Falafel HaZkenim () or Falafel Najala () is an Israeli restaurant and

falafel Falafel (; , ) is a deep-fried ball or patty-shaped fritter of Egyptian origin that features in Middle Eastern cuisine, particularly Levantine cuisines. It is made from ground fava beans, chickpeas, or both, and mixed with herbs and spic ...

stand, located in Wadi Nisnas,

Haifa Haifa ( ; , ; ) is the List of cities in Israel, third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropolitan area i ...

. Since foundation, guests are greeted with a free falafel ball dipped in

tahini Tahini () (, or in Iraq: (rashi-راشي)) is a Middle Eastern condiment (a seed butter) made from ground sesame seeds. The most common variety comes from hulled seeds, but unhulled ones can also be used; the latter variety is slightly bitter, ...

. Foodies consider HaZkenim's falafel among the best in Israel.

History

It was founded in 1950 by George and Najala Afara. The falafel stand initially had no signage. Jewish customers often said that they would go to "hazkenim" (the old folks) for falafel, while Arab customers identified the place with the female co-owner. When the owners did put up a sign, it contained both names. As the couple had no children, they sold in 1984 to Afif Sabit, who had been a loyal customer. In the early 2000s the restaurant had a branch. The former branch still exists but is no longer associated to Falafel HaZkenim.

References

{{Restaurants in Israel 1950 establishments in Israel Israeli restaurants Restaurants in Haifa Defunct restaurant chains in Israel