Scan Magazine – August 2018

Issue 115 | August 2018 | 45

Scan Magazine | Culinary Feature | Fafa’s

large and loyal client base. We were
also mentioned in the 2015 Joe Warwick
book Where Chefs Eat: A Guide to Chefs’
Favorite Restaurants,” Karavani says. Not
wanting to put a particular label on what
his restaurant is, Karavani describes Fa-
fa’s as casual street food, serving up a fu-
sion of flavours.

Originally from Israel, Karavani has
brought flavours from his childhood into
Fafa’s menu. Throughout the Middle
East, falafel is a common street food and,
in recent years, has become very pop-
ular amongst vegetarians and vegans
throughout Europe. “It was a case of be-
ing in the right place at the right time,”
Karavani says. “Part of our success is
due to our simplicity and authenticity.”
All of Fafa’s dishes are made from scratch
— including soaking the chickpeas from

which the falafel and hummus are made.

The food is cooked to order, and Karavani

likes the fact that the food is prepared in

front of the customer, from fresh ingre-

dients. “We use our own recipes for our

hummus, chilli sauce and falafels, for

example. Everything is cooked by hand

and we don’t serve mass-produced foods

made by machines,” he says.

The falafel takeover

With new restaurants opening this year in

Finland, Fafa’s is also extending its reach

into the rest of Europe. A new restaurant

recently opened in Tallin, Estonia, with

London, Stockholm and Holland set to

follow suit in the near future. “The biggest

man was once a baby,” Karavani laughs.

He started his company from nothing and

could never have dreamed that his idea

would one day flourish into such a big

Web: http://www.fafas.fi

business. “Fafa’s is a brand that was not

meant to be a brand. But I had — and still

have — a good team behind me, helping

me along this journey. There is no other

pita and falafel chain on a global scale,

and we are clearly filling a void,” he says.

He adds: “Ultimately, Fafa’s is about

good, simple, authentic food. We value

our fresh ingredients, and serving excep-

tionally good falafels and other Middle

Eastern-inspired dishes. Our restau-

rants are welcoming and the atmosphere

makes our customers feel like they can

enjoy themselves. It’s easy to be proud of

this company — which I am, infinitely —

and I want our originality to spread else-

where for people to enjoy.”