Reeling In a Real Sense of Community – Relish and the Reel Kitchen

What’s Cookin’? – Smithtown

By Nancy Vallarella 

Photos by Courtney Oates

Reeling In a Real Sense of Community – Relish and the Reel Kitchen

The proprietors of Relish in Kings Park, Chef Steve Cardello and Donny Brown, have once again invested in yet another business within the town in which they live.  Early in 2015, the two business partners took ownership of Café Siena in Saint Catherine’s of Siena Hospital and have followed that up with Reel Kitchen. Located at 112 Main Street, Kings Park it is coincidently one-hundred-twelve steps from their original venture, Relish.

A rising tide lifts all boats….  It has been five years since Relish opened its doors. Today, there is no doubt that Cardello and Brown have knocked it out of the park with their food, family, and life concept serving surprisingly upscale comfort food using the finest local ingredients available. 

It is common to hear customers talk about Relish as if it is theirs. The staff is caring, and you walk away feeling something happened for you and not to you. Having been present for a Staff “Pre-meal”, it is easy to understand where the nurturing and nourishing are coming from.

Chef/Proprietor Steve Cardello guides the Relish serving staff prior to service by presenting the specials menu. This narrative includes where the ingredients were sourced. On this day, the specials menu consisted of one soup, two appetizers, five entrees and three desserts. Local ingredients included vegetables from Organics Today in West Islip and Atlantic cod caught less than 24 hours before service. 

Everyone was given a fork and dove in each item comparing notes and asking questions. Steve remained to address all of the staff’s questions and wrapped up the meal by thanking the staff for their part in making Relish one of Newsday’s 2015 - 10 Best Cheap Eats restaurants on L.I. 

At Reel Kitchen you can experience the same ethic in transparency; passion, talent, hard work and community. The store has been totally transformed from the former fish market (Jesse James Fish Market). The fish is chemical and preservative free. For those who are challenged when it comes to cooking fish…There is a wall full of take-out menu options and expert fish cooking tips from accomplished chefs. Reel Kitchen is proving to be an atypical fish market.

With great pride and joy, co-owner Donny Brown recounts the Reel Kitchen’s renovation. Reclaiming brick from an early 1900’s Brooklyn Brownstone that veneer the walls to having to take out the storefront’s large glass window to accommodate the custom stainless steel cases.  All the labors of love in between were well worth it.  Exposed ceilings, Sycamore counter top and the huge blackboard menu with art by Joanna Reiss give the space a hip downtown vibe. 

Service in Reel Kitchen is more of a down-home vibe. The friendly staff is informed and able to provide information on the products sold. Locally acclaimed and CIA trained chefs work the exposed kitchen and are there to advise customers on take-out items, give raw product cooking advise, or just say hello.

The fish products are irresistible. Both raw and prepared scream fresh.  Raw fish products and prices vary seasonally. There are real deals at Reel Kitchen. - Lunch specials for $10 plus $1 for fresh lemonade. Check out Reel Kitchen’s daily Blackboard, Crabby Monday, and Taco Tuesday Specials.  

There is limited indoor and outdoor seating at Reel Kitchen but plenty of fresh fish options and friendly conversation.  

Op Ed - Town Council Job Has No Impact On National Or Foreign Policy

To the residents of Smithtown; I am applying for the job of Town Councilman, which is selected through the vote on November 3, 2015.

From the Smithtownny.gov website:“Together with the Supervisor, the Town Council enacts ordinances, adopts a budget, manages personnel matters, oversees town-wide planning and zoning, establishes recreation areas, and participates in town meetings. Elected to four-year terms by voters from the entire town, each of the four council members serves as a liaison to various departments under the townʼs jurisdiction.”

The position of Town Council is considered a part time position. It has no impact on national policy or foreign matters. It cannot overrule the Supreme Court or the President of the United States. The decisions made by the Town Council impact the way your town looks, operates, interacts with other local communities and it paves the way for future generations.

