A falafel wrap: the undisputed king of street food, come rain or shine. And we think nobody makes them faster than this man...
The scene: Whitecross Street Market in London's Old Street – a haven of worldly food stalls, rammed every day of the week with hungry workers like us. Our HQ is just down the road and, since starting at lovefood four or so months ago, I've eaten no less than eight falafel wraps, all from the same stall (the closest falafel-ery you get to, if approaching the market from the Old Street side).
The fastest wrapper in the whole damn town
Aside from it's extreme deliciousness (crisp, punchy falafels, squidgy roast aubergine strips, and as much tahini as you want), the best thing about my lunch is how quickly it's made. One person moulds and fries the falafels, another takes the money, and the last musketeer – who shall remain anonymous, lest he becomes famous after this article – constructs the wrap.
He works at an incredible pace, and manages to shove houmous, aubergine, smashed falafels, green salad, radishes, pickles, tomatoes, chilli sauce, and tahini into a flatbread, then wrap it up neatly all in 27 seconds. No mean feat, considering just how much there is to squish in.
Check out the movie I shot on my phone above to witness his talent yourself... could you spread houmous that quickly?
Is yours quicker than mine?
What we want to know is, have you ever witnessed faster street food than my falafel wrap? Maybe someone who can wrap a burrito in half the time? Or a really quick meat carver? Let us know in the Comments box below or, better still, upload your own video to our Facebook page.
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