I spent the first 18 years of my life in and around New York City, a place known for its food. Most people in Denver and the rest of the country who have never spent time in New York City seem to only know about the pizza and maybe the bagels, which of course are great and far superior to everywhere else in the world. Some tourists think that the only food from a cart are hot dogs or oversized pretzels.

But you may not know that New York City is all about the legit street food. 

The city is full of carts that have serious meals that are quick, cheap, and delicious. And none is more consistent then The Halal Guys. 

Whitney and I have visited my family in New York over Christmas every year since we’ve been together – a streak that was ended last year by that whole pandemic thing. But the last time we were in New York, we were in a rush to catch a train after a show in Midtown and hadn’t eaten. The Halal Guys cart in front of the 42nd Street subway station was the perfect food to eat on the train back to my parent’s house in Westchester. 

So, when it was announced that The Halal Guys were opening their first location in Colorado, we knew we had to try it. 

The location in a physical building off of I-225 may be thousands of miles from the way I’ve historically been used to eating Halal Guys, but luckily the quality was still there. With a Chipotle-esque line setup that allows you to choose your toppings and sauce options, it’s certainly a different experience than standing on a busy New York street while a guy scoops rice and falafel into styrofoam from a cart. 

Our recommendations: 

If you eat meat, the beef gyro has soft, tasty strips of meat that are perfect in either a sandwich wrap or on the platter that comes with the yellow rice. 

The only real non-meat option is the falafel, which is luckily a deep-fried chickpea delight. 

And you absolutely have to get it with a ton of white sauce and then a very cautious amount of hot sauce to start. The spice level is no joke, so start slow!

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Written by Harrison