SALAMANCA — Locals and those passing through Salamanca will soon have a new place to purchase a gift for that special someone when the Bear Paw Gift Shop opens its doors for business next month.

John Marino and his sister, Geri, his business partner at Marino’s Pizzeria, have purchased the property next to the pizzeria at 231 Broad St. to open the gift shop and an outdoor dining area.

Marino, the president and owner of J-Con Parks, which operates the restaurants and stores at Allegany State Park (ASP), said they used to have a little shop in Ellicottville called Bear Paw Gift Shop and they’re keeping the name.

They will carry their popular, homemade Bear Paw Fudge that is made and packaged right at the pizzeria every week. Marino said the fudge is currently sold at the pizzeria and four different locations at ASP.

The gift shop will be another shopping option for area residents and visitors coming to the park and the casino. Merchandise will include Allegany State Park items and apparel as well as every-day, seasonal and holiday gifts. They will sell different merchandise not normally found at big box stores and items that have been selling well at the park.

Marino said the idea for expanding his business came about this past winter. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, no indoor dining was allowed, so they took the tables and chairs out of the dining room and developed a nice pickup area.

“We decided to sell some gifts there for people to browse while they were waiting for their food order,” he said. “A lot of the items were gift merchandise from the stores at ASP.”

Over winter, the Marinos started brainstorming about their outdoor pavilion that was full every day. They thought if they could purchase the house next door it would serve a couple of purposes, including expanding their outdoor seating.

“We went to a couple of Planning Board meetings and the board was very positive with us going forward to do something beneficial to the community and bringing another business into town,” he said. “So, we felt there was an opportunity to take the little gift area in our pizzeria and turn it into a larger scale next door.”

Marino said they are in the process of adding a handicapped accessible patio area with outdoor seating behind the newly purchased building. He said the approximate 40-foot by 50-foot space will have about 10 picnic tables with umbrellas bringing their total table number to 16. They’re also adding two 65-inch TVs for patrons to watch sporting events. The front of the building will have a 10-foot by 24-foot deck with a ramp.

“Eventually, the patio will be stamped concrete but for this year we’re putting gravel and limestone down,” he said. “We’ll give it a year or two, but we’ll make it a really nice outdoor facility.” In the future, they plan to have live music.

Marino said whatever food is currently on their menu will be available at the patio, but they have a new menu coming out next month. For now, people will order their food inside the pizzeria and their food will be brought out to them. In a couple months they may have servers come to the tables on Friday and Saturday nights to take orders. He said they have no plans to obtain a beer license right away.

The house’s interior is currently being renovated and transformed into the Bear Paw Gift Shop. Marino said it’s about 1,200 square feet, an ideal space with hardwood floors and a fireplace. It has a nice dining room and living room as well as an attached garage that he said will have additional retail space and probably be the coolest room in the building when it’s finished.

There will also be retail space in two bedrooms upstairs and in a room that was a bathroom. A large kitchen with a back door leads to the pavilion. Marino said no cooking will take place in the kitchen, but it’ll be handy and a great setup for an extra server area.

“We’re excited about the new gift shop and I think it’s going to complement the pizzeria, which has a very good traffic flow,” he said. “It’ll work well with our ice cream window, the pickup area and delivery service. We’re hoping to have the patio open in two to three weeks.”

The gift shop will be open year-round from approximately 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. For more information, call the pizzeria at (716) 945-5000.