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KARO’S BBQ
Downtown Crossing has the biggest concentration of food carts in the city, but finding something noteworthy is still tough. (The great Chilean sandwich maker Chacarero doesn’t count: it graduated from the food cart ranks years ago and now has two restaurants with indoor seating.) Among the ho-hum sausages, pretzels, dogs, and burritos, there’s one operator that stands out: Karo’s, a mighty mite of a stainless-steel cart in a plaza near the Old State House, at the junction of State and Court Streets.
Here, an Armenian family serves simple, juicy chicken breast kabobs (as the Armenians spell their skewers), given the perfect char on a gas grill and served with pita. The essential topper is a beautiful house-made dressing that you might mistake for a yogurt sauce but that is more like an eggless aioli, made from olive oil, garlic, lemon, vinegar, black pepper, cumin, and allspice. The chicken skewer ($4), which includes a half-dozen kabobs with pita and dressing, is tough to beat, though you can get also get it combined with Greek salad in pita or French bread (both $5.50), in a salad sans bread in three sizes (for $5, $5.75, or $6.50), or as a plate with rice pilaf ($5.50). Karo’s demonstrates the advantages of specialization: chicken kabob (and only chicken kabob) is what’s for lunch here, and you’ll be glad the genial proprietor has such a keen focus on it.
Approximate address: 1 Court Street, Boston
Hours: Monday through Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Nearby landmark: The Old State House is across the stre
