Jewel, Tom Schaudel's latest restaurant to hit the Long Island culinary scene, opens Tuesday night in Melville.
The proprietor of Mattituck's , Southold's , and Syosset's , Schaudel likens his newest restaurant, located within the Rubie Corporate Plaza on Route 110, to "Vegas - it's out of control."
The cuisine, Schaudel describes as "contemporary American food that doesn't lean heavily on any particular type of cuisine." While Cool Fish and A Lure lean on the aquatic, and a Mano resembles a Tuscan-style sotteria, Schaudel said, Jewel is meant to be "a restaurant by Long Islanders, for Long Islanders."
While he cedes the "farm-to-table" label has become a bit worn out, he said much of the ingredients will come from Cutchogue's Satur Farms and will credit the restaurant for its fresh food. And of 275 wines on the restaurant's list, roughly 130 will represent Long Island.
A quote from Charles Massoud decorates the wall: "Winemaking is less of an art and more of a partnership between the winemaker and Mother Nature ... and unfortunately she's the senior partner."
Schaudel said plans for Jewel have been in the works for about two years. His business partner, Mark Beige, owns the building in which the restaurant is located, and Jewel's atmosphere is largely influenced by its surroundings.
"The building is an incredible, beautiful build-out," he said. "The restaurant had to match up to that. So we pulled out all the stops."
A .pdf of the menu and virtual tour of the restaurant are attached.
