Kwik Meal Cart

Just the absolute best… everything is delicious & worth the price, especially the chicken & lamb combo over rice… ask for the extra spicy green sauce & white yogurt sauce… No street cart is better in midtown… A++

Let me preface this by saying I am a lamb gyro addict. I have eaten them far and wide over the island of Manhattan. My doctor isn’t really happy with me.
Anyway. This food cart is a gem and makes you realize how truly mediocre The Halal Guys food is. ORDER THE LAMB. I swear, it’s some of the best lamb I’ve had on the island of Manhattan. Apparently Kwik Meals chef used to work at Russian Tea Room, and his cart is known for how tender the lamb is. Go earlier in the day so you don’t end up with last pickings.
(You’ll realize that the crap you’ve been enthusiastically waiting in line for at The Halal Guys is over chopped, dry, and overseasoned meat dried out due to continuous chopping and scrapping over an open grill that only tastes decent when drenched in unhealthy white sauce.)

I am a huge fan of falafels; hence I walked a half mile from my office to find this food cart after my extensive Unilocal search. They did not disappoint. I went slightly after lunch and there was a minimal line, the service was very friendly, and the prices were very reasonable. I went for the falafel pita wrap with extra falafel. The pita was warm, veggies crisp, falafels spiced perfectly, and the spicy sauce was delicious. My only two criticisms were that the falafels could be a bit crispier and the wrap was small enough to leave me a bit hungry after lunch. Next time I will go for a plate of food instead of a wrap.

I just finished the Lamb Kati and it was so amazing I had to write a review. The only time I tasted lamb this good was in a high end restaurant. I will be back tomorrow for something else. It was amazing — all the juices and flavors! I agree, best Halal food in NYC and I’m a native New Yorker who grew up on and still eats Halal food all the time.

My best experience with New York City street cart food. It’s restaurant quality and very reasonably priced. Spice level is adjustable to your taste. I go for the Chicken Biryiani. Do tip these guys, they do a hard job!

The Halal Guys have finally met their match! Kwik Meal Cart (along with their sibling cart Kwik Gourmet not too far away on 47^th and Park) is the true king of street meat, not that bland chicken and rice from the Halal Guys — the white sauce is all they’ve got going for them.
Kwik Meal offers a wide variety of choices, considering its a food cart. You can go for falafel, salmon, or shrimp if you’re not feeling the chicken or lamb, which you can’t go wrong with either to tell ya the truth since they’re all quite solid. Most halal carts won’t serve seafood products, but the owner of Kwik Meal/​Kwik Gourmet is Bangladeshi so that is something to note.
Most people go for the wraps or the rice platters, which usually come with salad, a couple falafel balls, and that damn good green sauce… Let me elaborate a bit on that green sauce, because it deserves a paragraph on its own. It’s light and not cream based like those stodgy white sauces you always get at a typical halal cart, good bit of heat, and a really spot-​on herb flavor. So yeah, ask for more damn green sauce cause you’re gonna regret it if you don’t!
P. S. They also take credit card, which is awesome-​sauce for a food cart.

Came here at around 1pm and was surprised that there was no line. Another surprise is that this cart takes credit cards. Maybe I don’t do food carts much but this is the only I’ve encountered that accepts credit cards. It’s a plus to me.
So I tried their Cheeseteak on a pita before and it was yummy. A co worker was kind enough to buy it for me one day. He bragged about how delicious it was. So. I came here to order one myself but asked that they add hot sauce. I asked when I ordered. I asked them again when I got my order and I was told the hot sauce has been added already. I walked away happy and excited.
When I got back to the office, ready to devour my cheeseteak, I was disappointed to find that there was no trace of hot sauce on it. I looked even more closely and carefully hoping my vision had failed me. but no.I am convinced that there was never a drop of hot sauce on it. Just melted cheese and white sauce.
Sad yet hungry, I took a first bite reluctantly. I only ate half of it because 1. it did not taste as good as I remembered it and 2. my request for hot sauce was not fulfilled. I am a hot sauce girl so the absence of it made it difficult for me to enjoy my cheesesteak. Maybe I will come back to try their over-​rice dishes but that won’t be for a while. I have to get over my grief first.

