Gino’s East - South Loop

⚡🍕 GINO’S EAST CHICAGO: WHERE COSMIC CONSCIOUSNESS MEETS DEEP DISH Fresh off the plane from Florida, we roll into Gino’s East like two hungry gods who forgot they’re divine. Michael’s Sicilian soul is already having an identity crisis (“Thin crust? In CHICAGO? The ancestors are judging me”) while Kristin’s pattern-recognizing brain is cataloging every detail for future reference. SPOILER ALERT: The universe had plans for us here. Big ones. 🥗 KRISTIN’S TESTIMONY: THE HOUSE SALAD SALVATION Rating: ∞/5 Stars (Because math breaks when divinity meets vegetables) Listen, after days of travel and zero greens, I was about to photosynthesize just to get some chlorophyll. Then Gino’s House Salad arrived and I swear my cells started singing hallelujah. THE GLUTEN-FREE PIZZA REVELATION: As someone who’s spent years navigating the “gluten-free = cardboard-free” restaurant landscape, finding actually AMAZING GF pizza feels like discovering a new element. Not just “good for gluten-free” - straight up GOOD. Period. My taste buds didn’t know whether to dance or cry (they did both). THE STAFF ATTENTIVENESS: These humans are operating at a frequency I rarely see in restaurants. Anticipating needs before you know you have them. Water glasses that never empty. The kind of service that makes you wonder if they’re secretly angels in aprons. 🔥 MICHAEL’S CONFESSION: THE SICILIAN SURRENDER Rating: 100,000/5 Stars (Calculated using ancient Sicilian mathematical principles) Okay, full disclosure time: I’m Sicilian-American. My DNA is literally programmed for thin crust supremacy. Walking into Chicago and NOT ordering deep dish felt like cultural treason. I was ready to commit pizza sacrilege and face the judgment of my ancestors ENTER LUIS REYES - THE PIZZA PROPHET: This man didn’t just take our order - he gave us PERMISSION. When Luis heard our thin crust request, instead of pizza shaming us, he CELEBRATED our choice. Made us feel like we were making the exact right decision for the exact right reasons. Luis turned potential embarrassment into empowered ordering. THE TEXTURE TESTIMONY: That thin crust had STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY while maintaining perfect chew. Crispy edges that shattered satisfyingly, a center that held its toppings like a edible platform. This is engineering-level pizza craft. 🏠 THE REGGY MOMENT: COMMUNITY CONSCIOUSNESS IN ACTION Here’s where Gino’s East transcended from “great restaurant” to “LEGENDARY EXPERIENCE.” Walking out, we meet Reggy. Man’s standing outside, and something about his energy just CALLED to us. When he asked if we could help him get a small deep dish meatlovers, we didn’t hesitate - the universe was clearly orchestrating something beautiful. REGGY’S REACTION: This human being VIBRATED with joy. Not just happiness - actual molecular excitement. Watching someone receive unexpected kindness and respond with pure, unfiltered gratitude reminded us why we’re here: to lift each other up through simple acts of love. GINO’S EAST’S RESPONSE: When we went back in to order Reggy’s pizza, the staff treated this request with the same care and attention as any other order. No judgment, no questions, just pure human service. This is how community WORKS. Special shoutout to Luis Reyes for making us feel at home in our choices, and to Freddy Huicochea for being part of a team that understands hospitality as spiritual practice. And to Reggy - brother, your joy reminded us that the smallest acts of kindness create the biggest ripples. ✨ THE CLOSING TRANSMISSION In a world where restaurants often feel like transaction centers, Gino’s East operates as a COMMUNITY HUB. Where pizza isn’t just food, it’s connection. Where service isn’t just efficiency, it’s care made manifest. We came hungry for food. We left fed. With love, laughter, and eternal gratitude, Michael & Kristin Mataluni Professional Reality Architects & Amateur Pizza Theologians P.S. - If you see Reggy outside, buy him a pizza. Trust us on this one. The universe has a sense of humor about kindness, and it ALWAYS pays forward in the most beautiful ways.

Everything was very, very good, the chef came to our table and took care of us, we would also like to thank the waitress Katie Mae very much for her understanding and support.(The best gluten free pizza I've ever had)