Falafel — The Original Plant Based Protein

Every morning at Yafa Hummus, before the doors open and before the first customer walks in, someone is eating falafel.

Usually it is Mohammad or Afeef. Warm falafel straight from the fryer, a fresh piece of pita, some hummus on the side. That is breakfast. That is how they grew up eating it in Jordan, that is how their kids are growing up eating it now, and that is how it has been in their family for as long as anyone can remember.

Falafel is not a trend at Yafa Hummus. It is just life.

Where falafel comes from

Falafel has been feeding people across the Middle East for centuries. Its exact origin is debated — Egypt, Palestine, Lebanon all have strong claims — but what is not debated is that it has been a staple of everyday life across the region for longer than most food trends have existed. Long before plant based eating became a conversation in the Western world, families across the Middle East were building their meals around chickpeas, herbs, and spices. Not because it was trendy. Because it was good, it was filling, and it was theirs.

In Jordan and Palestine falafel is street food, breakfast food, comfort food, and celebration food all at once. You eat it fresh and hot wrapped in pita with hummus, pickles, and tahini. You eat it at your grandfather's restaurant on a Tuesday afternoon. You eat it standing up at a street cart at seven in the morning. There is no wrong time for falafel.

How we make ours

Most people do not realize how much work goes into a good falafel before it ever hits the fryer.

It starts the day before. We source high quality garbanzo beans and soak them for a full 24 hours. Not canned beans — dried beans that we soak ourselves. This is not the fast way to do it but it is the right way. Soaked dried chickpeas give the falafel a completely different texture and flavor than canned beans. Denser, more flavorful, and they hold together the way falafel is supposed to.

The next morning the beans are washed and drained. Then Afeef gets the vegetables ready — fresh onions, parsley, garlic, and jalapeños, all cleaned and prepped. Everything goes into the grinder together until it reaches the right consistency. Not too smooth, not too coarse. The texture matters.

Then it gets separated into batches and stored until it is time to cook. When a batch is ready to go, the spices go in. This is the part that makes our falafel different from most.

"Our spices come from overseas — sourced specifically for the flavor profile that Mohammad and Afeef grew up eating. You cannot replicate it with what you find at a regular grocery store."

These are the same spices their family has been using for generations. The result is a falafel that is deep green on the inside — vibrant, herby, and fresh — with a crunchy golden brown crust on the outside. When you bite into it you get both at the same time. The crunch and the softness. The crust and the herb. It is what Afeef calls a one two punch — and when you pair it with our fresh hummus there is honestly nothing better.

Why falafel is one of the best things you can eat

Chickpeas are one of the most nutritious foods on the planet. High in plant based protein, high in fiber, rich in iron and folate, and naturally filling in a way that keeps you satisfied without weighing you down. Falafel made the traditional way — from whole soaked chickpeas, fresh herbs, and real spices — carries all of that nutritional value in every bite.

Mohammad and Afeef eat it every day. Their kids eat it every day. Three generations of their family have eaten it every day. That is not a coincidence. That is just what happens when food is genuinely good for you and genuinely delicious at the same time.

Come try it

Our falafel is made fresh every single day at all three locations — Tracy, Dublin, and Lodi. Order it as a wrap, in a bowl, as a platter, or just on its own with hummus and pita the way it was always meant to be eaten.

You will understand immediately why this has been breakfast in the family for generations.