Matt Maroni’s the man with the plan—the proprietor of chicagofoodtrucks.com and a crucial contributor to the proposed local food-truck ordinance, which is currently in the hands of 32nd Ward alderman Scott Waguespack. While he waits for the sausage to get made, Maroni’s opened up Gaztro-Wagon, an Edgewater storefront. For now, the namesake truck is parked out back.
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Cold sandwiches—there’s no AC here—include salmon with watercress, creme fraiche, and mache and a lobster-roll naanwich. Deep-fried plantains are sliced vertically and served in a paper sack the size of a coffee bag with chimichurri I relished. Seasonal soups include chilled watermelon and Crenshaw melon with corn and basil; desserts, which we didn’t try, include oatmeal cream pies, caramel popcorn, candied nuts, and “macaron mixta,” all from Fritz Pastry. We also appreciated the BYO policy and the freely jawing owner and counter guy. Can it be a coincidence that, like the excellent Schwa, Gaztro-Wagon sits dead across from a car wash fixed with plastic palm trees? —Kate Schmidt
Apart from those—and prices a few dollars higher than on Devon—there’s little here that deviates from Devon’s white-papered-table Indo-Pak standard. But that’s OK—for anyone within a couple miles of the place, it’s all about location. Once you’re in the door, there’s the staggering list of serviceable dishes in lamb, chicken, vegetable, seafood, and tandoori categories, and an army of white-shirted, black-tied, front-of-the-house operatives ready to leap into action anytime anyone’s water sinks below the glass rim.
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