Chickpea

I was starving from being in long client meeting and wanted something to eat on the train thats not from the train café before I head back to work in DC. Since it was right there I decided to check it out. I’ve had really good fast casual mediterranean food from other joints before so why not. But even though I was starving I still didn’t enjoy it. The meat, veggies, «rice», bread and hummus just didn’t have enough flavor. It’s nice that they have different flavors of hummus though. Probably won’t try this place again.

Pretty solid fast Mediterranean food. I had some standard hummus, cucumber salad with tomatoes, and spicy chicken. Nothing to rave about, just standard quick food that was good before my train.

This place hit the spot. A counter in Penn station, it has just enough freshness to avoid being let down in your quest for some heathy, Middle Eastern food. Chicken was a bit spicy and nicely grilled. Falafels were a touch dry, but what do you expect if it doesn’t come straight out of the fryer? Buckweat is an odd choice to replace rice, but it’s perfectly fine. Shwarma wasn’t super terrific, but acceptable in the circumstances. Also has random pain au chocolat and coffees. The fact that you can basically get a falafel burrito (with chicken — the «shawafel») is pretty cool.

Vegetarians rejoice! A location for people that want actual vegetables/​real food before heading on the train. Super cheap and quick. My lentil soup was piping hot and the wraps are tasty. recommend.

Great super cheap option for folks on the go-​lots of different hummus and veggie options, and way cheaper than many other restaurants in stations. It was about $ 6.50 for a wrap, which is lots better than at the airport or other train stations. Had a basil pesto falafel veggie wrap and it was decent. I didn’t experience the bait and switch/​four toppings dilemma that other reviewers did.

Food ok, but pricing lousy. Got chicken hummus plate. You get hummus, a tiny pita, and a pile of chicken for 9-​. They show you the toppings and it’s 50cents a topping? Please… It would be better if they called it 10– and included toppings.

The service here is shady. I think they know that most people are commuters and probably won’t come back. When I ordered a hummus bowl, the guy at the counter promptly told me that I get four toppings. When I tried to pay, I noticed that the price was a few dollars higher than advertised. The woman told me that each topping was $ 0.50. When I looked back to the ordering side of the store, I heard the guy telling the next customer to pick four toppings as soon as they placed their order.
If you want to charge extra… fine, but don’t tell people they «get» four toppings when I reality you are getting it because you are paying extra for it. They are basically getting a few more dollars from each person since no one has the time or energy to argue.
— As soon as I posted this, I noticed that other people posted similar experiences. Bait and switch. They have been doing this for years. Never again.

I got a lamb kebab platter with quinoa and kale that was seriously delicious. This is the first thing I’ve had here, but the service was good and my lunch was delicious. Very pleasantly surprised to find a healthy tasty lunch option in Penn Station.

I love you Chickpea! Just tried the chickpot pita with tabouleh, beets, garbanzo beans and basil tomato hummus. What?! It’s like an energy power house, tastes like heaven, and that pita pocket is top-​notch! I think he said he put some sauce on it, too? This chick gives Chickpea two clucks up… oh god so cheesy I’m sorry

I had original chickpea wrap, they have a variety I should have tried the spinach. I did like the variety of toppings and sauce but overall it was just OK.

Needed to grab something fast to bring with me on the train, and figured I’d try this place. Worst wrap i’ve ever had in my entire life. Absolutely horrendous, dry chicken. I threw the entire thing away. Wish I had chosen one of Penn’s other mediocre establishments.

One of my go-​to spots in Penn Station. If I have an early morning train to catch, I get the eggs and bacon platter with potatoes and peppers (no toast). And a coffee with soy milk (gluten and dairy free). They are quick and the food is inexpensive and tasty. The servers are unflinchingly pleasant and perky– an impressive feat considering they deal with a variety of rush hour commuters.

When it comes to Penn Station I’m always in a rush. I’m usually going to this place because they are quick and efficient and don’t sacrifice on quality. Every time I’ve gone here from late in the evening to freakishly early in the morning they’ve always been there to provide me with some good food. I prefer the breakfast over the lunch but really anything here is good. Always seem to have business travelers who know exactly what they want and order it quickly. Probably isn’t a place for your to wait in line, wonder what you want to eat and then pause and think about it when it’s your turn to order. You have to be ready because uhm… we’re in a rush. Solid place for breakfast and it’s great that they know how to rush and not sacrifice quality as I stated previously in my review.

