Macubana offers ‘comfort food’ at new Campustown location

Spotlight Macubana offers ‘comfort food’ at new Campustown location

By Kylee Mullen Gannett

What started as a food cart on the corner of Chamberlain Street and Stanton Avenue has grown much bigger, as Macubana cel ebrates a successful beginning in its recently-opened restaurant.

The brick-and-mortar business, at 116 Welch Ave., opened Sept. 29, 2019, with the well-known late-night food cart and “Macu-Truck” both continuing to operate throughout the community.

According to co-owner Claudio Gianello, whether cus tomers satisfy their appetites at the new restaurant or dine on the road, the goal always has been, and always will be, the same.

“Our goal is to make sure our food is incredibly good, and there’s no excuses for it being just OK,” Gianello said. “We try to give a great service, and quality is the most important. Reputation relies a lot on word-of-mouth, so we really enforce quality, service, cleanliness, and that kind of thing.”

Gianello, who also owns Campustown’s Cafe Beaude laire, said Macubana first started in 2014 when his kitchen assistant, Herbert Dardano, came forward with an idea to open a food truck serving Cuban sandwiches. The idea, he said, was inspired by the movie “Chef,” in which a man restores a food truck and travels the country serving Cuban cuisine and yuca fries.

“(Herbert) said ‘I might want to do something like that, let’s give it a try.’ So we started with the food cart,” said Gianello, who also said Macubana started as a part of Cafe Beaudelaire rather than its own business. That changed when Macubana started to see increased popularity, and the partners decided to “make a brand out of it.” They started shopping for a bigger truck to meet its growing demand. They found, and restored, a 1955 International Metro in Maryland, which they began to serve food out of on Iowa State University’s campus. Nick Bergen, manager at Macubana who first joined the team in January 2015, said it was at that point the business, which “started as a side project,” began to gain a lot more traction.

“We started to get a lot more people, and it was getting really popular,” Bergen said.

With a larger menu, both a food cart and truck serving food throughout Ames, and a catering service on the side, it was time for Macubana to find its own home, Gianello said. That home was found after Arcadia Cafe closed its doors last year.

According to Bergen, they added a cooler with 20 beer lines, a full bar, new lighting and shelving. They also brought in a local artist, Jordan Zantow, to create murals

The brick-and-mortar Macubana location, at 116 Welch Ave., opened Sept. 29. The well-known late-night food cart and “Macu-Truck” both continuing to operate throughout the community. Photos by Kylee Mullen/Gannett

that “tell the story of Macubana.” Then they were ready to start serving both Ames residents and ISU students. The restaurant now serves “Mac Attack,” Cubano sandwiches, Brazilian burgers, gyros, empanadas, Belgian fries and more Monday through Sunday. It is also open late most nights, closing at midnight on Monday and Tuesday and at 1:30 a.m. Thursday through Saturday. Bergen said, “It’s comfort food,” and he hopes Macu bana can be “a home away from ho me” for ISU students. “Growing up, you eat a lot of grilled cheese and mac and cheese, and it’s that kind of thing where you can sit down and feel that little bit of home,” Bergen said. “I just hope Macubana can become a part of Campustown, a part of the life down here. I think that’s what any busi ness wants to do, to become a place everybody knows.” And while the first few months have seen success, Gianello said the business is not done growing. They recently purchased another food truck, which they hope to start operating by next summer.

The brick-andmortar Macu bana location, at 116 Welch Ave., opened Sept. 29. The well-known late-night food cart and “Macu-Truck” both continu ing to operate throughout the community. Photos by Kylee Mullen/Gannett