LP Eats @ Falafel+, Preston: I was impressed by a decent chicken shawarma wrap with excellent salad and sauce

After visiting Damascus (the takeaway, not the Syrian city) last week, the Lancashire Post this week headed down to nearby Falafel + to sample their wares for the latest LP Eats review…

As fans of our food reviews will know, everyone with a carnivorous dent loves a kebab. Whether that's a fragrant and impeccably spiced chicken shawarma with crisp fresh veg and a delicate honey BBQ sauce, or a hulking great dirty rugby ball of donner meat dripping in grease and garlic mayo with the odd chip scattered in there like shrapnel, kebabs are king.

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On a freezing cold day (seriously, when is it supposed to get any warmer?), I stepped out into Preston’s blustering gales once again in search of a kebab. But this time my destination was not Friargate for a change, but a charming food van perched just off Fylde Road near UCLan - Falafel +.

Already spying a small queue - always a good sign - I joined a throng of students who clearly frequent Falafel + for all their chickpea-based desires. The lone grill-tender was charming, polite, and friendly, serving up a hefty-looking and weighty chicken shawarma wrap for me in no time at all. 5/5 for service - I can see why this gentleman’s eatery is so popular.

Unwrapping my kebab, my first impression was that the naan was definitely one of those store-bought wraps, which is fine, but to make it into the very tip-top echelons of the much-vaunted and prestigious LP Eats charts, I’m looking for something hand-made. Is 1/5 harsh? Maybe. It was fine, but it was just there, so nothing blew me away about it.

Onto the meat, and the chicken was nicely seasoned, there was plenty of it, and it had a slight tinge of falafel taste, which was frankly great. I’d say it was good, but nothing quite of the blow-your-socks-off standard, so I’m going 2.5/5 on that front. As for extras, however, the salad was plentiful, crunchy, and fresh, while the garlic mayo was outstanding and there were even chips in there too. 4.5/5 for me, Clive.

Finally, coming to the price point, the kebab itself cost £5.50, which is fine, especially given the size of the meal, which filled me up heartily on a very cold day. I’d give the value-for-money a 3.5/5, to give Falafel + an overall score of 16.5/25, placing it third in our rankings so far.

Naan: 1/5

Meat: 2.5/5

Vibe: 5/5

Price: 3.5/5

Extras: 4.5/5

Total: 16.5/25