Sababa Falafel Shop makes space for its growing falafel fan base
Whether for a first-time customer or a regular, Sababa Falafel Shop in Garden Grove always offers a complimentary falafel to all waiting in line to place their orders.
It’s equal parts karam, an Arabic word for “generosity,” and business savvy.
Sababa’s namesake falafels — light, fluffy and delectably seasoned — have tantalized taste buds since the fast casual Palestinian restaurant opened on the edge of Anaheim’s Little Arabia District in late 2020.
During its first three weeks of business, the sandwich-style shop offered more than just free falafels. Patrons ordered from the menu of pita sandwiches and bowls and unknowingly ate on the house.
“We gave everything away,” said Salah Othman, Sababa Falafel’s owner. “That’s how we built up our clientele. The customers that came in from those first three weeks have never left.”
Since then, word of mouth has attracted longer lines — and honorifics.
Sababa Falafel’s popularity propelled it to being named one of Yelp’s “Top 100 Places to Eat” last year, having landed in at number 10.
Now, the eatery has opened a new dining room area to better accommodate the crowds it attracts.
For Othman, the secret to Sababa Falafel’s success traces all the way back to Ramallah, a Palestinian city in the West Bank where he grew up.
Wearing a black sweatshirt with “Gaza” emblazoned on it, Othman leaned back in a chair at his office inside the restaurant before bouncing back to recount walking to school as a kid.
“Every morning, we would stop at a falafel shop and get a half pita stuffed with falafels and eat on the way,” he said. “Those memories became something that created a taste in my palate. I had to have it. As I grew older, I always wanted that flavor.”
Othman longed for home cooked Palestinian food after he immigrated to New York City at 12 to live with his dad and work at his Long Island deli.
Four years later, he moved to Southern California with his brothers.
At 18, Othman bought his first business, a deli in Glendale. He opened several delis across the Southland, including a location in Huntington Beach, before selling the chain and moving on to other business ventures.
Othman returned to the food business in 2014 when he founded Bronx Sandwich Co.
But the falafels of his youth kept coming back to mind, especially as a bite to eat at a restaurant in Paris summoned the Proust effect from his taste buds.
“You know what? I’m going to perfect the falafel,” he thought to himself. “I’m going to open something that’s fast casual and use the highest quality ingredients. I know people are going to love it.”
Othman spent 14 months taste testing what would became Sababa’s signature falafel, using fluffy Italian chickpeas as its main ingredient.
He found a location in Garden Grove to open up the restaurant with his wife, Suzie, and decided on “Sababa” as its name.
“I always loved that word,” Othman said. “It just rolls off the tongue easily.”
For those not conversant in Arabic, a translation of “Sababa” is displayed on a wall at the falafel shop.
“Amazing.” “Excellent.” “Awesome.”
And the dining experience lives up to the name.
Gadeer Muhammad makes the trek from Rancho Cucamonga to dine at Sababa Falafel with her family.
“Anytime we’re in Orange County for a beach day, or whatever, Sababa is one of those spots that we are going to stop at,” she says. “They’ve literally brought Palestine to O.C. Their food is amazing.”
From a speedy assembly line, patrons can have their pita sandwiches stuffed “Sababa style” with ingredients like red cabbage, spicy chili sauce, pickles, tahini, parsley and hummus.
The falafels are flash fried in fresh oil every day.
With grilled halal chicken, ribeye and fried veggie options, there’s something for everyone when placing their orders.
“We have a lot of vegans,” Othman said. “We have a lot of vegetarians. We have a lot of Middle Easterners. There’s a mix!”
That eclectic, loyal customer base helped land Sababa Falafel on Yelp’s coveted list last year.
Othman pulled a Yelp “Top 100” certificate off his shelf and then proudly donned a commemorative apron from the company over his head when recounting the honor.
“It’s crazy to say, but our business increased by 200% thanks to Yelp,” he said. “That’s a huge increase.”
The boost in revenue helped him make a successful offer on the hair salon next door in a bid to modestly expand the restaurant. Othman tapped architect Talal Ammouri to design a new dining room, as he had with the restaurant’s original wing.
After months of construction, it finally opened last month.
With the new addition, Sababa Falafel can stretch out its legs beyond the few tables stationed on the sidewalk outside of the restaurant.
“Of course, I wanted something nice for our customers where they can sit, relax and have a decent meal,” Othman said.
Now finished, the dining room features booths decorated with Palestinian embroidery patterns, a hot-tea station and a neon olive tree branch light that beams over the din of patrons conversing over a meal.
It’s Othman’s way of keeping the restaurant family friendly while giving younger patrons a hip destination to hang out at with friends.
All the added space comes just in time for the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, as Muslims around the world are currently fasting from sunup until sundown in observance.
As in the past, Othman will maintain regular business hours but expand offerings to include desserts like knafeh, a sweet and salty Palestinian cheese pastry, at night while serving specialty coffees on select Saturdays.
But whether during Ramadan or all year round, one of the best compliments Othman receives about Sababa Falafel comes from fellow Palestinians who say his falafels taste just like they do back home.
“That’s exactly what I want to hear,” he said. “That’s what my own taste buds were looking for when I opened this restaurant.”
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