Billy’s Snacks & Deli

I came to Billy’s strictly for the falafel — I don’t really like deli sandwiches so I didn’t consider most the of the menu but I love that the guy working here is super friendly and has a relaxed, chill vibe. This place seems great to stop in for a quick bite or lunch to go. It was a bit dim inside but I don’t really mind it. I really enjoyed the falafel, which was seasoned just right so it was not too dry, a bit flavorful, and cut in two manageable halves. I’m willing to come back here and try other things on the menu, perhaps a quick breakfast.

The food is pretty gross but its fast, cheap and the portions are big. Nothing looks or tastes very fresh.

When ever I’m in downtown Oakland I come to this place for a bite to eat.
Let me start by saying that I’ve been here maybe 20 or 30 times since the beginning of the year and each time I order something different. I have yet to order something I didn’t like! The food here is delicious! I’m not adventurous when it comes to food. Usually I stick to what I know, but this place has changed that. I want to try it all.
The place itself is spotless and the owner is very friendly.
PEOPLE: Try this place just once and you will be back again.

Fresh, homemade sandwiches for great prices!
I found this deli at the top of the BART exit stairs and was really impressed with the food. It’s just a small hole in the wall but it’s clean and friendly. He was out of a few of the sandwiches (it was about 3pm, no biggie) so I had to adapt. I’m glad I did! The turkey bacon avocado sandwich was great, and the hummus is amazing here. A perfect casual sandwich shop… Great place to grab lunch to go and bring it down to the lake!
Additionally, I’m not sure if it was Billy himself but the man making the sandwiches was pretty accommodating given my limited time frame and he was super friendly! I’ll definitely be back again!

I’m still going to this Deli for lunch. Its very good. Everything is freshly made from scratch, including his famous hummus. I’ve read through his reviews here and someone thought his lamb swarma was not fresh. It is fresh. He makes the food fresh daily. Musa was merely making the lamb hotter by putting it in the microwave. The lady should have just asked him. I’ve also made a mistake on my review from 2012. I said he was from Pakistan. Thats incorrect. He was born in Jerusalem and raised in Jordan. He certainly does have a passion for food. He’s a one man shop here. He does everything. cash only deli.

Had the Super Falafel wrap and a Jordanian (ground meat) samosa for lunch. Could easily have fed two people for under $ 8. The falafel wrap is a nice change from the pita variety because those tend to fall apart due to the sauces and yogurt. The lettuce was perfectly fresh. Love the hot sauce. The samosa was right out of the fryer and it was excellent. The filling had that interesting Arabic flavor of coriander, cumin and cinnamon.
Grab some grub and a hot tea and head down to the Lake.

This café/​deli has a Great variety of options, many of which are healthy and affordable. Everyone from my office eats here weekly and I recommend the chicken shawarma or one of Musa’s fresh daily plates. Everything is authentic and tasty. The breakfast sandwiches are also essential for the mornings. As a snack I recommend hummus and pita bread or sambusa/​samosa. Musa is the man! Go check this place out.

OK, so I’m hungry and I lucked out with getting a parking place on Broadway. I went to the deli because I had gone a few times before and had the most tasty Greek Salad so I thought I’d go back if I could find a place to park. OK, so I get parked and I decide to be adventourous and I’m glad I did. I ordered the Combo plate. It consisted of grape leaves, hummus, tabouleh and a few other items. It was OUTSTANDING! I was afraid of the hot sauce on the hummus but since I like garlic and seasoning I took a chance. This was the best lunch I have had this year, hands down. Check ‘em out. I will be back, uh, probably tomorrow, if I can get a parking place…

I was in Downtown Oakland, it was lunch time, I was hungry and my handy Unilocal app led me to Billy’s.
I initially thought they only offered snacks and sandwiches, but I saw salads, hummus, sambusas, and shawarma plates.
I’m a sucker for shawarma plates and ordered the lamb shawarma plate for $ 9 to go. The shawarma plate comes with salad, pita and hummus. I also ordered a sambusa for 1.25.
As I was waiting for my food, I took a look around expecting my order to take a while to cook.
My order was not made fresh, the guy scooped pieces of already cooked lamb into a bowl and microwaved it.
Here’s a peeve of mine, and what turned me off — once he was done fixing up my plate, he placed my order on the counter/​pay area and I saw that some shreds of lettuce from my salad were hanging off the container, touching the counter. Instead of throwing those pieces away, he picks up the pieces of lettuce and puts it in the container in front of me. What if I was a public health inspector?
He also drizzled olive oil onto everything before he packed my order away. I think a little too much because the oil leaked through my to-​go container and made it a messy lunch.
When I got to eat my lunch, I hoped that I wouldn’t get sick. The only thing that was enjoyable was the hummus. The pita was chewy and the lamb tasted like jerky.

