L'As du Fallafel, Paris

Le Marais is one of the most colorful neighborhoods in Paris. People come here for the shopping, the winding streets, the history. This is also where the old Jewish quarter is and the neighborhood is dotted with bakeries selling challah bread and rugelach and fallafel and shwarma shops. I stopped into L'As du Fallafel for their fallafel special which has been touted as one of the best in the area.

The sandwich comes loaded with so much vegetables it almost makes you feel momentarily like you are eating something healthy: tomatoes, cabbage, radicchio, onions, cucumbers, eggplants. But once you bite into the sandwich, the fried chickpea patties, which are moist and flavorful, bring you right back to reality. And what a delicious reality it is!

This is a messy affair, mind you, but once I started I didn't want to stop eating and felt overwhelmingly sad when it was all gone. I don't think I've ever loved a fallafel this much and I know I probably won't reach fallafel nirvana again, at least not in NYC. Just as well. The heartburn that lingered afterwards was not something I want to live through again. Still, this one's a must try when you are in Paris. Just remember to bring the pepto-bismal.