Argana Falafel opens in the Launchpad in the Student Center
The Middle Eastern and halal food vendor replaces Tawakal Halal Café
Vivian Hir–The Tech
Argana Falafel, a Middle Eastern and halal food vendor, opened in the Launchpad in the Student Center on Sept. 2, 2025. The new food vendor sells popular Moroccan hot dishes, such as chicken shawarma and kefta kabobs in bowls ($14.00), wraps ($9.75), or plates ($13.00). Argana Falafel also has daily hot specials, including meatballs on Mondays and chicken on Fridays. The store also sells smoothies, lemonade, and desserts.
Argana Falafel replaces Somali restaurant Tawakal Halal Café, which was part of Launchpad from 2023 to 2025. According to Senior Director of Campus Dining Andrew Mankus, Takawal closed in May 2025 because both MIT and the vendor “mutually agreed not to extend the contract.” Each food vendor signs an individual contract with MIT, so the conditions and agreements differ by vendor.
Founded in 2021, the Launchpad is a collaboration with CommonWealth Kitchen, a nonprofit incubator that supports immigrant and minority-owned food businesses. The other two Launchpad food vendors are BibimBox and Carolicious.
MIT Dining chose Argana Falafel as the new food vendor because of the office’s “strong relationship” with owner Noureddine Ould-Syiya. Besides managing Argana Falafel, he also oversees Pacific Street Café in the Sidney-Pacific graduate dorm and Courtyard Café at Hayden Library.
Previously, Ould-Syiya operated Shawarma Shack, a food vendor located in the same spot as Argana Falafel before the pandemic. “Building on student preferences and recognizing the continued need for Halal dining options on campus, we felt [that] Argana Falafel was a natural fit for Launchpad,” Mankus wrote in a statement to The Tech.
Mankus sees Launchpad as a “dynamic space” that provides students with “local, diverse” food options. “We’re excited to welcome Argana Falafel and look forward to the value it brings to our community,” Mankus wrote.
Ould-Syiya did not respond to The Tech’s request for comment by the time of publication.