Thelewala

Great rolls. LOVE the chai.

I don’t know. I just didn’t think there was any flavor. If you’re not Indian then you may like this place but the food isn’t authentic and it tastes dumbed down.

We had few rolls and Ragda Petish. Chicken was grilled and was finger licking good, but out of all Ragda Petish was real good almost reminded me of Indian street food.

Overrated spot on MacDougal street. Kati rolls have gotten ever so popular over the past 5 – 10 years and now more and more spots are popping up (which is a good thing). However, I believe the quality has gone down tremendously, while the price for kati rolls have continuously increased.
Thelewala is in the heart of a busy MacDougal St. It’s extremely tiny, and once you open the door, you walk up a few stairs to enter into the restaurant. The restaurant itself can hold, maybe, and I’m being generous, about 10 – 12 people. There’s some seating along the wall for a few folks, and you order the counter. It’s typically a take-​out or late-​night spot, so that doesn’t matter too much, but don’t let the size of the restaurant fool you.
I stopped by here last night before a comedy show and ordered two kati rolls:
Gobi roll — this was decent, but there wasn’t a lot of gobi in the actual roll itself. I wasn’t a big fan of their paratha’s, as they tasted pretty bland and undercooked (similar to the frozen paratha’s you buy at the store and grill them on your pan at home). The roll itself was actually pretty large, bigger than other kati rolls I’ve had, but it didn’t have as much «stuff» inside. I was expecting a bit more gobi in the roll, in addition to some spices, but it just didn’t hit the spot.
Paneer roll — this one tasted better and I was actually pleasantly surprised at how well the paneer was grilled and the flavors that it was mixed with.
Overall, not the best, and maybe I’ll come back for a late night bite, but there are other better spots to go to if you’re craving a kati roll.

Thelewala has no choice but to be good. In this area? Right next to Kati Roll company?
Thelewala offers delicious rolls for good prices. They rolls aren’t very large, but they are surprisingly filling, as they are packed with a decent amount of fixings. The are priced at around 4 – 6 dollars for one, and usually two will do the trick for your hunger!
If you like Indian food, you’ll definitely love Thelewala!

Go for their Paneer rolls, by far the best that i’ve had in NYC.

Really tiny place with just few seats… Good to get food to-​go, but not really eat inside.
Ordered the chicken malai roll & the thelewala roll to go. Waited about 15 min for the food to be ready. The rolls were just okay… not really that memorable. And after a couple bites of the chicken malai roll, felt something hard and I spit it out and it was some kind of seed. I think they forgot to take it out after cooking with it… I wish the portion was bigger for its price.

Okra roll, fresh with tangy lime — SO GOOD. Will be coming back here to try the other rolls. Service is fast and friendly, with some seating if you like.

Made it my mission to try this place and was not disappointed. Filling and delicious. I liked the Achari Aloo Tikki roll, but the potato filling was a little to carb-​heavy for me to order regularly. The Chicken Malai roll was great. If you order these to go, make sure to eat them within 20 minutes as they are best fresh. The place is tiny and cramped, but the line moves fairly quickly.

Best Kati Rolls around! Try the chapli, or the chicken phall if you’re in the mood for something spicy

Service was friendly despite the Saturday late night rush.
Nizami rolls are just like Kathi rolls minus the heart burn, minus the gross thick roti and plus customizable spicy level.
Hope that I’ll be able to try other items on their menu someday.

I went here last night because I was starving, I’m already an avid Indian food lover I’ve never had the rolls before, this place was awesome!!! Can’t wait to go back

Amazing spicy kaathi rolls. We tried the thelewala chicken roll and the chicken phall (spicy) roll which was spicy as hell– but super tasty. Don’t go there expecting fine dining– thela in Hindi means cart and this is literally a take-​out only restaurant with a couple of chairs. I’d definitely recommend this place– we found this better than kaathi roll factory. They meticulously pack the food in warm pouches for take out.

This place is quite literally a hole in the wall with about 4 chairs in total and the cooking done right in front of you. The roll was quite delicious but I wish the portion was bigger for the price :)

The claustrophobic interior — anywhere where rents aren’t as sky-​high as in the village would use this space as a closet — unwittingly brings to mind the crowded markets and stalls where wallas sell this sort of Indian street food back in the home-​country. Thankfully, the food is also of a similar quality.
The malai roll is carefully placed on a small grill from a marinating pouch below the stove. Everything is very neat and it’s a very high quality piece of poultry placed on the stove. One can’t help watch the meal being prepared (you are squeezed to the side of the counter while waiting for the order). It is garnished with spices and egg and then placed on a flaky paratha before serving.
My chaat is freshly shaken before placed in a to-​go center. All of which is roughly how it would be done on the Subcontinent, minus all of the vintage, thick-​filament light bulbs that hang from the ceiling.
It’s not a pleasant experience, but I have no real complaints about the setup or processing. It seems that Thelewala is doing as good an effort as possible to deal with a huge amount of volume in a larger space.
I hope the lines mean that a larger space — and perhaps more seating — is in the cards for the new year. Certainly more people deserve to enjoy these great snacks.

