We all know that falafel comes in many different sizes, portions, levels of crunchiness, and just overall style. Nizhny has its fair share of interesting falafel offerings, three of which I wanted to share with you fine folks. These are certainly a great alternative to the mostly meat-oriented budget eats that one can find around the city. To be fair, they are not necessarily cheap per se, but certainly cheaper compared to their meaty alternatives, and/or other full-sized meals. Let us now dive deep into just how Russians came up with their own takes on this timeless classic.
Freakadely – https://yandex.com/maps/-/CCUzyAaT3D
It is difficult to find the right words that can explain what Freakadely exactly is. A pub? A club? A highly distinguished establishment? A cult? Nobody knows. It is THE place to drink in town, and to have a decent time with friends. I will be writing more about it in my eventual “best pubs to hang out in Nizhny” article but let us now focus on their falafel to begin with. It is likely the most fulfilling meal one can have in the entire city, period. For 480 roubles, you get an extremely well-prepared coleslaw, a bed of baked potatoes, five tasty “balls” of your own choosing, which are all topped with tasty sauces that you can change per your taste buds. These “balls” can be made out of beef, chicken, pork, or you guessed it, chickpeas! In the latter version, we get quite big and rather chunky falafels that are a bit dry on their own, though they go perfectly with some sauce and salad on the side. The whole plate is said to be around 700 grams, and though I have no way to verify that, I must agree that it is extremely difficult to finish it all, even for me… Taste is there, a decent amount of variety on the plate is also there, price is not terribly high, staff is always smiling, I cannot think of a reason not to eat this delicacy at Freakadely with a mug of ice-cold beer on the side, ideally one served with a lemon wedge inside.
Noot – https://yandex.com/maps/-/CCUzyAqQhD
I heard about Noot from a few friends, who insisted that it served the best falafel in town. That bold claim made me seek out their goods as soon as I can, and I could immediately see that they were right. Noot clearly offers the most authentic falafel in town, with a small Russian twist. The mushy consistency on the inside, delicate crunchiness on the outside, and the overall presentation of the dish is reminiscent of the dish that plenty of Syrian places that I saw all around Istanbul serve. The twist I mentioned is that spices are used far less generously given the overall hatred Russians seem to have for well spiced food… However, with that extremely tasty minty yoghurt sauce on the top, and wonderful side dishes alongside it, this bowl of goodies you can get at Noot for slightly over 400 roubles is well worth the try. Everything was fresh, hot, and tasty, with some sides being quite new to my tastebuds, which is always welcome. They seem to offer some great deals for lunch as well, so it may be wise to come here around noon rather than late at night like I did the first time.
Salut – https://yandex.com/maps/-/CCUzyAu5xC
Salut is arguably the most popular burger spot in town, though I decided to try and stop eating mammals before I had the chance to visit them to put said “normal” burgers to test. Nevertheless, given how they also have a rather unique falafel burger on their menu, it was high time for me to go and give them a try! I will say this straight away, it was better than 90% of the “normal” burgers I had so far, and much better than ALL fast-food burgers anywhere, with the exception of some specialized American chains like Five Guys. Though the bread looks a bit sad in this photo, it had the perfect mix of fluffiness and crispiness in reality. Falafel “patty” is tasty in its own rights, but much like in a standard burger, it is hardly the only thing that keeps this burger apart from others. They used a mix of two sauces, one that is tomato based, and the other tasting quite similar but not quite like a type of yoghurt. They were so good that one could dunk any bread in and eat it as is… Fried onions added some extra texture to the burger, while the rest of the veggies made it feel like I was eating something healthy. In hindsight, I guess it was the healthiest option at that spot.
If I had to find something wrong about this whole experience, I suppose I can mention the slowness of the service, and also there being no actual “service.” You order your food at a small kiosk and pay for it up front, as if it is Vkusno i Tochka, and then you wait for your number to be called so that you can go and grab your food from another counter… This is hardly a premium experience, and it is not helped by the fact that there are a lot of staff around. There was even a lady whose whole job seemed to be saying “Salut” to everyone that barged into the joint. I get that it is a gimmick, and I suppose it is more humane for workers to have less responsibilities. That being said, I would be bored out of my mind if all I did was to say a single word all day long, or to wait for people to eat so that I can remove empty trays from the table… It certainly would not hurt if some staff tended to getting orders from people, or at the very least, bring the food to the table once they are ready. As it stands now, there is simply way too much movement in Salut as you see people rushing to find a place to sit, ordering their burgers, and bringing them to their tables.