Meet Austin Kent, owner/operator of The Falafel Man- arguably Melbourne’s best falafels.
Transcript from Austin Kent- creator of Melbourne’s Best Falafels:
“As far as I know, falafel was originally an Egyptian food and then it spread throughout the Middle East. every country in the region has its own version of falafel using different legumes – mainly chickpeas- I think the Egyptians use broad beans. I use both.
The Falafal Man started in March 1998 – my dad started it. I started helping him soon later and brought up some of my own ideas.
He started at Prahran Market- that was his first choice. He did have a different shop before the one at the market, but when it came to falafel, he thought it was a good opportunity to be at Prahran Market.
Making falafel starts with a good falafel mix- which is a well guarded secret, obviously. It’s what goes inside and of course it has to be cooked with the right type of oil. I hope after all these years,that I have perfected it.
I serve my falafels either on their own- lots of people buy them before lunch starts to take them home (they keep quite well in the fridge) but at lunch time they are usually served with fresh salad, pickled salad and of course and home made humus.
My hummus consists of mainly 30% sesame paste – tahini sauce – which is what makes hummus nice and creamy and not as dry. And tasty. It has to be kept vegan of course- some people don’t know that- but real hummus has no dairy.
The best part of my job I think is watching the satisfaction when my customers eat it – after all these years it’s still nice to hear good feedback.”
Austin Kent has been at the Market for over 18 years and has sold over 1.8 million falafels during this time.
