Westwood Burgers and Falafel...or should that be Westwood Falafel and Burgers

1945 1/2 Westwood Blvd.
West Los Angeles, CA 90025
(310)475-4070
Mon-Sat 11AM-9PM

This may be one of my stranger posts. Don't let this deter you. Westwood Burger has been one of those locations that can't seem to survive and therefore changes owners and menus every couple years. My wife used to work directly in front of them for Monster.com in 2001 and ate there at least a couple times each week, and we had gone back to see if we'd be able to include it as a part of last week's "Tribute to the LA Burger Stand". Now, if my memory serves me correctly, Westwood Burger has morphed 3 times since she worked there. The new owner has had his version open for about a year now and though it's called Westwood Burgers and Falafel, I would highly push to call it Westwood Falafel and Burger.

We ordered up a lamb pita, a couple of cones of falafel (we started with one, which lead to another), and of course a burger. The lamb pita was pretty rocking with good sized chunks of tender juicy lamb of surprisingly high quality in a very fresh pita. The lettuce and tomato were equally as fresh. The overall eating experience was, to say the least, more than pleasant.

As stated just words ago we got a couple of cones of falafel. We originally ordered just one cone, ate those, and realized "Wow...these are pretty good...pretty darn good" (not to mention the killer sauces they served with them) . With that, we bought a second cone and devoured those as well. They weren't overly hardened and bland the way many many falafel are in LA. These things kicked serious butt, and heck, with their barely crisped exterior and flavorful well textured interior, they could possibly just sell these and do quite well for themselves.

How can you come to a place that says burger in the title and not get a burger? The burger, while done well and tasted pretty solid, didn't have much to it. Yeah, it was fresh, but the meat flavors didn't jump out at you. Don't get me wrong, it was still a good burger, just not up to the standards we held for last week's burger stands. And that's ok, because where they really shine is in their Mediterranean dishes.

Parking is street parking but there's also a parking lot connected to it that they give validation for, so you're completely covered no matter how you want to do it. The owner, who by the way is a totally sweet guy, was really enthusiastic about everyone who came in, and really, why shouldn't he be? He seems to be doing what he loves, making people great food that reflects his culture. I love LA.

Free Refills: No
Entree Price Range:$2.75 (those amazing falafels), $4 (those tasty pitas), to $8 (plate combos)

Beverly Falafel

8508 W 3rd St
Los Angeles, CA 90048
(310) 652-1670
Open Everyday 11AM- 9:30PM

Sometimes you only can say one thing about a place. Beverly Falafel has great falafels. I won't say the rest of the food is great cause I'd be lying to you. It's ok. The one person working there is usually really sweet and the place is pretty low-key. But the one catch is that the food is inconsistent. Sometimes the meat is very tender and juicy and sometimes it's dry. The pics below show a meal where it was right in between making it just ok. Not bad at all and nothing to write home about. BUT the falafels are great. And I do mean great. Flavorful and not to crisp but not soft either. So in the end I say grab some falafels and if you're feeling lucky grab a bite from the rest of the menu (another word of caution...it's not the cheapest meal either but once again the falafels are priced pretty well for what they are). You know what, just go grab some falafels and take them home. Oh and the hummus was pretty tasty too.


I only write what I like and can pass on as being worth it to check out. I'm not downing this place cause when they're on they're pretty good and the price seems worth it but when they're not on you feel gipped. The plan is to go to the beverly center and when you realize you've spent just a little too much go walk across the street to Beverly Falafel and grab a little something to hold you over till you get home. Cheers!

Free Drink Refills: .50 for each refill
Entree Price Range: Well, an order of falafels is $1.99 for 4 decent sized balls and the combos range from $6 to $10