The Halal Guys Brick-and-Mortar Opens Tomorrow

The long-awaited brick-and-mortar location of the Halal Guys finally opens in the East Village tomorrow. The Middle Eastern vendors still regularly draw long lines to their original food cart on 53rd Street and Sixth Avenue, and have since expanded to three more carts, but this is their first permanent location. And although Halal Guys is also on the brink of a massive, franchised expansion, this outpost on 14th Street is an independent project, started before the company signed a franchise agreement with Fransmart.

The Daily News reports that alongside the standard gyros, falafel, and chicken and rice platters, the Halal Guys restaurant will serve sides like hummus, tabbouleh, and Mediterranean salads, and have a juice and smoothie bar. It will operate from 7 a.m. to 4 a.m., and will not serve alcohol because, as owner Abdelbaset Elsayed tells the Daily News, "Most of our customers aren't Muslim, but we are." Another location is also in the works on Amsterdam Avenue and 95th Street.
· Halal Guys Finally Opening Their East Village Restaurant Tomorrow [EVG]
· The Halal Guys Food Cart Is Opening its First Brick-and-Mortar [NYDN]
· All Coverage of The Halal Guys [~ENY~]