Firdous Express

I guess I was expecting more, since most of the food places in the north market are really good. I got a falafel wrap, even with the sauce they put on it the entire wrap was overall dry. The tomatoes and other veggies were fresh though. I wish the falafel it self was a little more tasty. They also just gave it to me in foil, no box no bag.

Firdous is my go-​to for super-​healthy food at North Market. So much variety in their dishes, with tons of vegetarian options. Both their vinaigrette and creamy dressings are good, and I’m a fan of their salads in general and tabbouleh in particular. (Who doesn’t love to head back to work with green stuff stuck in their teeth?!)
The spicy chicken and any of their lamb dishes are great, and they’ll do half rice, half salad or only salad if you ask.
Their only downside is their pre-​packaged flatbread, which tastes like cardboard and does not work well to absorb flavors.
A large display case holds an array of desserts. The baklava is pretty good, I must say. You’ll be able to get a healthy, filling meal at North Market, a little dessert and (maybe) not fall asleep at work with a Firdous meal. Okay, probably not, but you can avoid most of the gut bombs and feel better by quitting time.

Had the Morrocan Chicken w/​Safron Rice and «today’s special» w/​Spicy Rice. Food was good.

Disclaimer: This review is only for the baklava.
We were wandering the market looking for dessert and the large platters of baklava seduced us. At $ 2.00 a piece, it is quite a steal. Unfortunately, we’ve had better pre-​packaged baklava. I went for the chocolate and nut variety and the Boy had a piece of walnut and a piece of pistachio. We were both underwhelmed. There didn’t seem to be enough of that glorious, sticky syrup on any of the pieces and mine just tasted stale. It’s a shame because it was beautifully presented.

In a few words I liked it. After reading the reviews — I was hesitant but gave it a try. Let me begin by saying I like Greek food and am a bit of a gyro snob.
I went with the staple — a gyro and side Greek salad. With a bottle of water it was $ 12. The gyro meat was from the spit — a must for me. The portion was full — not so much that it spilled out but definitely enough to fill the pita, and with a little chat on the meat just the way I like it. The sauce was good — traditional tasting and just the right amount. Some lettuce onion and tomato rounded it out. I was pleasantly surprised by the taste and would order it again. My only gripe — albeit minor — is they serve it on a thinner pita (think pita pit) and I prefer the thicker pita bread for a hearty gyro as mine busted like a cheap taco and I had to resort to a knife and fork.
The Greek salad was great. Fresh fresh fresh and the dressing was perfect. Definitely grab that as a healthier side.
If you find yourself at the North Market — I would give this a go if you want something besides Hot Chicken…

I was pleasantly surprised by this place! I got the chicken shawarma which comes with salad, pita bread, and hummus, all for just $ 8.25. I am usually a little picky about hummus, but theirs was just right! Everything else was tasty as well and I got my food in under 5 minutes, while other places had long lines. Healthy and delicious, I would definitely go here again!

Firdous Express is not my go-​to Mediterranean restaurant, however it serves its purpose in a pinch. When my fridge is empty and I am too lazy to drive out for food, I will pick up something from the North Market since it’s only a few minutes walk from my apartment.
I usually get the gyro/​shawarma meal which comes with salad, rice, hummus, pita and slices of beef and lamb. It’s a generous plate of food for $ 9, which is the main reason I keep coming back. It’s also relatively «light» and I don’t feel terrible about myself after chowing down.
Taste-​wise, it’s just okay. The salad is fresh and their simple sweet dressing is good. Everything else is pretty average. The meat is tender but somewhat bland. The same thing applies to their rice. Their s Also, who knows how long the meat sits out for, since I never see them cut meat off the vertical spit directly.
I’ve also ordered their Tunisian Chicken which suffers from the same problem of being somewhat bland. Combining the spicy rice with this helps a bit, but in the end, I just want more flavor.
Overall, Firdous Express is a good option for a reasonably priced, filling and healthy meal. Just don’t expect umami to be knocking on your taste buds. I’ll be back to try their other items. Maybe their lamb shank or honey mustard chicken, since it’s hard for me to imagine those dishes being bland.

Good choice for a meal at the North market.
I got the mousaka, which comes with a side of rice (I got saffron), greek salad (fresh and tasty), and some pita bread. It’s a good meal, especially if you’re not expecting anything really authentic or fancy. The pita bread was very chewy and tasted like it came from Kroger, but the rest of the food was tasty.
Comes to about $ 8 – 9, which isn’t bad for this place and what you get. Will return.