Heck yes. So glad I decided to skip Dunkin, Moes, the Drug store and other stops along the way while I hunted for a good lunch while waiting for my train. I was looking for something healthy but filling. An yogurt wasn’t going to do it so I kept walking and suddenly Chickpea. You can build your own falafel, wrap or salad here and the toppings are all fresh and awesome. I went with a salad and had to choose which hummus to add to it. I wanted to add them all they looked DELICIOUS. I asked for a suggestion and the guy gave me a scoop of Chipotle. Spicy and delicious. I could choose four vegetables/​toppings so I went with Chickpeas (cliché I know) Roasted red peppers, cous cous, and sunfower seeds. No dressing needed because the hummus and cous cous was plenty. The salad came to about $ 12 and was so delicious. I went with the small size and it was big enough to hold me over until dinner. I think the workers were a little weirded out because I may have been a little too excited about this salad station and the concept of it in general. I kept thanking them for having a place like this. Can’t wait to come back for my next trip!
In addition to the salad, falafel and wrap station they have a breakfast station and then other pre made foods readily available.

I don’t know why the reviews for this location are so low. The coffee is fresh and the counter staff are never short of lovely. When the lady who made my tea noticed it was too light, she OFFERED me a redo. I insisted it was fine but she was so kind and gracious about it. It’s like this every time I pop in for a drink or a nibble whenever I have to pass through Penn Station. Sometimes the manager in his dress shirt will throw on an apron and lend a hand. Just very nice people.
Go chickpea!

There definately is something crooked going on at this paticular Chickpea, I was overcharged for what they called extra toppings, when they were just toppings on a falafel bowl, nothing extra about it.
Also, The Seattle Coffee register person called me over to ring up my order meanwhile the guy at the Chickpea register was standing there with the register shutdown. I will never go here again, Shady Buisness going on here. Beware!

I’m laughing at some of these reviews, which critique this restaurant’s «atmosphere.» Erm, it’s Penn Station, people! All the eating options here are designed to be quick and easy for travelers. The only things that need reviewing are the food and service. For me, the service was fine. It was fast and efficient. Not overtly friendly or anything, but fine. My food, on the other hand, was delicious! I loved getting to customize everything; this place is like the falafel version of Subway. :)
I ordered the quinoa and vegetable falafel in a whole wheat pocket. I got to pick what kind of hummus I wanted (original), and four veggies (bell peppers, carrots, greens, and olives). He finished by squirting on some tahini, which was the perfect finishing touch.
This is definitely one of the best options in Penn Station!

I was in NYC this week for work and on the way through smelly olé’ Penn Station I saw a sign for Chickpea. I love hummus and falafel and pita pockets so I figured this would be the perfect lunch to bring onto the train. In NYC all restaurants have to proudly display their letter grade from the NYC Dept. of Health, and all this week it seemed that every restaurant, from the fanciest places to the gross-​looking carts on the street, were rated A. Upon entering Chickpea however, their rating caught my eye:
B
B? B? B??? What the heck? I was going to run away but the thought of a pita pocket filled with chicken and falafel was making me happy. So that’s what I got and I enjoyed it, but it was a bit expensive for my tastes.
Final Note: So I’m on the train right now after eating my pita pocket and I decided to check out the restaurant report on the NYC Department of Health site. This place had three critical violations and one regular violation on their last inspection in April. Oh come on. I’ll give them three stars as my pita was good and I hope they’ve cleaned up their act since April, but in hindsight I’ll never go to a B-​rated place again.

Meh. I’ve definitely experienced better than Chickpea. This is like a Mediterranean version of Chop’t, but definitely not as fresh and not as varied in options.
I ordered from Chickpea right before an early morning train ride and I was expecting something fresh, refreshing, and delicious for the price I paid (almost $ 12), but instead came out disappointed. First of all, I was tricked into getting the large-​sized salad, which was way too big! On top of that, the lettuce was wilty and the sauces were runny. Not. good. I seriously thought I would be sick during my train ride. Thankfully I was not. But I learned a lesson nevertheless and will not order from Chickpea again.

Fighting a sore throat means soup. Found the next thing to try in an article I printed out last year:
It mentioned that the soup was hearty and indeed my tomato vegetable florentine was. Unfortunately, it was a touch too salty and the shell pasta in it was so overcooked it was borderline mushy. The whole wheat roll that came with it was good though and for just under $ 4, you can’t complain too much. I tasted the lobster bisque and it was pretty good, so I might give Chickpea another shot sometime.