The ghugni was almost as good as the one back home (Bangladesh). The pani puri was also very decent. The staff were very nice.
Most definitely would make the commute all the way down more often solely because this place exits.

Very, very small place. You can eat in a stool right on the side of the kitchen. Is not bad, it was almost like street food but in a «restaurant» (saying that just for the 6 stools). Food was ok. I’m a Indian food fan. I tolerate spice and «hotness». I order the lamb «wrap». I think this place is perfect for basic palate people wanting something to go. I don’t know. If wasn’t bad, but neither memorable. We’ll yes… For it size… I’m sorry the place across the street has better reviews but the waiting line was 45 minutes… Ying and Jang. Always. Next time I’ll wait. But it’s OK for Less adventurous people (highly recommend).
The service, cook and guess owner is not the most friendly guy… But we are in NYC, what else can you expect… Lol!!!

Listen. I just got my feelings hurt and my stomach filled in the best possible way at this place. I got a spicy chicken roll, because I felt like I needed to introduce a little more heat and spice into my system. I felt like a little bit of a cold coming on. I order at the counter, and dude says, «It’s really spicy.» I said okay. He then says, «But it’s really spicy.» I felt a twinge of annoyance, because in my mind, I don’t think I look like a dude who likes tepid, bland food. I’ve been to India twice and have had authentic Indian spicy food, in people’s homes and on the street. I’m like, «I’m good, son.» I even said something stupidly in Hindi as if that would give me spicy hot cred.
I wasn’t ready. Not only was the roll delicious, it was the spiciest ish that I’ve eaten in recent memory. Like it burnnnnnnns! I did have the good sense to get some water, and I downed nearly 16 ounces in five minutes. Now I feel like I have more color in my cheeks and everywhere else for the next hour or more.
All I can say is that dude tried to warn me. But I will and would do it all over again, because the sandwich was superb! Recently, I don’t even eat sandwiches, but I will hazard messing up my diet for that.
The space is tight, so you best not flex your elbows too much when you’re there. But who goes to holes in the wall for ambience?

I’ve been here twice now and while what I’ve had has been good (chicken phall roll and chicken malai roll), it’s also been wholly forgettable. For example, last night I had the chicken phall roll (which includes a HABANERO sauce) and a mere 12 hours later I can barely recall even the level of heat. Granted, this could be because I have not acquired a taste for Indian food in general (the spices are taking some time for me). However, even if that was the case, the time to serve these fairly small wrap-​like entrees was puzzling as well. At 9 pm, with no other customers in line, it shouldn’t take 10+ minute to prepare one measly roll, especially for an establishment that purports itself as «street food.» Despite the negativity that I’ve expressed thus far, I would probably come back if I was in the area. It’s serviceable and good for a quick snack. I’d definitely call ahead though.

This place is good. It seems to have a cult following because it’s frequented by drunk people or NYU students. It’s by no means bad, but it’s not the freshest and most amazing wrap bread, and the ingredients tend to just taste like a random assortment of messy vegetables.
If you like omelets, you will love this place. I have been here a few times and my last time I got a roll without an egg, it wasn’t the same. I also remember it being a bit fresher and more exciting the first few times I came, it’s just no different than what a lot of street carts are offering nowadays, just a little bit more expensive.