Mediterranean kind of food! Come here for lunch.
The menu and food tables are VERY inviting.
They have 4 types of rice — I’ve had the saffrron and another very good one — Algerian I think. These come with the entrée.
The entrée’s are very good, too.
AND you’ll get a bit of salad with what you order.
AND you’ll pay less than $ 9 for it all! (Which is a bargain in North Market)
Very good food and prices for lunch.
I highly recommend!

Got the roasted chicken with spicy rice and not being a person who eats greens, substituted salad for their majodara rice. The chicken was fall off the bone tender (no need of a knife, trust me) and the caramelized onions gives a burnt but a delicious flavor.
Don’t be worried about the lines unless you’re in real hurry, they move fast. They usually have one or 2 taking the meat order, one at the salad/​sides and one at the register.
Drinks wise, they only have coke products. I usually carry my own drink since I like mountain dew.

OK here is my disclaimer for my review. My dining partner actually ate there and I had a bite or two of his dish which was very yummy. However as a treat he got me a piece of baklava since I adore the stuff. So my review is based solely on the baklava and the experience it provided. I don’t know if they make it themselves or have it brought in but either way you absolutely must try it.
So I’m sitting in a very over crowded North Market having just finished my Polish lunch and about to gormandize on my dessert. Upon the first bit the crowds faded away and the din was replaced by chirping birds and a delightfully babbling brook studded with mossy covered rocks and dew covered trees. Time slowed to a stand still and the world waited as I enjoyed the most fabulous piece of baklava I have ever placed in my mouth. I know that sounds like a feminine hygiene commercial but it is that good.
You must stop and treat yourself to the delicious baklava and you will thank me later I promise

Had the lamb and the lentil rice today. It was a little bland. Not one of my favorites from you. It was not a bad meal hut I found myself wanting more flavor and adding salt. Althogh the lamb meat itself was very good the meal as a whole fell short.

It’s probably the healthiest option in North Market. It’s tasty enough, hot enough and cheap enough. Nothing outstanding but it does the trick when you’re around, hungry and don’t want to bother going to a restaurant.

I know the word «express» is in your name, but you lost me when you tossed some falafel in the microwave. Also, they don’t (at least I couldn’t tell) offer half portions, so I got way too much food to finish myself, and would have much rather paid half as well.
I guess it tasted ok, but certainly not the best mediterranian food ever.

Service: 4
Speed: 5
Food: 3
So I gave it 2 stars but after looking at my rating on service and speed I think its fair to say 3, but that is pushing it.
I was born and raised in Mansfield, Ohio (I know, I know, poor me, lol) there is a little hole in the wall there on Main St. called Athens Greek Restraunt. I went to Athens since I was a little girl till I moved here and loved the Gyros and later the Falafel Gyro. Athens Falafel Gyro was just frikken amazing and would make it easy to stay a veg. and because of Athens I was excited to try Firdous Express, but no, not so much, not at all. The reason their Falafel is dry as said in an earlier review is because they microwave it, Falafel is fried chick peas with other good stuff mixed in, but if you are like me you do not think microwaved fried food is very tasty typically. I am a hummus lover, and I wanted to get more then just hummus so I bought the veggie combo consisting of falafel, hummus, Tabuleh salad, and a Ganjou (a work I cannot say nor spell) it came with pita for 7.95.
Hummus was too runny for my taste and way too lemony as well, I prefer mine thicker and with more of a garlic bite then lemon, but that is my taste and some of the hummus lovers out there will tell you the more lemony the better, but to me it just takes away from the creamy awesomness that is hummus.
Pita Bread… so many are raving about this so called seasoned pita bread, first of all it is paper thin on both sides, I tasted no seasoning and it was very dry like it was stale or something.
Falafel was green (why is the falafel green? anybody) had a funny taste to it was dry and they buried it in some sorta sauce, but that made it more edible I believe. the falafel in Mansfield was made (actually everything was made fresh there) fresh and it was crispy on the outside and had a nice nutty style crunch through out.
Tabuleh salad, 5 stars that was my favorite thing and I added that to the hummus and pita with a bit of falafel. The Tabuleh was so fresh tasting with parsley, tomato, and onion so good, but I think it is 5 bucks if you just buy a small of that and that would be too pricey imo.
ok the word I can’t spell it is too words and similar to hummus it is a dip, but has shreds of stuff to it, if you just take a bite of it then it is slimey and the texture kinda turned me off, but when I added it to the pita it had an interesting toasted kind of flavor to it, but I still didn’t eat much of it and was just not a fan of the slimey consistency.
Now Athens opened a new location a few years back on the other side of town in Mansfield and I can tell you it was not nearly as good as their home restraunt on Main St. you could tell the food was being microwaved and I don’t much like paying good money to eat microwaved crap it just isn’t as fresh or as good.
Summary: As so many other Unilocalers say in here… there are too many other greek places to eat in Columbus, and I went to one a few years back where the hummus was to die for and I wish I could remember their name as they were not downtown and it was amazing there. Just too many better places to eat in Columbus where you will get thick and delish hummus and hopefully falafel. There are too many other choices in North Market for me to spend this kinda money on dips and pita bread just to be so very disapointed. I will not go back and those of you that like a thicker pita and hummus should stay away too! Perhaps he should just stick with body building aye…

