Local Kitchens introduces Yalla Falafel, their latest menu made in collaboration with Chef Einat Admony. This authentic Mediterranean menu will be available in 11 Local Kitchens locations beginning on July 25, 2024. 

Local Kitchens has partnered with the creator of the highly lauded New York City restaurants, Balaboosta and Taim, and James Beard semi-finalist, Chef Einat Admony, to create Yalla Falafel. Known as the ‘Queen of Falafel’, Chef Einat is celebrated for her authentic use of spices, sauces and cooking methods from various Mediterranean cultures. These elements create surprising and intriguing dishes that you can’t find anywhere else in California. This menu, created in partnership with Local Kitchens, highlights her vibrant personality and favorite flavors, all presented in the signature Local Kitchens format loved by chefs, guests, and communities alike. 

About the Menu

The Yalla Falafel menu is a collection of colorful, vibrant and flavorful Mediterranean dishes authentic to Chef Einat’s cooking and the region’s traditions. This collaboration menu offers freshly blended hummus, thick fluffy pitas, Moroccan carrots, shipka peppers, fresh arugula, and delicious sauces such as black garlic aioli, green s’chug, amba aioli – all freshly made in-house. Here are some of the menu highlights: 

Green Falafel 

Green Falafel, considered Chef Einat’s greatest masterpiece, is rooted in her ancestral traditions. We double grind our soaked chickpeas fresh in-house and combine it with a mountain of fresh herbs and spices to create the perfect bite. 

Amba Chicken Rice Plate 

Our Amba Chicken, marinated in seven shawarma spices and amba sauce, is a dynamic combination of vibrant, earthy and tangy flavors and textures. This dish is served with green persian rice, Moroccan carrots, sumac spiced red onions, green s’chug, pickled cabbage, a shipka pepper, and topped with fresh arugula. 

Black Garlic Cauliflower 

Einat was one of the first chef’s in NYC to put cauliflower on a pedestal, and today she prides herself as introducing it to New Yorkers as something to be treasured. We coat the crispy cauliflower in lemon omani and place it on a bed of herby green s’chug. The dish is topped with thinly sliced pickled shipka peppers giving it a light kick and drizzled with a fermented black garlic aioli. 

Hummus 

Following Chef Einat’s famous hummus recipe, we slow-cook garbanzo beans for over an hour and blend it fresh in house with lemon, tahini, garlic, and cumin until it is creamy and light as air. It is served with more lemon tahini, green s’chug, and two fluffy Angel’s pitas that are toasted to perfection. 

About the Chef 

Einat was born in Bnei Brak, Israel, where she grew up cooking spicy Persian dishes with her mother, an Iranian immigrant, and enjoying traditional Yemeni breakfasts every Shabbat morning with her father. Her early cultural immersion continued as she was surrounded by Moroccan food and culture with neighbors and friends. As a young adult, she served in the Israel Defense Forces as a driver and cook, and then honed her skills at a culinary school in Israel before moving to New York City.

In 2005, she and her husband started their first Falafel stand, Taim, in the West Village. After its great success, Einat opened Balaboosta in 2010, an ode to fine Israeli dining. These accomplishments led to her being recognized as a James Beard Award semifinalist for Best Chef in both 2020 and 2022. In addition to the great success of her flagship restaurant, Balaboosta, Taim has expanded with 12 locations throughout New York. 

Fast Casual, Food, Marketing & Promotions, Menu Innovations, News, Local Kitchens