Iconic East End Chef To Help Give Jones Beach Eats 'Taste of Long Island'

NORTH FORK, NY - Sun and fun lovers at Jones Beach will soon be noshing on healthier fare.

The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation announced this week that it has selected Centerplate to operate food and beverage services beginning this summer at Jones Beach State Park.

And to top it off, the company is partnering with iconic East End chef Tom Schaudel, to consult on the menu.

A 1973 graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Schaudel has been the chef-owner and driving force behind many top East End restaurants, including the Petulant Wino, A Lure and A Mano on the North Fork, as well as many South Fork eateries. He also brought his talents to the Jedediah Hawkins Inn in Jamesport.

Schaudel, an inductee to the Long Island Restaurant Hall of Fame, combines classical technique with fresh local produce, fish and fare.

The famed chef also has his own line of wines, under the Tom Schaudel “Reserve” label, made on the North Fork.

“Jones Beach is such an important place for the community, and it is exciting to be able to contribute to its revitalization through a new emphasis on the hospitality experience,” said Schaudel. “I am looking forward to working with Centerplate and the Parks Service to ensure that a new generation of visitors to Jones Beach get a taste of what Long Island has to offer.”

The goal would be on upgrading offerings and creating new food venues, ”improving food quality and selection, increasing speed of service and enhancing convenience and overall hospitality in areas that are already busy anchors and the center of activity and foot traffic,” a release said.

Centerplate is slated to take over full food and beverage operations before Memorial Day weekend and in time for the busy summer season.

Visitors, the release said, can soon experience Taste NY and Jones Beach specific brands, themed service environments as well as signature concepts and menu items available only at Jones Beach.

“The expansion of overall hospitality is a signature focal point of Governor Cuomo’s Jones Beach Revitalization Plan,” said State Parks Commissioner Rose Harvey. “Beachgoers can now expect more healthy choices, locally sourced New York foods and ethnic varieties which will be more accessible in more places. This partnership with Centerplate is the perfect side dish to Governor Cuomo’s broad plan to revitalize Jones Beach, which includes diversifying food options, adding more recreational opportunities and repurposing underutilized space.”

Governor Cuomo’s Jones Beach Revitalization Plan, in addition to expanding food and recreational opportunities, will focus on restoring historic and aesthetic grandeur, strengthening storm resiliency, and streamlining park entry, all of which will improve economic development and increase visitation to the park. The plan will primarily be funded through the NY Parks 2020 plan.

In a past Patch interview, Schaudel said he’s devoted three quarters of his life to the restaurant business. He started out as a dishwasher as a teenager and moved up through the ranks the hard way – in the nitty-gritty restaurant kitchens of his early years.

Even after graduating from the Culinary Institute of America, his restaurant experiences continued to be “unglamorous for the first 30 years.” Schaudel says for him, being a chef is “like a calling.” He thrives on the hard work, long hours and “insanity” of restaurant life.

Interestingly, it wasn’t until the early 1980s that chefs became celebrities in their own right. Now, with “reality” cooking shows on television, chefs have achieved something of a rock star status. Schaudel thinks anything that encourages people to cook is a good thing. He has done numerous cooking demos here on the East End, and he is not just a cook. His book “Playing With Fire” and the numerous restaurants he has opened attest to his wide range of talents, which include actually being a “rock star.” He plays guitar in his own rock band.

His favorite restaurant was the Downtown Grill which he opened in Montauk in the 1980s. He loved living in Montauk and the challenge of creating a gourmet restaurant in a place that was far from being a food mecca. As a self-proclaimed “fish guy,” Montauk was his kind of place.

He still feels that fish dishes are his strong suit. Two of his most popular “signature” dishes are a Chilean sea bass with lobster fricasee and smoked tomato relish, and a whole roasted sea bass with scallop ceviche of chili, coconut and lime.

His hero is John Ross, the North Fork chef who was doing the local/seasonal thing long before anyone else on the East Coast; his house wines are his own blends made by Paumanok under his own proprietary label.

While many of this chef’s dishes are original and delicious, he is not just a creative aesthete. Schaudel has an unusual combination of good instincts and good business sense that his fans say has put him in the forefront of the restaurant business. He listens to his customers, many agree, has a great sense of humor and has a reputation for excellence across Long Island.