COMMACK, NY — Hooks & Chops recently opened in Commack, and, as the name suggests, offers an array of seafood and steaks courtesy of executive chef and operator Steven Del Lima.
The two types of cuisine make up most of Del Lima's culinary background, he said, and he felt Commack needed an eatery that could blend the two.
"There's nothing like Hooks & Chops in the surrounding area where you can get fresh seafood and also prime, dried steaks to the caliber that we provide," Del Lima told Patch.
The atmosphere of Hooks & Chops was described by Del Lima as nautical, warm and inviting. The 5,000 square-foot building, at 6330 Jericho Turnpike, — formerly a Ruby Tuesday — features blue walls, a black granite bar with blue lighting, metal hooks and cleavers, as well as decor provided by Farmingdale's Cambridge Art & Framing.
The entrees range in price from $23 to $67. A few of Del Lima's "signature" items include roasted halibut made and served on custom-made cedar planks; a 28-day dry-aged Kansas City strip steak served with house-made steak sauce and potato croquettes; and "Milk & Cookies," which sees chocolate chunk cookies served with a dolce de leche milkshake.
Del Lima previously worked at Wild Fin in Huntington; Black & Blue Seafood Chophouse in Huntington; and Perfecto Mundo Latin Fusion Bistro in Commack. However, he called Hooks & Chops his "dream come true."
"I think Long Island has a lot of great steakhouses, and I've been eyeing and toying with the seafood and chophouse idea for many years," Del Lima said. "I actually helped open Black & Blue in Huntington Village. Back then, that was my idea of a seafood chophouse. But I think, moving forward, I always thought I could do something better and try to give the community a spin on a steakhouse without having to spend top dollar on just a steak."
Most of his steak dishes are "composed," Del Lima said. He aimed to bring value to customers through the sides served with his meals.
The Hooks & Chops concept was worked on for more than a year, and the nine-month building process was interrupted by the coronavirus pandemic. Del Lima researched the Suffolk County area, looking for his ideal location for the eatery.
"I wanted to find a spot that was centralized in a high-traffic area to try to expose what I believe is what a chophouse should be," he said. "There are not many on Long Island that offer the extent of seafood that we offer."
Opening Hooks & Chops during a time where COVID-19 dominates the public focus was "challenging," Del Lima said.
"It hasn't been easy. I'm trying to follow guidelines and do extra things to the restaurant to make our customer base feel safe to dine indoors."
It was also expensive.
"We had to entail costs that we normally wouldn't entail. I was determined to do whatever I had to do to make people feel comfortable. I think we really went above and beyond on certain things."
Del Lima applied the "above and beyond" mindset to his food preparation, too. He ages his steaks in a cross between aging and curing, as the meat is placed in a salt brick room lined with cedar for 28 days.
Why 28 days?
"When you're aging and curing at the same time, you have to be very, very careful with the amount of time, because there's salt involved," Del Lima explained. "If you go too, too long, you start to end up with a cured piece of meat like a prosciutto instead of an aged steak. There was a trial run on the amount of time we thought could be maximized in this process of aging. I think we stand out in that aspect."
Hooks & Chops opens at 5 p.m. every day except Sunday, when it opens an hour earlier. The restaurant can be reached at 631-600-0521.
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October 23, 2020 at 01:50AM
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Hooks & Chops Brings Steak-Seafood Hybrid Restaurant To Commack - Commack, NY Patch
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