So I needed to p*ss. I needed the damn loo. And I was in Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Tons and tons of Muslims, chilling in the Great Mosque and kissing a rock and sh** like that. And they were like, kiss this rock and you’ll find Allah. I was like, I need to f***ing p*ss but okay I’ll kiss the damn rock. So I did. And then I found Allah. I was like, Allah! Wutup! And Allah was like «oh ya know, just the usual bro. Fire and brimstone and trying to keep Jesus and Mohammad from fighting and the like.» And I was like, well, I still need to p*ss. Please can you let me use «the loo, Allah.» And Allah was like «the loo allah? That sounds like a great name for an Indian restaurant somewhat similar to The Kati Roll Company.» And I agreed with him.
And so this restaurant was born. The loo Allah. And now you know.
By the way, on a serious note: if any of you are regular or religious (no pun intended) readers of my reviews, message me privately, I have something cool to tell you. And also if you are one of my followers on Unilocal,let me know (publicly or privately) so I can follow you back and check out your stuff. I’ll remove this paragraph in a few days. Now on with the review.
What to get: Any of the rolls, they’re all delicious
What else: Get The Lewala. Oh wait, they don’t sell the lewala here. Crap.
Anything else: We named the dog Indiana. The dog? You were named after the dog?
If you like The Kati Roll Company, you may just love Thelewala. It’s a somewhat less «mainstream» and slightly more «off the wall» version of Kati Roll, complete with «speech marks» or indeed «quote marks» on a surprisingly «regular basis» to the extent that they «really do» become nothing more than a «cliché» if you «know what» I «mean».
I bring a lot of rich and powerful types here from Wall Street. They spend all day lying and making lots of money from it. And Thelewala is very popular with «Theliarsofwallstreet.» OK that was a real stretch. But not as much as this (pulls down pants).
It’s on MacDougal street, which is a tiny little hotbed of delicious late night eateries in the heart of New York’s famous and vibrant villages. The heart of Manhattan culture, if you will. It shares its street with the best Falafel & Shawarma in NYC (Mamoun’s), and with its eternal and multi-​location-​al rival «Kati Roll», and will soon be the home of Pommes Frites and other top eateries. But Thelewala holds its own and is a real gem for Indian street food and snacks.
I brought a goat with me to eat here once. They wanted to kill and curry and «Kati» the goat! I had to pretend it was a Llama to save it (they don’t like Llamas, as Llamas imply Tibet). I was like, «don’t touch Thellama!»
Basically they sell Kati Rolls (lol) which are like chappatis, soft and squidgy and slightly smoky and delicious bread wraps (nothing like the crappy wrappies that Americans call wraps — so much more flavourful), with all sorts of amazing fillings inside. Kati Roll sell them too, but Thelewala is slightly more original and healthy with a few more variations than the more mainstream and streamlined Kati Roll. I have to be honest… between the two, I prefer a Chicken Tikka roll from Kati Roll, but I’ll still enjoy a Thelewala treat anytime. They are resplendant with spices and exotic tastes, and will thrill tourists and even a few native New Yorkers (and possibly even a few actual Indians) alike.
I once brought a lawyer here. The owners took him in back, and I never saw him again. My suspicion is that they served Thelawyeras the filling in a roll. Probably for the best.
Check out both Kati Roll (the Midtown West location is better) and Thelewala, and see for yourself what kinds of Indian treats Manhattan has to offer.
And I’ve already asked for a bit of leeway with my bad jokes from you readers, but you have yet to afford me Theleewaya asked for.

Love, love, love their rolls! A small yet popular place to satiate your spice cravings on Mc Dougal street. Their menu is limited but their rolls and chats are quite flavorful. I tried their Lime Paneer Roll and Achari Aloo Tikki Roll. The fillings of the rolls were quite tangy (which I loved). Surprisingly, the skin of the rolls was not very greasy which I think was amazing. They don’t have much seating space, thus it’s better to prefer your rolls on-​the-​go!

I came here after I attempted to go to Kati Roll but their internet was down so I couldn’t pay with a card. I’m really happy that I decided to come here though. I ordered the Chapli roll & a peanut masala salad. For a little more than Kati, I feel that you get better, more authentic Indian food here. The Chapli roll was on point and stuffed generously. The peanut masala salad makes for a good snack but a little too salty for me. Perfect for people who want a more extended menu than what Kati roll has to offer.

My favorite late night food place! If only taco bell were open later…
Thelewala is tiny! Eating there is a little difficult because there’s so little space. But the food is sooo worth it. Chata pata paneer rolls — by far the best paneer kati roll in the city. Way way better than Kati roll or masala times — the masala they use for the paneer is just so good.
Overall — just a perfect place to end a night. Or stop for a quick snack and continue onwards!

Super small and cramped joint.
Limited seats.
Not recommended for groups.
So what are these rolls? It looks like a stuffed omelet. A thin wrap? It’s snack size. Kind of a pricey snack. A little bigger than a McDonald’s chicken wrap.
Okra Roll — it was basically seasoned whole pieces of okra kept warm by a blanket of thin carbs. If you want something not too exotic and blasting with spices, this is your safe choice.
Puchki (Pani Puri) — I love the idea of this but the sauce that was paired with these puffs weren’t that good.
Smoked Gobi Roll — the best veggie roll here. The mashed cauliflower had small chunks of cauliflower too. The consistency is like your perfect mixture of chunk and mash potato. It’s far from dry and has a hint of spice. This is the go to roll!
Bhel Puri — such a great crispy snack! Each bite is full of blasting flavors and crunch. This is the must get item!