Gallo team shifts to Gather for fall/winter season

Gather to reopen to public; Gallo to continue serving banquets & events before restarting in warmer weather

By Joshua Maloni

GM/Managing Editor

Gallo Coal Fire Kitchen was a hot place to be over the summer, serving as a site for great food, outdoor get-togethers and even cornhole leagues.

But, as you can see out your window, summer is over – and restaurant owner Michael Hibbard is adjusting accordingly.

“Our plan with Gallo now, this season, is to have it as more of a seasonal place, just because the patio itself and the overall vibe in there is more of a summer vibe,” he said Tuesday. Gallo went on winter break Oct. 11.

Hibbard and his team will continue serving patrons at Gallo’s sister site, at 453 Center St.

“We're moving our full-time staff over to Gather and getting that place open, just because we feel like that's more of a winter place for us,” he said. “And that's the overall reception from a lot of people that we've talked to in the past is it was a great, cozy, warm atmosphere for people to kind of hang out in the fall and winter months.

“Gallo itself is still open, but it's only open for private events and banquets.”

Gather had a private preview event last Friday and was continuing in that mode earlier this week. It officially reopens to the public this Friday, Oct. 24.

“We're really excited about the chef (Cornell Williams) that we had hired at Gallo in the beginning of the summer,” Hibbard said. “He's fully taken control of all of our banquets, and our general manager (Melissa Walker), as well. They actually had come up with this game plan to do that. So, now, the chef himself can kind of focus on his strengths over at Gather, with his past experience at places in Buffalo, and create a menu over there that's affordable for families. You have anything from burgers all the way up to steaks. We have just a really wide range of products on the menu.”

Dining hours are 4-10 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, with the bar serving until 11 p.m.

Once the warm weather returns next spring, Gallo will reopen at the corner of Center and North Fourth streets.

Gather may continue on at that point, too.

“We'll see how this environment is, back for 2026, and then that's when we'll really ultimately make that decision on what to do, whether we further Gather – which, that's kind of the game plan is to keep that running, and having more staff, because we always bulk up for the summer anyways; and having two operational. But it all hinges on what happens” this offseason, Hibbard said.