I have been here on many occasion and never thought to write a review. I had a craving for falafel and decided to head on over to firdous as I was at the Market with a few other people. I believe I make the same mistake each time though, I get the falafel, realize how dry it is, then just settle for that. The thing is, it is really dry, they skimp on the tahini, the lettuce is always fine, the pita is pretty decent. For the price though, I would expect better falafel. Also, I ordered an unsweetened iced tea, the guy gave me a lemon iced tea and said they were out of unsweetened after charging me… There is a DISTINCT difference between lemon and unsweetened pal. So that service just went out the door.
Before I went veg, I did try some other dishes, swarma, gyro, greek salads, which are all good and never seemed to be a disappointment. They also have great baklava. So if I had gone off this one experience, it would have been 1 or 2 stars, but since I do have a past with the place… I will give it three stars and hope they improve.

Firdous Express. You’ve got it tough. You’re nestled in the North Market among so many scrumptious culinary treats it’s hard to stand out.
You’re a doe-​eyed beauty among debutantes.…
A mathematician among Mensa members.…
A body building brute among bronze metal winners…
OK you get the idea.. .
But you’ve got something no one else has. One of the best things I have ever eaten: Honey mustard chicken and saffron rice.
The first time I had this combo was after hitting a few bars and being low on fuel. I stumbled into the North Market and picked the first thing I saw that also had coca cola and carbs (see: pita bread). I couldn’t believe how good the honey mustard chicken was, I had to believe that I only devoured it with such intense adoration because I was inhibited and hungry.
Weeks later I went back and tried it again when I was sober and sane and felt the same deep passion. It has a very sweet flavor that I am sure is not for everyone, but coupled with tangy Greek salad, soft warm pita bread and a scoop of warm saffron rice.. . it is very hard to beat.

Despite there being a dozen quality vendors in the Market who would generally make me full and satisfied, it is Firdous that I walk by and can’t resist.
Not all dishes look or taste that fresh, but lucky for me, the ones I get are always tasty.
My most recent lunch consisted of an awesome eggplant entrée with my choice of rice, salad (fresh, green lettuce too!) and flatbread. For about $ 9 it’s a little steep for lunch but it’s guaranteed to satisfy until later that evening.
Not all dishes look appetizing but of the half-​dozen I’ve tried, the «look» did not justify the taste.
Load up and take your lunch outside or upstairs for a great meal that will keep you coming back for more each time you visit the Market!

I tried Firdous for the first time today after passing it up time and again for years. I had the roasted eggplant with, I believe, Algerian rice? The meal also came with a small side salad and some pita bread.
The roasted eggplant was delicious. It had onions, red peppers and green peppers in the mix, and a sauce with the consistency of a lot of the sauces in my favorite Indian dishes. There was a slight bit of spice, just a mild hint; it could have been a bit spicier. The rice was good as well, and complimented the entrée nicely. The salad, on the other hand, was a bit bland. It could have used slightly more dressing, cucumbers and carrots. The pita bread was downright awful. I was served four pieces, but didn’t even eat all of one.
A fair amount of food for the price, but not the best around. I’ll probably go back to try out their falafel, but I won’t expect much.

Another great place to eat in North Market! Hit up Firdous Express for lunch, and got a good combo of chicken, garbanzos, side salad and couscous. Pita was decent, but the special of the day was good — although a bit light on chicken for a chicken dish. Good couscous. Overall, good tasty food at a reasonable price!
You might have to wait in line to get food, but the line moves pretty fast:
Next time, I’ll try some of their baklava (which they have a whole case full of)