Startup believes chickpeas have “endless” potential.
NEW YORK New York firm Fabalish uses chickpeas, a versatile and healthy bean that has been trending lately, as a key ingredient in their product development. The company currently sells frozen baked falafel and a range of dairy-free dips made from aquafaba, the liquid left over after cooking or soaking chickpeas. Co-founder Jessica Gebel, along with her husband Paul Majcherczyk, sees “endless” opportunities for more savory or sweet product lines showcasing the well-liked pulse.
Paul often advises me to calm down because I have so many ideas, said Ms. Gebel, a Natural Gourmet Institute alumna and winner of a Food Network competition.
A few years ago, Ms. Gebel, who was once a personal chef in Miami, created her signature dip with aquafaba, lemon juice, mustard, and a mixture of smoked paprika, cumin, garlic, fennel, coriander, and cayenne. She cooked meals for “a lot of families who were either vegan or vegetarian or had multiple allergies.” She started preserving it and selling it at a nearby farmers market after hearing from her clientele.
Ms. Gebel said, “I had a lot of leftover chickpeas I thought we’d be able to go through as a family, and we didn’t.” This was her first week working at the farmers market. “I felt so bad about throwing it out that I promised myself that the next week I would prepare some falafel and sample with it.
According to Ms. Gebel, her version of the falafel—a typically fried Middle Eastern street food—proved to be equally as well-liked as the dips.
“I love falafel, but it’s usually too dry, deep-fried, and grainy,” the woman remarked. “I guess a lot of people liked it too, because I made my own version the way I would like it.”
After moving to New York to establish the company, the two realized there was a market opportunity. Mr. Majcherczyk joins the company to help operations and finance. He was previously an operations leader at a technology startup. With intentions to continue its retail expansion, Fabalish launched in roughly 100 specialty food stores in the area by the beginning of last year.
“When the pandemic hit, a lot of smaller stores took a big hit,” Mr. Majcherczyk said. “We couldn’t demo anymore, which was huge for us. We had to pause retail. We continued with a lot of accounts we were in where we had a good foundation, but our retail dropped by almost half, and then we pivoted to online.”
The company’s revenue grew nearly fourfold from the prior year to $233,000, with direct-to-consumer sales representing 85% of the business. Mr. Majcherczyk is forecasting $1 million in sales this year, as the brand expands online and in retail stores, raises a seed round of funding to support marketing efforts, and partners with a contract manufacturer. Fabalish currently makes all of its products in small batches with a small team at its third facility in two years.
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There are flavors of original, tzatziki, ranch, and queso for the dips, and fiery carrot and zesty zucchini for the baked falafel variants. Every product is devoid of gluten, soy, and nuts, and it is also vegan and organic.
Mr. Majcherczyk stated, “Jess is finicky and won’t compromise. If I bring her a new ingredient that might be cheaper and more widely available, she’ll say no, but if it doesn’t fit well with the product or doesn’t meet her palate, she’ll say no.” “We’ve been able to scale while remaining true to Jess’s product thanks to this good friction.”
The brand has just been added to the shelves of the Los Angeles grocery chain Erewhon, and it is soon to be available on the websites of FreshDirect and Hungryroot. Fabalish promoted both product lines during an appearance on the television shopping network QVC. Self-confessed meat lover and one of the show’s hosts, enthused about the falafel, saying, “I’d go vegan if I could eat those every day of my life.”
Some future innovations could be a frozen treat made with aquafaba, a falafel burger, or pastries made with chocolate and chickpeas. The latter has been made available online by the corporation as a limited-edition item or as a bonus for loyal consumers. The company is also experimenting with other dip flavors.
“While staying true to that vision of clean, organic, allergy-friendly products around the chickpea, Jess would love to be in every category in the store,” Mr. Majcherczyk stated. “And there are a ton of options between aquafaba and chickpeas.”