My qualifications are as follows: For the past 25 years I have been in the environmental remediation field. I’ve cleaned chemical and petroleum impacted sites, from single-family homes to projects as large as ocean going oil tanker spills. I’ve reclaimed wetlands, tested air quality, performed soils and water evaluations and I have prepared documents on site assessments. I am knowledgeable about our unique sub surface conditions, our groundwater and drinking water situations. For the past 7 years I have owned my own environmental consulting business. Prior to the environmental industry I spent a number of years in the logistics and transportation fields. Through that, I became familiar with the way freight moves onto and off Long Island. I am very aware of the changing demographics of Long Island industry.

Part of being a business owner is creating and implementing budgets, and managing personnel. As a business owner I cannot simply raise prices when I need additional revenue. I need to be creative and think “outside of the box”.

As a Smithtown resident I am disappointed every time I see one of my favorite local retail stores close. As a resident of Long Island I am concerned about the quality of our drinking water and our surrounding wetlands and beaches. As a father I am disappointed that my four adult children cannot find affordable housing, the type of jobs for which they were educated and the type of community they desire.

I encourage you to simply go on line to follow all the prospective candidates careers. A very simple “Like” on everyone’s Facebook account will likely give you more information than any palm cards or mailers. I encourage you to learn about the candidates to make an informed choice.

Finally, none of this does any good if everyone stays home on Election Day. Of the roughly 82,000 registered voters in Smithtown (which doesn’t include the nearly 18,000 that are not even registered), roughlt 18,000 vote every year. That leaves approximately 64,000 people each year that stay at home. Of the 18,000 people that vote each year, 12,000 vote religiously for one party and the remaining 6,000 for the other. As a result we get the same thing year after year. The reality is that with so few people voting, your vote does mean much more than you could possibly think. Please do the research this year. Then, after you have made your intelligent choice, please go to the voting booths on November 3. Don’t let chilly temperatures, or a rainy day or working overtime factor into allowing the town to move on without you having participated.

The residents of Smithtown are vibrant, hard-working individuals. They deserve a Smithtown that reflects this. This year can be the start of bringing Smithtown into the 21st century. 

Larry Vetter

Democratic candidate for Smithtown Town Council

Kings Park's Maddie Canonico Receives Presidential Volunteer Service Award

 Majority Leader Flanagan Welcomes Presidential Volunteer Service Award Winner To Office

Maddie Canonico with NYS Senator John FlanaganSenate Majority Leader John Flanagan (2nd Senate District) recently had the honor of welcoming young Maddie Canonico of Kings Park to his Smithtown office to present her with the Presidential Volunteer Service Award. Maddie received the honor in recognition of her over 80 hours of volunteer service at the Sweetbriar Nature Center where she helped care for birds, bunnies, chinchillas and other animals.

The federal award was created to recognize the valuable contributions that volunteers make and to inspire others to engage in volunteer service.

“Congratulations to Maddie on her great work for a great organization and for receiving this impressive award.  I thank her for allowing me to be part of this special event and for her volunteer work.  She is a great example for all of her classmates, friends and our community,” stated Senator Flanagan.

Ed Wehrheim And Lisa Inzerillo Top Vote Getters In Republican Primary

With all 92 Smithtown Districts reporting in, Republican voters have chosen Edward Wehrheim and Lisa Inzerillo to represent them in November’s Town Council race.

Ed Wehrheim Lisa InzerilloEdward Wehrheim 1,673 votes  (40.49 %)   Lisa Inzerillo 1,292 votes (31.27%) and Robert Creighton 1,149 (27.81%)  There were 17 write-in votes. Absentee ballots have not yet been counted.

ARE YOU REPUBLICAN? GET OUT AND VOTE

Voters in today’s Republican primary have two incumbents Edward Wehrheim and Robert Creighton and one challenger Lisa Inzerillo to chose from. Today’s vote will see the two highest vote getters move on to the November election for Smithtown Town Council.  

The primary has been particularly hard fought giving the Democrats a lot of ammunition for the November election. But this is not November, it is a primary and it is September, so Republican voters need to think about what they want in a Town Council member. 

