Mamoun's Plus The W Hotel Bar/Lounge

Mamoun's is impossibly good, and impossibly cheap. Really, I know of no place in the tri-state area where you can eat such delicious food for so little money.

I love tamarind drinks - tamarind seed, sugar and water. They can be hard to find, but I have tasted several. Mamoun's is the best, and it's $1.25. I mean, what restaurant sells any kind of homemade drink for $1.25? And this is gourmet. Also $1.25: mint lemonade, blackberry juice, mango juice, Mamoun's spiced tea (hot or cold).

Of course, what made Mamoun's a New York legend was their $2 falafel sandwiches (now $2.50) (only!). These are served to eager Macdougal Street patrons who make a line out the door day and night. Mamoun's of course has the Middle Eastern standards: hummus, baba ghanouj, tabouli, plus lentil soup (so delicious!), grape leaves (my favorite grape leaves), spinach pie, baklava -- all perfectly made and all so inexpensive!

I love the the original Greenwich Village Macdougal Street Mamoun's, but as a born and bred New Yorker I still must say: the Hoboken Mamoun's is superior. No $1.25 drinks at the Village Mamoun's. No delectable "Pickle" salad (pickles, pickled turnips, and olives -- so good!) in the Village. No place to sit in the Village.

All in all, I know of no other restaurant, anywhere, period, that approaches the impossible value of Hoboken Mamoun's.

I suggested this meetup idea to Asha, and she was immediately enthusiastic. And we both thought it would be fun to go to a bar afterwards and decided on the bar/lounge at the W Hotel.

The W Hotel is located on River and 3rd Streets and has stunning Hudson views. It's a beautiful place to relax and have drinks with friends, and is an easy walk from Mamoun's.

Join us as we go from the incredibly cheap -- and so delicious! -- to the beautifully upscale.