.
1star- excessive cleanliness/kitchen is clean too and it is visible.
1star-polite service and explanations of food items.
1star- 5am food from somewhere besides a bodega, but if I am up at 5am then I am usually not hungry.
A few weeks ago I saw this place under construction with a '24-hour Deli' and 'falafel, hummus, and pastries'. I nearly jumped out of my shoes I was so excited.
The falafel is good (not great), grape leave were pretty good (although I have nothing to compare them to), but their coffee is SO good. 24/7 is the best thing about this place.
eeeeyeaeeeeaah......
not good.
the place is too spacious and feels like an airplane hanger from fresno.
falafel is messy and not very tasty - dry and bland.
shawarma sucks.
hummus is whatever.
they're kind of slow too.
AND they're owned by the same folks as that douche bag pseudo hippy coffee shop, Willburg Cafe.
BWAAAAAAAH.
only good thing is they're open 24 hours, but you're better off getting a legendary cheesesteak at big apple deli.
BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT. I was looking forward to the opening of this place for weeks too! Maybe my expectations were too high. I've given this place 3 chances and each time the falafels were dry and bland, pitas were old and stale, tahini watered down, lentil soup was cold with no lentils, coffee is weak and the decor is terrible in so many ways. The chicken gyro is why I give it 1 star, it was okay. Why even stay open 24 hours if you can't do anything right? Don't waste your time and go to Falafel Chula (on Union). It's cozier, friendlier, fresher, same prices, and they have a patio... worth the extra walking block
I was excited, like most others, that this was a new place, close to home, that was open 24/7. Went there for a falafel last night after Metropolitan, and spent the entire day with food poisoning. I threw up 12-15 times with severe stomach cramping -- towards the end I couldn't even count anymore. Reported this place to the Health Department.
Too bad the staff is so nice. DO NOT EAT HERE.
so just like everyone else in the neighborhood, i was so happy to see that something of potential worth being built in place of the nasty smelly deli that used to occupy the corner of lorimer and grand. i was slightly disappointed when the "coming soon" sign advertised it as a falafel place, because, really? more falafel? falafel chula just down union wasn't enough? and don't they sell falafel a couple blocks away at willburg cafe (same owners as manna) too?!?
well anyway, i was still looking forward to it opening and finally had a chance to stop by yesterday. when i walked in, there was nobody else in line to order OR waiting for food...just a couple of tables of people already eating (including spike and andrew from the current season of top chef...ha!) so i placed my order (kind of big..but it was for more than one person, and still nothing outrageous) and sat down to wait. a wave of other people came in shortly after and i thought to myself, "wow, glad i beat the rush!" but then a funny thing happened....the people who had shown up AFTER me were getting their food and leaving BEFORE me....wait, what? apparently they decided to just do other peoples' orders instead of mine because they were smaller (but a couple of them were fairly involved!) which i think is a load of crap.
while most people waited just over 5 minutes for their food, i waited close to a HALF HOUR for mine. i ordered:
-falafel (not even the sandwich! just the falafel on its own)
-side of hummus
-side of lebne
-small greek salad side
-lentil soup
so 30 minutes to give me 5 things...4 of which were just putting already prepared items into a container...and a greek salad which entailed putting the pre-made salad into a container and adding feta and olives.
and that was with a kitchen of 4 guys working.
the food was pretty decent...i was very happy to have some hummus that wasn't completely overloaded with garlic for the first time in a long time (yeah, i'm looking at you, hanna foods!) and the lebne was pretty good as well. the falafel was just "okay" very small discs, kind of dry. the lentil soup was bland as sin and the greek salad was pretty standard (great olives, though.)
i'd be lying if i said i wont go back to manna, because like, it's 24 hours and 24 feet from my front door..but i think they might have to step up their game to appeal to customers who would have to walk more than a couple yards to get there.
The food here is meh, which means they probably won't last, which sucks because the neighborhood could really use more restaurants that are open 24/7.
Extremely disappointed. Been watching their construction with anticipation for weeks. 24/7 Falafel right down the street? Right on!
Reality - terrible. Bland falafel, tiny sandwich. Shepard Salad had obviously been sitting for ages - virtually tasteless. And slow, too.
Falafel Chula is just down the block and fantastic - so no real need. 24/7 was what drew me, and it's not going to be enough if it stays like this.
Will try again in a week or two once they're settled in, but big meh.
Edit: tried again 5/6. Worse than before.
Holy mother of 24 hour falafel joint, Batman! They recently opened this Mediterranean/Greek cafe and I'm happy to see it's authentic food, and I'm guessing actually run by people from the region... rather than people like me, for example. There's just something charming about that aspect. Anyway, it's not a space to have a romantic dinner, but a perfect spot for an after work dinner or 3am pita pocket of joy. Have them add the salad and tahini for the real deal. And you must try the baklava. One might even say, Bak-love-a. mmm.
Despite its sterile, shiny appearance, I was excited to see a 24-hour falafel place open in the area. Unfortunately, my excitement ended as soon as I tried the falafel. The pita is flimsy, the top is half-empty, and the bottom portion disintegrates and leaks tahini profusely. The falafel and tahini themselves are extraordinarily bland, and the fillings are sparse and mediocre. The price is right ($3 for a sandwich), but I'd rather they charged an extra dollar and use better ingredients.
The only reason I can think to go here is when it's really late, you absolutely must have falafel, and Falafel Chula is closed.
The place is still pretty new. It's got the location and hours right. Maybe it'll get better in time?
not bad
Skip it!! Contrary to popular belief, there are PLENTY of tasty, cheap 24 hour places around besides this one. The bakery on the corner of Grand and Union is a mere block away, Grand Morelos only a little further...hell, the bodega across the STREET from this place has a deli that is cheaper and more appetizing than these deep fried greaseballs in month old pita they call falafel. Most of these reviewers were probably drunk when they tried this place. The coffee is half-decent when they do decide to brew Porto Rico. I hate crying gentrification on new businesses in the neighborhood but seriously, this is an examle of exploiting the fact that they look a little cleaner cut than the surrounding restaurants and bumping up the prices while maintaining sub-par quality.
falafel sandwiches with a lot of hummus and hand-made falafel balls for four bucks make me go.. yummmmmm. you gotta get falafels with hummus, always, or it's not worth it.
it reminds me of the falafel places in berlin, which is some of the best in the world. for realz.
the atmosphere is nothing fancy. just chairs and tables and some pretty terrible orange and black paint, but if you want a quick grab for cheap, it's a good place.
plus it's open 24 hours.
I'm no falafel expert, but it was ok the one time I was there. Basic falafel with all the extras stuffed in there with white sauce. Went down easy but paid the price the next morning.
i stopped by here late last night for the FIRST time even though i walk by it 2-4 times a day, and got a $3 falafel... it was surprisingly deliciously, i even liked it better than Oasis's. however it was messier.. but that's a tiny downfall in exchange for one of the best tasting falafel sandwiches i've ever had.
New! Brunch at Kashkaval
Neighborhood: Theater District
$35 Prix Fixe menu
Neighborhood: Long Island City
Neighborhood: Williamsburg - South Side
Category: Restaurants
Neighborhood: Williamsburg - South Side
Category: Greek
Neighborhood: Williamsburg - South Side
Category: Burgers
Neighborhood: Williamsburg - North Side
Category: Mediterranean
Neighborhood: Dyker Heights
Category: Greek
My local dry cleaner, watering hole, deli, cafe,…
My local dry cleaner, watering hole, deli, cafe,…
Loading...
