CityCentre's newest dining destination debuts this week. Daily Gather will open for lunch, dinner, and weekend brunch this Tuesday, January 11.
First announced last year, Daily Gather is the newest concept from Five 12 Restaurant Concepts, best known as the parent company of farm-to-table neighborhood restaurant Dish Society. To bring the project to fruition, Five 12 founder and CEO Aaron Lyons recruited Brandi Key, the veteran Houston chef best known for her lengthy time with Clark Cooper Concepts where she opened restaurants such as Coppa Osteria, Punk's Simple Southern Food, and SaltAir Seafood Kitchen.
Key's menu draws on all of those experiences and more, incorporating Italian, Southern, Mexican, Vietnamese, and other influences. As at Dish Society, dishes are made with locally sourced ingredients; purveyors include Atkinson Farms, 44 Farms, Kraftsmen Baking, Houston Dairymaids, and Blue Horizon Seafood. Menus are expected to evolve seasonally.
Dinner at Daily Gather begins with a range of shareable items that range from coconut tuna aguachile and chilled shrimp to deviled eggs, elote cornbread, and fried calamari. Vegetarians will want to consider items such as the citrus avocado with burrata, poblano guacamole, and truffled mushroom focaccia.
A tidy list of entrees includes rotisserie chicken with cauliflower-kohlrabi mash, spinach-flavored spaghetti with garlic tomato sauce, and braised short rib with Parisian gnocchi. Desserts, created by White Elm Cafe pastry chef Jamie Orlacchio, include bananas Foster banana pudding, apple and pecan cobbler, and a chocolate chip skillet cookie.
The lunch menu is built around sandwiches and salads like a brisket French dip, double-patty cheeseburger, crunchy noodle salad, and a club made with rotisserie chicken, bacon, and ham. Boards built around pastries, smoked salmon, or classic American breakfast favorites (eggs, bacon, sausage, French toast, etc) make brunch a shareable experience.
A selection of wines, beers, cocktails, juices, and more offer plenty of pairing options at all hours of the day. Overall, the concept is design to bring people together around a shared love of food.
"We don't ever really start out where we think we're going to be, but after working through all the pieces, the concept evolves and suddenly, we know, okay, this is Daily Gather,” Key said in a statement. “It makes sense, especially now. We’re bringing back the art of hospitality, bringing back people around a dining table. People are craving it. They want that time out. Having fun things to share like this is perfect for the time, the season, and the clientele that's coming in."
Local firm Gin Design Group led the transformation of the former International Smoke space (800 Sorella Court, Ste. 940) into Daily Gather. The space features a brass back bar, artisan tiles, and local artwork. In total, Daily Gather seats 150 people inside and 100 more on a spacious patio that looks onto CityCentre's green space.
“What I’m most excited about is seeing people in the space and seeing it come to life,” Lyons said. “You make a lot of assumptions when you’re doing these things. Now, it’s time to see if it works out.”
Daily Gather is now open in CityCentre.
