The Israeli falafel chain in New York collapsed due to debts - and BDS activists tried to take credit
Branches of the "Taïm" chain in New York have closed in recent days after state tax authorities issued a series of orders against its owners due to accumulated debts totaling $1.35 million. On social media, BDS activists were quick to attribute the closure to the boycott campaign, calling it "proof" that the boycott works. In reality, it is a business and legal dispute between the previous and current owners over who is supposed to pay the debt - and not a result of public pressure.
On the doors of the "Taïm" falafel chain branches in New York, signs have been posted in recent days that leave little room for imagination: "Property seized for non-payment of taxes and is now in the possession of the State of New York." On social media, they managed to inject an interesting interpretation into this official and explicit notice. Under posts reporting the collapse of the veteran Israeli chain, comments began to appear such as "BDS is working," alongside accusations of "appropriating Palestinian food" and even "ethnic cleansing." Another commenter wrote: "These are stolen recipes anyway. Karma." For some supporters of the boycott of Israel, another falafel shop with a lock on the door turned in an instant into a picture of victory.
However, the real story is much less ideological: those who closed "Taïm," one of the pioneers of Israeli food in America, were not BDS activists but the tax collectors of the State of New York. The Taïm branches closed after tax authorities issued a series of orders due to debts accumulated under the companies operating the chain. On the official list of the State of New York, Greg Majewski, CEO of Craveworthy Brands, which currently owns "Taïm," appears as the person responsible for 12 tax orders related to the companies operating the chain's branches. Their cumulative amount reaches $1.35 million. In other reports, a sum of $632,000 appeared, originating from a separate legal dispute underway between the previous owners and the current owners over the question of who is supposed to pay past debts.
Either way, the result on the ground is the same. The branches in New York are locked, phone numbers are not answered, and online orders have been stopped. The four branches in the city were marked as temporarily closed on Google, the chain's store on Goldbelly disappeared, and its Instagram account has not been updated since July 22. The last branch in Washington, D.C., also closed back in July. Another sign came from the Craveworthy site itself: "Taïm" no longer appears there in the group's list of brands.
Rapid collapse
The fall was particularly rapid: just four months ago, Craveworthy published a celebratory announcement about the first franchise deal for "Taïm" in New York, at the Park Slope branch, and spoke of a "pivotal moment in the growth trajectory" of the brand. The company even announced that it was looking for new franchisees in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Maryland, Washington, and other states along the East Coast and the Midwest. In July, the chain was still giving out free falafel as part of a promotion. In August, the state had already replaced the cash register with a lock.
For veteran New Yorkers, and especially for the Jewish community in the city, this is the possible end of a small institution that long preceded the wave of Israeli restaurants that has since swept America. Israeli chef Einat Admony opened the first branch in the West Village in 2005, in a tiny space that became a hit almost immediately. "Taïm" served green falafel, spicy falafel with harissa, sabich, hummus, salads, and smoothies long before Mediterranean bowls became an entire category in the American fast-food market. Zagat and "New York Magazine" heaped praise, and lines stretched out the door.
In 2018, investors led by Phil Petrilli, a former executive at fast-food giant Chipotle, entered the picture, and the neighborhood falafel shop began to behave like a chain. In the following years, it expanded beyond New York, and at its peak, it numbered 14 units with operations also in Washington, D.C., Austin, Seattle, San Francisco, Miami, Orlando, and other cities. The chain's sales reached $18.7 million in 2025. In 2024, Craveworthy acquired the company as part of a larger deal to purchase the restaurant platform Untamed Brands. Admony herself had not been involved in the management of "Taïm" since 2022, and a representative on her behalf clarified this week that she cannot comment on the current state of the chain.
In the crosshairs of BDS
"Taïm" may have been born as a distinct Israeli restaurant, and its name never hid that, but today it is owned by a restaurant corporation from Chicago and brands itself as "Mediterranean cuisine." After October 7, it nevertheless appeared on boycott lists and was repeatedly defined online as an "Israeli" business, even though the current owner is not Israeli. In one of the pro-Palestinian posts, it was described as an "Israeli chain that disguises itself as Mediterranean food with stolen recipes," alongside an accusation of "ethno-cultural theft of indigenous Palestinian cuisine."
Already after the closure of the last branch in Washington in July, boycott activists published a post under the title "BOYCOTTS WORK" and listed "Taïm" among their latest "successes." Back then, they still had to add in parentheses: "still in New York." Now even those parentheses have become superfluous. But there is no evidence that the boycott campaign is what led to the closure of the branches. The existing documents point to a much more prosaic reason: unpaid taxes, business problems, and a legal dispute over who is supposed to pay the bill. Petrilli, who managed the company before the sale to Craveworthy, is now suing Majewski and claims that according to the purchase agreement, the responsibility for debts accumulated at "Taïm" was transferred to the new owners. Majewski, who appears at number 79 on the list of the hundred private taxpayers with the largest debts in the State of New York, did not provide a response to the reports.