Eh, this cart has gone downhill.
I’m thinking this has become a low quality tourist trap because every time I walk by, there’s a tour-​guide showing it off and going over its history now.
They finally have written prices and a full menu posted but prices are still pretty nuts (up to $ 13 for halal food) but food quality seems like its gone way downhill.
The chicken and lamb taste identical now, the lamb looks like beef, and neither are very special anymore. These guys don’t «do» the hotsauce/​whitesauce thing, and you kind of just get what they give you.
Most dishes come with falafel which sounds good on paper but they are bland and tiny, and are probably frozen store bought.
Its all pretty flavorless now. Really disappointing considering you pay DOUBLE the cost of any other halal cart on 6^th ave.
Overall, this has become a big SKIP for me, hit up any other cart if you dont want to get ripped off.

You have to try the lamb over rice, and throw in a few shrimps. I used to eat here all the time when I worked in the vicinity. Now I find myself taking detours to satisfy my cravings. This is some of the best food I’ve ever tasted. They are pretty much the only street meat I’ll ever eat. I’ve introduced three very picky, very very particular friends and they all love it as well. It’s located on the S/​W c/​o 45 and 6^th avenue. If you go during the week prepare to wait a bit but they’re quick and it’s worth the wait. A little pricey for street meat but for the Times Square area it’s all relative. Bön apetit.

This spot is, hands down, the best Falafel stand in the city (yeah I said it)! I’ve been coming here for years and they’ve always served a fantastic falafel.
Fresh pita bread, crisp lettuce, well-​cooked falafel balls, the amazing (but potentially potent) green spicy sauce, and the sour cream are all crafted together to make a tasty non-​meat option (I do Meatless Mondays so this is often a go-​to for me).
At $ 4.50 a falafel, it’s a great alternative to McDonald’s or any burger you’d easily pay up to $ 19 for. The absolute best part about this stand (aside from their falafel of course) is that it’s a few blocks away from Bryant Park. I usually buy them and walk over to the park to eat it.
If you’re a fan of falafels, definitely hit up Kwik Meal Cart! They don’t know me, but tell them Yusuf sent you anyway.

I was never a fan of Halal food but this cart is delicious! I had the grilled chicken over rice. Good amount of meat and rice and comes with a side salad. Not bad for $ 6. I didn’t like texture of the rice. I loved the yogurt sauce with it. He asked if I wanted spicy. I said just a little. The green sauce got a great kick to it. They’re also the only cart I’ve seen that has tilapia and salmon. There are many options to choose from. Not just the regular chicken or lamb carts.

Keep going back to this cart for its simplicity, efficiency and good food! The convenient location just outside my office building is an added benefit. The Kati rolls and falafels are awesome!

I love this cart. It’s unlike any others in that you know you are eating actual meat and not mystery glop. The chicken over rice is nicely seasoned dark meat and the rice is cooked to perfection. The salad is also not your typical sad lettuce and piece of tomato it’s more like shredded lettuce cabbage and onions. The white sauce and hot sauce … Oh man are they good!!! Pretty sure the white sauce isn’t very good for you but is anythingn delicious ever good for you? Be careful the green sauce is spicy.
The lamb and shrimp are great too and he also has some other options I’ve never tried like biryani and fish. I also get great customer service … After going for a couple of days, he always temmebers my order! So glad this place is close to my office.

This place is a regular on my lunch menu.
The chicken is tasty as hell and the dark green sauce they make is probably peppers combined with crack. Its crazy tasty and brings the heat. I usually request no salad dressing and no yogurt.
Probably the best $ 6 meal you can get in midtown.
Tried the lamb once, wasn’t really a fan, plus it costs more. Tried the curry once, had decent flavor but a bit oily, not really memorable.
That being said, this chicken over rice is crave worthy.