The BEST Falafel in town. All ingredients are home made and fresh. I have a falafel every week. Plus there is always a home cooked meal — always something different. It’s warm, it’s halal, it’s home made, it’s perfect! I love that place. It looks like nothing and it’s awesome!

Very nice owner. Wide variety of food.

Great little place. Food was very good, service super friendly…

I asked for a dish that combined The falafel, hummus, and taboola. the taste is very good. I ordered the chicken schwarma and it tastes great.
The business looks like a family business and the owner is very friendly. The food is fresh and the music in the background add accent to the medeteranian food.
I tried the latte and it realy tastes great!
The place is very clean and I like wall’s decoration.
I would say the menue is priced in the range between fairly priced and cheep.
I would love to come back to taste other stuff. Location is very convinient if you take the bart it is just off 19^th street station. If you are driving do not forget to check the meter it is 1 hour limit.
The service is fairly fast you can have your order ready between 5 – 9 minutes.
It will be great to have WiFi service.

Billy’s menu showcased deli sammies and mediterranean eats. the med. food looked fairly priced but the sammies looked cheap (4.5+) billy’s looks family runned. there’s a few tables for sitdown.
eats: (pastrami, jack cheese, and bean sprouts)5.1 +tax
–not exactly a reuben but a cheap tasty, imitation of one
–quite a bit of pastrami. sammie surpringly tasty.
–this was a better choice than the roast beef they no longer carry.
–made meticuously to order.
crumbs:
–pay parking in front, remember the meter person is watching. l hr. minimum.
–sammie maker is a big guy. doesn’t smile much nor talkative. but made a great sammie.
–bread choices limited to tradional ones, no fancy dutch crunch, etc.

Musa is great! He can cook and makes a great falafel! The schwerma are not tradtional but they are yummy! I had the lamb today for the 1^st time and it was really tasty! Big chunks of lamb in sauce in a wrap with hummus, tomato, cucumber and tahini, I added feta ’cause I like that and boy it was huge and sloppy! Love the salads too, not too keen on the sandwiches but if you are going here for a sandwich you are missing the yum! Musa makes Middle Eastern food, Subway makes sandwiches. Get the sampler plate if you are unsure and you will not regret it!

Delicious. The tabbouli was outstanding and so fresh. I would love to try all the California vege sandwiches in on sitting if I could and the grub is reasonably priced. I’ll be back for sure.

This place was okay when I went here. It seemed like there were a lot of locals who came here who knew each other, and that was nice. The person taking my order and making my food was on the phone the whole time, and I saw him microwaving my food.
I ordered the chicken schwarma; it was okay. but. it wasn’t chicken schwarma? It was mainly pieces of roasted chicken, not chicken that’s been carved off a spit. My meal wasn’t bad, it was just not what I was expecting. The hummus and pita were good.
I might give this place another try and order something that they’re more well known for.
Also– when I first walked in here, I asked if they took cards, since all I had was my credit card. When I went to pay, he said I could only pay with debit. Wish he would have mentioned it to me when I asked.

worst. chicken. schwarma. of my life. maybe i’ve been spoiled by the delicious mediterranean food options in davis for the past 6 years or so, but this place took me for a ride on the train straight to vomit-​town.
not that the veggies weren’t good, because they were. but the sauce left something to be desired. most importantly was the underseasoned, weirdly textured chicken. you know how baby birds chew their food first so their babies can disgest it easily? i felt that it was highly possibly billy had a pet penguin or something who had done that to my lunch. never again. yech.

Its the best mediteranean food in Uptown Oakland, always fresh and homemade that day! By far the best place to go for a falafel sandwich, greek salad, but the best is the homemade special of the day.
Always a great meal!

It’s convenient because he’s right downstairs from my office, but the food is good. I’m not as big of a fan of the sandwiches, but I like to homemade stuff and Mediterranean food (super falafels, tabouli salad, babaganoush).
Earlier in the lunch rush they have some pretty good hot food like grilled chicken, lamb chops and lamb shwarma.
The owner Musa hasn’t let me down yet.