Nestled between a mish-mash of barber shops, vape stores and dollar-slice joints, East Williamsburg's Healthy Choice Kitchen is similarly tough to classify: part bodega juice bar, part relaxed backyard lunch spot, and part bona fide, family-run Israeli gem.
Almost all of the restaurant's business is done through delivery apps like Seamless and Grubhub, which means their back patio seating often goes untouched. It’s a shame, given how endearing that little space is, with concrete walls decked in poppy murals, lush, above-ground plant beds and a flat-screen TV.
The menu is questionably lengthy, in the way that deli and diner menus tend to be—ranging from bagels and lox ($5.75) to an array of fresh-squeezed juices ($5-$7) and a Moroccan-style tilapia dish ($21.99) meant to serve two. You’d be doing yourself a disservice, though, to overlook what might be the best falafel in the neighborhood. A homemade falafel platter ($16.99) would easily satisfy two, packing in a dozen, grade-A homemade falafel balls and copious amounts of from-scratch savory dips (hummus, tahini, babaganoush) brightened by an Israeli salad of pickles and olives over pita bread. The falafel, a recipe passed down through owner Pinny Avichezer's family, are small, imperfectly round, nailing the crispy-outside fluffy-inside effect that street vendors only dream of. Don’t skip the off-menu amba, a house-pickled mango sauce that they’ll happily toss into your order if you ask for it.
Though difficult to categorize, Healthy Choice’s falafel alone makes it worth a visit. And while the delivery and takeout hustle is certainly strong, the backyard is the neighborhood's sleeper hit.
BY: TIME OUT COMMUNITY REVIEWER BECKY HUGHES