I’m surprised I haven’t reviewed this food truck, as I’ve been here at least 10 times within the last two months. Kwik Meal Cart has the best affordable lunch in Midtown!
I always get the Chicken Shrimp Combo, for $ 10 that’s a lot of food: meat, rice, yogurt sauce and falafel. I always ask to put more yogurt sauce because it tastes great with the meal. It was a little spicy, but not too much. If you can’t eat spicy food, then you can ask them not to put the green sauce. The falafel was a little stale but I’m not a fan of falafel so it didn’t bother me. I’ve also tried their biryani and Masala Kari, they are just as good.
Overall, Kwik Meal Cart is the best lunch spot, I’m happy that I work near Rockefeller center so I can eat here all the time :)

I’m not sure what all the buzz is about. It was OK, but nothing special. I’ve had plenty of halal from carts in NY and this one does not stand out among the rest. The chicken and lamb combo over rice that I ordered was flavorful, but it was hardly worth the $ 10. I’ve had the same quality, often with more quantity, for $ 5 or $ 6 elsewhere.

The street meat quest continues. This time to the 2007 Vendy award winner, Kwik Meal.
If this was the year 2020, I might be ok with paying $ 10 for a halal platter, but since this is 2014, and there are loads of cheaper (better) options, Kwik’s pricing can be downright offensive.
The goods: the little lamb pieces are whole and not minced, giving a high quality feel to it… The chicken is the same.
The bads: the rice is plain white basmati (bland), the yogurt sauce is weak sauce, the green sauce is medium sauce, but lacking in other complexities beyond just hot. The portion is average. The price is astronomical by street meat standards. The falafel were so savagely over fried that these poor spheres of chick peas more closely resembled charcoal than foodstuff.
The veggies weren’t crunchy and didn’t seem to provide any cooling effect or texture either.
It’ll only fetch two stars from me for its deep fall from its 2007 grace. The quest continues…

Wow, wow, wow. I just had the chicken and lamb dinner. The flavors and quality of the meat are the star here. If that’s what you want: insanely good flavor, then this is the place.
I found the portion size perfect for my dinner. For the crowd that favors 16oz steaks and half-​chickens it might seem undersized. For me, I’m glad it wasn’t any bigger — I already am plenty full but it was so good I would have kept on eating and eating and… I could have hurt myself!
I’m not a native — I had no idea food cart food could be this good.

We tried both their chicken and rice and their lamb and rice, and they were amazing! The meat was cooked perfectly: well marinated, just a little crispy on the outside, and amazingly juicy and tender on the inside. The chicken was dark meat — probably the reason why it was a little juicier. I did like the chicken better than the lamb, though both were very tasty.
The meat and rice came with a side salad and Indian «raita» (a yogurt sauce like taziki) that really goes well with the meal. I’ll definitely stop by this place next time!

Story:
As a tourist I heard about the famous halal place however my cousin recommended me to this place. On a rainy day during lunch hour the line wasn’t too long.
Ambiance:
On a Monday rainy lunch hour the line wasn’t that long and you’ll always be surrounded by people since you’re in a busy area of Manhattan.
Food:
The lamb over rice was served fresh and cooked on point. It wasn’t overcooked nor was it undercooked. The spices complimented the meat well and it was pleasantly juicy.
Customer Service:
The server was friendly and knowledgable about the order. She sure did know how to sell the lobster fries.
Overall:
The Kwik Meal Cart was an enjoyable experience therefore it earns 4 stars. The food was served quick and fresh. I honestly can’t compare it to the famous halal cart because I haven’t tried it.
Advice:
–If you’re a tourist, craving halal, and in need of a quick bite. I suggest coming by this cart.