Out & About With Linda – April 2025
Call me sentimental this month! As I write this column, my background music is from Disney’s “Tarzan.” I loved the songs when Gabe was young especially the one the mother sings about having the son (aka Tarzan) in her heart forever.
Anyway, to follow this month’s sentimental journey, I went to the Bristol Riverside Theatre to see “Victor Trevino, The Ultimate Elvis Experience.” Growing up, my mother LOVED Elvis. I remember watching him perform on television and my mother would swoon at his gyrations and I would get almost-nauseous. But my oh my, how times have changed. Is it age or what?! I can definitely appreciate her swooning now, and even do a bit of it myself when I hear Elvis’ warm, velvet voice!!!
Victor Trevino was superb. He worked this crowd to perfection, just like Elvis throwing his scarf out to his adoring fans, teddy bears to out-reached arms (Believe it or not I CAUGHT one of those bears.) and the required hugs and kisses to front row wor- shippers. What great fun. When this gentleman returns to Bristol, don’t miss him. His music will capture your heart and soul. His warm affection for the real King of Pop will sweep you away in time down to his glitzy jumpsuit he wore during his Las Vegas performance. Remember those?!!!
The theatre has undergone a wonderful facelift. Seats are wider making for very comfortable seating. And each seat has a holder for liquid refreshment strategically placed so as not to interfere with crossed legs or hand holding! LOL!! Yeh, I was impressed with the cosmetic tweaks. The Bristol Theatre is one of our area’s foremost entertainment centers and the facility as it is freshened up serves the community well. This is a viewer friendly theatre surrounded by some terrific restaurants in Bristol, of varied price points, and parking that is accessible. The Bristol Riverside Theatre should be a regular on everyone’s “calendar of events.” I recommend it!
So, as I was taking notes before “Elvis” hit the stage I struck up a conversation with the woman sitting next to me. If you don’t know this yet, I’m a big believer in things happening by “destiny.” Anyway, Sue Allen, her husband Kevin and son, Josh, sat next to me. Turns out they are neighbors in Hatboro AND they were familiar with the Uptight Suburbanite. (That always gives me chills.) This was their first time at BRT. We struck up a conversation and she told me her brother Jim Harvey owns Gallo’s Seafood. Yup! That “Gallo’s” on Roosevelt Boulevard. So funny! Someone above was talking to me.!!
I didn’t realize that Gallo’s was still a happening place. I would go there with my late husband, Allen and his parents. They lived at “C” and the Boulevard, and Gallo’s was a regular haunt for fish. I hadn’t been there in years. Again, I took this as a sign. Sentiment and nostalgia was taking me Out & About this month. I mentioned to Sue that I would visit Gallo’s and let the (fish &) chips fall where they may!
Off to Gallo’s last week with my sister. A weekend afternoon, the parking lot was packed. I was surprised. We entered the restaurant feeling the hustle and bustle of a hungry lunch crowd. Escorted to a table we chatted briefly with our server, Elyssa. I told her, like I always do, that we were doing a tasting and would be ordering what would appear to be a lot of food. (It’s more of a cover-up for all the dishes that we order. Otherwise I feel a bit embarrassed surrounded by so much food.) I asked if the owner was around. Yes. I gave her my card to give to him and said I’d see him before we left the restaurant. Two minutes later Jim Harvey appeared. I’m not reluctant to say, this is the first time a restaurant owner has welcomed me so. Clearly, it’s Jim’s warm hello’s to everyone coming in that keeps Gallo’s alive and thriving.
He insisted on giving me the grand tour of the restaurant. Through the kitchens, meeting the head chef, Bob DeLange (who is also his son-in-law), checking out their take-out store, introducing me to his adjacent sit-down Burger Bar and finally to their pastry area. I needed the running shoes I was wearing!! I delighted in his pride of operation and staffing. Two private parties were engaged and as the restaurant was filling up, I knew this doesn’t happen without a lot of work and energy.
Finally the grand tour was over and I was returned to our table. It was time to eat. Yum! We ordered a fried fish platter, Macaroni & Cheese with Shrimp, the “Smoke House” Burger, an order of Sweet Potato fries and of course, dessert. Jim insisted we order the Apple Cobbler and Cheesecake.
We don’t normally order fried food but, I felt a fish place usually specializes in something fried. The platter included the most delicious shrimp, a hefty crab cake minus the filling, and another prepared fish. Get anything fried here. It’s not a greasy “fried.” It’s more like a baked “fried.” Michele adored the shrimp. Big, split, meaty hit the spot. The platter included fried eggplant which again, was less fried and more baked. Thick and moist. The sweet potato fries were not at all dried as they are sometimes. We enjoyed them.
The Mac & Cheese with Shrimp was wonderful. This is a dish that can be shared among two or three people. The pasta was a circular pasta, not your usual macaroni pasta. It was filled with shrimp. And the hamburger OMG! We each had a quarter. The rest went home. Juicy, smoke house flavors, cooked to perfection. It came with Gallo’s special fries. They passed the French Fry
