Given all the uncertainties and risks involved in eating out at the moment, going takeout-only could be the best business model for a fledgling food operation. This includes Fakalo Pizza Gallery, which started off last year as an itinerant pop-up food truck with a built-in wood-fired oven.
By December, the truck was occupying a vacant lot in Bakurocho, with just enough room for a temporary awning to keep out the elements. But since then, Fakalo has moved to a permanent home in Higashi-Ueno, inside the rambling premises of Route Common, an old commercial property that¡¯s been reborn as a bookstore, gallery, cafe, event space and community hub.
Even with its handsome new black-metal, gas-fired oven, Fakalo is clearly a labor of love operation. The pizzas are honest, with half a dozen varieties each of red (tomato) and white (cheese), plus an excellent half-moon calzone. There¡¯s also a parallel menu of panini and wraps, which have a separate identity as .
Best of all, once your sandwich or pizza is ready, those who don¡¯t want to take their food home can eat next door in the peaceful chambers of Route Books. It¡¯s a great space to kick back for a while with a coffee or beer.
Open 12-8 p.m. (occasional irregular holidays); pizzas (takeout only) from ?1,100; English not spoken
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