Rectangles Restaurant Bar

by Molly T.

I went here last weekend with a friend who had really talked the place up. We ordered a mini sampler appetizer platter (with hummus, falafel, tabbouli, etc...), Maccabee beers and two of us each had a chicken shawarma sandwich and one had a chicken kebab platter. The sandwich (which isn't on the menu...you have to ask for it for dinner and it's $8.50 instead of the $17.50 platter) was fine but not amazing. The chicken was a little overcooked but had a good flavor. The falafel that came on the platter was really good and crispy so that was the highlight.But, as others have already mentioned, this is the kind of food you'd order at some greasy, cheap stand so it doesn't make sense to go to a nice-ish sit-down restaurant.However, maybe it would make a little more sense if the service weren't AWFUL. Seriously, could the waitresses have been any more rude and negligent?? They never brought us water for the super salty food so we had to ask for it 2/3rds of the way through our meal, and then of course they never came to refill it. (Yes, we considered the fact that they were rude b/c we had ordered sandwiches instead of full meals but the restaurant wasn't even full so it's not like we were taking away business.)The place isn't big and they had plenty of staff, but the waitresses were impossible to flag down and incredibly unfriendly when they finally came over. It took my friend 10 minutes to order a second beer. The tab also came to a little over $20 per person. I'd rather get cheapo falafel somewhere else.

by Nancy C.

I'm happy to report that I've found a safe place to eat falafel on the Upper East Side (have you noticed that Pita Grill's falafel is just bread?). I went into Rectangles for some take-out. I asked the girl behind the bar if the falafel was "real" falafel. She didn't lie! Service was quick and friendly, the falafel was great, the israeli salad was so-so and my order came with free pickles. Bonus! I'll have to go back for an actual meal. I'll keep you posted.

by heather g.

awesome hummus, meal went downhill from there.

by Ted S.

I found the food at Rectangles to be somewhere in the range of good to great but the prices are way too high.  I started with the appetizer platter which I highly recommend as it comes with humus, baba ganoush, four really good falafel balls, and some couscous salad.  This was after the delicious complimentary pickle variety platter.  For mains we had the chicken livers which had been recommended to me but I found just OK, a kofte kebab which I liked, and a chicken schwarma which got only so so reviews.  All came with rice and Israeli salad.  The food was fine but these entree plates averaged $18 which is really high for a middle eastern platter than can be duplicated somewhat at numerous midtown street carts for $6.  I think they may be kosher which is usually more expensive but still...I did like the food overall though and I will be back for the great appetizer salads.

by Andy B.

This place hits the spot for me.   Some real authentic yemenite stuff on the menu.  Not that cheap, but portions are good sized and we always wind up bringing a lot home.  Super bonus is that I can come here with wife and two kids on weekend for brunch and always get a table quick(why would anyone in their right mind go to EJ's anyway).  They will always make something simple for the kids if they are being fussy.

by Jenny S.

Ohhh I love Israeli restaurants because the food is so damn good! I've been meaning to try this place but haven't found the right occasion. Recently 2 friends moved to the neighborhood and I was forced to find a good restaurant on our not-restaurant-wonderland stretch of 1st avenue.  Rectangles had a pretty nice interior, although for some reason it was really hot that night even though we were inside. The hummus and falafel were both awesome, with those fluffy pitas that I love. Mmmm. I had an iced cappucino that was also delicious.Next time I'd really skip the main courses (I had chicken shawarma, which was definitley tasty, but maybe not worth the price tag, plus I was already full from the tasty apps). I'd highly recommend going for the falafel and hummus appetizers and if you get a few for the table, you'll be stuffed. Oh, and there were endless pickles, which was a plus. We finished all the pickles within the first 5 minutes of being there, and the waitress happily refreshed us with an overflowing plate of pickles. yummy.

by Liza B.

i thought everything here was yummy but the portions are TINY. I think the lighting here is weird because it is not dim enough or bright enough...it's at a weird level. We had the:   cappuccino ($2.75)   -  it was ok...too much milk   Turkish coffee ($2.75)   Bavarian Cream ($5.25) - pretty good   Tahina ($6.95) - good   SM Combo Platter ($10.50) - pretty good as wellOverall a good place to come to if you're craving middle eastern cuisine.

by matthew h.

This is the same place that used to be on 11th st and 2nd avenue for a gazillion years. Yes they are overpriced. 8 bucks for soup seems a bit much. so yeah. now that that's out of the way, let's consider what matters - the food.everything is made pretty well, nothing is bad, and a few items are pretty outstanding.the falafels are very tasty, although they tend to be slightly overcooked. Only problem is my kid won't eat them because they are too greenish inside for him. But he's 4, so it doesn't count. The green comes from a high proportion of tasty fresh herbs inside.The make an excellent white bean soup that i often get for lunch on a cold day.  the make melwach - a sort of crisp pancake served with crushed tomatoes, hot sauce, and a hard boiled egg - one of the middle east's great breakfast/brunch foods, and they have a king melwach version where you can add some extra toppings. They make a good hummus (not enough lemon, or olive oil, but i feel that way about close to 100% of the hummus in the US) as well as decent versions of all the other foods you wipe up to eat. The make chulent on the weekends ( this is a traditional shabat food, low and long cooked so one does not have to do anything on the sabbath) which is a comfort food of my childhood. (i have great memories of mock fights between my parents about the best part of the chulent and how each thought people from the part of poland the other was from didn't "get" chulent)  what i'm saying is this is a good place for traditional israeli/jewish food. costs too much, but it's good and in the 'hood.

by Michel P.

There some inherent dangers in dating the goyim. One of them is that you may starve since you can't eat anything of theirs. I was on my way to the beau's house and I planned on stopping at Pizza Cove for some delicious pizza nourishment but for some reason it was closed (at about 7pm on a Wednesday!). The only place near his house is Rectangles, so I went there for the first time. I was a little bummed that the cheapest thing to order out was a $20 Schnitzel. It was good, but not worth $20.

by John J.

Food is great but very pricey... there are plenty of places where you can get similair food at a lower price... I wouldn't mind stopping by once in a while