Amy's - Creating Falafel Addicts
During the 70s there was a small chain of Middle Eastern restaurants that really helped turn a generation of New Yorkers on to falafel, babaganoosh and other treats from that part of the world.
Amy's was founded by an Israeli fellow who named the company for his old sweetie. There was one by Lincoln Center, and another near Columbia University. The one at Lincoln Center had a small eating area upstairs on a small mezanine that offered a nice view and a bit of privacy. The location by Columbia was pretty no-frills, but during a time when that section of Broadway was not the strip of fancy cafes that it is now, it was quite popular. There may have been more locations, but I never visited them.
Amy's food was fairly cheap, filling and (at least at that time) slightly unusual. It was also vegetarian, although not exactly lo-fat or lo-carb. Their falafel sandwich wasn't the greatest this side of the Atlantic, but it was a meal in itself, at a time when non-meat options for eating out were pretty limited. You could get a good meal there for a few bucks, and stuff like babaganoosh was still a bit exotic. Don't forget that during the 70s a cheap meal typically meant a coffee shop.
Too bad these fun places are gone.
Amy's was founded by an Israeli fellow who named the company for his old sweetie. There was one by Lincoln Center, and another near Columbia University. The one at Lincoln Center had a small eating area upstairs on a small mezanine that offered a nice view and a bit of privacy. The location by Columbia was pretty no-frills, but during a time when that section of Broadway was not the strip of fancy cafes that it is now, it was quite popular. There may have been more locations, but I never visited them.
Amy's food was fairly cheap, filling and (at least at that time) slightly unusual. It was also vegetarian, although not exactly lo-fat or lo-carb. Their falafel sandwich wasn't the greatest this side of the Atlantic, but it was a meal in itself, at a time when non-meat options for eating out were pretty limited. You could get a good meal there for a few bucks, and stuff like babaganoosh was still a bit exotic. Don't forget that during the 70s a cheap meal typically meant a coffee shop.
Too bad these fun places are gone.
posted by Tony the Tour Guy | 5:43 PM
17 Comments:
I was a 17 year old teen when I worked at Amy's in 1977. If memory serves me right, there were 3 restaurants. One was near Columbus Circle and was the busiest of all the restaurants. I did everything from bus tables, sweep and mop floors to being a grill man. I recall one day when I started my shift in the early morning well before opening time. Because we were short staffed, I stayed over past my quit time. Rush hour was somewhere around 7 or 8 pm. One of our 5 gallon drinking water dispensers went empty. The shift supervisor told me to replace the (glass) water bottle immediately. As I lifted the replacement bottle on to the dispenser it slipped out of my hands and fell to the floor. It shattered into big and little pieces. Five gallons of water went everywhere. Customers looked at me disgusted and astonished. The supervisor ran over with a mop and told me not to worry. She and I cleaned up the mess, but I felt like crawling into a hole. When I told her how long I'd been at work, she understood and sent me home. What simple days those were.
This comment has been removed by the author.
I was going to school at NYU during the late '70s. Am I nuts....wasn't there an Amy's on University Blvd. between 11th and 14th streets?
I was at Barnard in the early 80s and enjoyed going to the Amy's on Broadway so it was around at least a bit past the 70s. The other falafel place in the neighborhood was Amir's Falafel which also had intense Turkish coffee.
I worked at Amy’s from 1977 to about 1983. The first location was University Place, then 23rd, 62nd, 72nd and Columbia with a short lived location on Bank Street. At 112 one of my customers was Barack Obama. It was a learning experience to say the least!
I worked at the Columbus Circle location while I was still in high school at Brooklyn technical High School although I lived 2 blocks from Columbia University. The store was always very busy. We did serve burgers (cheese) on Pita Bread. They where some of the best burgers I've ever had in my life. The carrot cake was awesome also. I've had falafel all over the world and I think Amy's was some of the best I've had as well. I miss the food immensely.
I am so glad i found this article. I lived on 23rd st. in Peter Cooper in the seventies. There was an Amy' s on 23rd between 1st and 2nd Ave. A McDonald's opened around the same time on that block. They were both near the A&P.
I loved Amy’s near Columbia U on the upper west side. I was a kid and my grandmother would take me there for falafel or a fish sandwich in a pita.
Trying to fins a pic of their menu. Went to the W Village one. Had a great yogurt with granola dessert things. Anyone remember?
Was searching online for Amy’s falafel joint near Columbia U. as I have fond memories of my grandmother taking me there for a stuffed pita once a week. Glad to find this! Thank you!
Thank you! I have been trying to find a photo of a store front to no avail, but glad I found evidence that this local chain did exist! I discovered Tahini Sauce at Amy's!
I worked at Capezio at Columbus circle, and was addicted to the frozen yogurt.
I am so glad I just happened on your comment because I remember eating at Amy’s all the time when I worked at paragon sporting goods and I know I had cheeseburgers on pita and thanks to your comment I am not crazy when they keep
saying vegetarian. Thank you, Debbi R
I was at Juilliard in the early 80s.Does anyone remember the recipe for Amy's frozen yogurt? I used to live on the frozen yogurt sundae. Was it made with labne?
I would do anything for the recipe for their tahini dressing. That with their falafel... heaven on a (paper) plate.
I always thought Amy's was a fast-food version of health-food. They didn't present themselves as Middle-Eastern, as I recall. Their flagship product was the "Amyburger". It was made of falafel instead of ground beef and placed in a pita instead of a bun. Even though they also had regular hamburgers-in-pitas, Amy's was still a "step in the right direction". Too bad it didn't last. I guess it was ahead of its time. It puzzles me, though, how they managed to open multiple locations if the concept wasn't viable.
I used to have Amyburgers at the Amy's near Columbia. There was an Amy's near Bryant Park, on 40th Street, I think.
Yes
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home