Fares “Freddy” Zeideia came to the United States from the West Bank in Palestine as a young adult in the ’80s. He was pushed to leave his homeland and family for a better future in the engrained land of opportunity. He landed in New York and started working as a taxi driver. Although he was excited to be immersed in a new country and culture, he longed for the tastes and flavor of Palestine, so he searched for that sense of comfort, yet couldn’t match it. He decided that this was something that New York was missing, and there the king of Shawarma and Falafel was born.
He started with a small cart off the Broadway stop on the n/w train which later progressed to a food truck and finally a brick and mortar, all within the same 10 foot radius. He has gone to win countless Vendy awards, gain momentum from various news publications, as well as teach customers his heritage. He has gotten the whole family involved with his wife making sure the recipes aren’t compensated, daughter working the cashier, and son making the food to order. Zeideia wants to keep building and growing giving people a taste of his crispy oval shaped falafel that is a long tradition in Palestine. Although he is happy that he built his “American Dream,” he has still been able to pass his culture and traditions to his family. He says, “Food is love, and that’s all you need to bring people together.” With Arabic music blasting in the den of the king of Shawarma, Freddy shares with us what exactly is the Palestinian taste.
https://youtu.be/3L3mcQ4S63g