The literature that has been mailed to primary voters is pretty telling. Creighton and Wehrheim are a team. Inzerillo is on her own but has the support of Patrick Vecchio. Apparently, mounting a challenge makes you a persona non grata, unwelcome, villainized and labeled an insurgent. The Republicans have a long history of insurgency, Mr. Creighton ousting Ms. Grey and challenging Patrick Vecchio for Supervisor. Legislator Rob Trotta won a primary for his right to run on the Republican line for his seat in the Suffolk County Legislature. Mr. Wehrheim has been in a primary in every election.

Since there have been no debates voters need to think about the records of the candidates.

Challenger Lisa Inzerillo has lived in Smithtown since 2002. She is married and has three children. Lisa has a BA degree in Marketing and Advertising which she received from St. Johns University.  She owns a small business and is a community activist, and has been a Republican since registering to vote. Lisa spent much of her life in Queens before moving to Kings Park. The kitchen table at her home is where the Old Northport and Lawrence Roads Task Force was created, of which she is a founding member. 

The Task Force was created to answer the very real issues families living near Lawrence Rd and Old Northport Rd. were forced to deal with. Illegal activities that were creating health and quality of life problems for real people. The problems were created and festered for many years. No one in government seemed able to control the illegal mining, dumping, storage etc.. The task force and other community groups worked together forcing Smithtown to deal with the problems. They never let up and they were not shy with their criticism of the Town and its elected officials. When asked if she would be a loyal follower of Supervisor Vecchio’s, Lisa makes it clear how much respect she has for him; however, she quickly points out that she has stood up to him before and apparently it worked.

Robert Creighton has served on the Smithtown Town Board since 2008. Bob Creighton is a life long resident of Smithtown. He is married and has adult children and grandchildren. Mr. Creighton served in the US Armed Forces and has a long career in law enforcement serving a brief stint as Suffolk County Police Commissioner. After retiring from the police force Mr. Creighton went into security consulting operating his own security company. Mr. Creighton was a registered Conservative before changing his party affiliation in 2012. 

Mr. Creighton ran for office in 2007 to bring peace and civility to the Smithtown Town Board. It hasn’t been easy. Mr. Creighton looked for ways to improve the appearance of the Town and to raise tax revenue. Mr. Creighton made it his mission to rid the town of blighted commercial areas. The abandoned gas station on the corner of Harned Rd. and Jericho has transformed into a thriving gas station and convenience store, but it was controversial and heavily contested by many. The issue was divisive.  Mr. Creighton has proposed storing storm damaged motor vehicles in Smithtown to generate revenue for the town.  He was seen as a supporter of the a catering facility at Whisper Vineyard on Edgewood Avenue in Smithtown and as a supporter of the Uplands project ( four story progressive single family/ sr/ assisted living housing development) on a pristine privately owned property in Kings Park. Both are very controversial projects. More recent proposals include installing commissioners to oversee the activities of town departments and a proposal creating a $9 minimum wage for town employees.

Edward Wehrheim first joined the Town Board in 2003. Ed was appointed to fill the seat of Mike Fitzpatrick who was elected to the NY State Assembly. Mr. Wehrheim retired as director of the parks department, the department he worked for in his youth and after returning from his military service.  Mr. Wehrheim is a lifelong resident of Kings Park and served in the US Navy during Viet Nam. He is married and has two children. 

Mr. Wehrheim, once considered Supervisor Vecchio’s right hand, has separated himself from the Supervisor and has been working with Councilman Creighton to establish a $9 minimum wage for town employees. He along with Creighton support the idea of commissioners to oversee town departments. He supports redevelopment of blighted sites seeing it as an opportunity to both improve the appearance of the town and to raise tax revenue. Mr. Wehrheim supports the recent Suffolk County IDA proposal to offer tax relief for the company purchasing Siena Village. Over the years Mr. Wehrheim has been involved with projects that include the renovation at the Smith Haven Mall, Shop Rite in Commack, Assisted Living Facility on 25 A in Smithtown as well as the future sports complex in Kings Park.