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Chef Charles Drayton is no stranger to feeding the Patchogue community. In fact, he has received high acclaim for taking good care of appetites across Long Island through his Patchogue-based Exquisite Catering Cuisine business.
But the community wanted more.
“They asked me to have a place here to have my food on a regular basis, instead of just for catering,” he said. “After a year of negotiation with the previous business owner, I was finally able to land a place.”
Drayton opened ECC Eatery at 140 River Ave. in Patchogue, serving breakfast and lunch, in mid-February. It replaced The Artisan.
“We’re here for the community. We’re here to listen to what they want. Yes, we’re doing breakfast, but with Chef Drayton’s twist,” he said. “We add a little extra element to our meals. Today we made a Belgian waffle with a blueberry and lemon mascarpone cream. This afternoon’s mac and cheese special is with bacon & bourbon.”
In Drayton’s eyes, ECC Eatery is your new go-to neighborhood spot for a fresh, modern twist on classic comfort food with an affordable menu without sacrificing quality.
It’s intended to be a great spot for a hearty breakfast or a satisfying lunch to fuel the afternoon. The relaxed, yet stylish, ambiance offers a cozy and welcoming environment.
Many options, great prices
“The Eatery is on the street front, and from the back of the building, we’re still pumping out catering all over Greater Long Island, as well as delivering healthy meals every Sunday and Monday through Exquisite Healthy Eats,” he said.
The Eatery, which offers plentiful breakfast and lunch options, is managing to keep prices affordable with many choices around the $10 mark, despite rising costs.
ECC Eatery is a new concept to Drayton. He’s entering his 25th year in the food industry, most recently focusing on his catering business, which serves clients ranging from corporate events to intimate private chef dinners in clients’ homes and even yachts.
“I go to someone’s home and we do three or more courses and I bring everything — the china, pots and pans. We decorate the dining room table and we cook three or more courses,” Drayton explained. “I’m from the fine dining world. I do Top Chef type of food.”
He offers many traditional meals, but with his Chef Drayton twist.
“We’re introducing the community to having breakfast sandwiches, not on the traditional kaiser, but on focaccia bread. It’s a tremendous eating experience! We’re asking them to try something different,” he said.
Although, since you can’t screw around with many Long Islanders’ bacon, egg and cheese sandwich staple, he does offer a traditional kaiser roll.
Vegan dishes, Friday Lent options
Running with his experience in healthy meals, the Eatery offers many healthy, vegan and vegetarian options, including a breakfast bowl and a grain bowl. He’s currently running a Lent special, providing a bevy of non-meat menu options on Fridays.
“You choose your grain of complex carbohydrates, which is brown rice, barrow, quinoa, barley, and you add a meat to it if you choose to. Chicken steak, crispy chicken, we’re adding in a crispy tofu and pulled mushrooms,” he explained. “And as a lunch version, we have the Oh Yeah sandwich which has roasted zucchini, artichokes, banana peppers, hummus spread, and the cold mushrooms.”
For the meat eaters, specialties include a cheddar jack bacon jam burger or a garlic parmesan steak sandwich.
Open every day
Chef Drayton is at the Eatery daily. Hours are 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday and 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The dining room holds 16, and so far is doing a robust take-out business.
And in his free time, he also does restaurant and bar consulting.
“We help bars and restaurants increase their profit margins. I help them recreate the menus and add some creativity to some of their bland menus,” he said.
Drayton also airs his own radio show every Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. on LI News Radio 103.9 FM. While topics naturally always include food, he also speaks on hospitality, running a business and recently, the egg crisis, which has been affecting his new store.
“Because of the climbing prices, you either pass on an increase to the consumer or you eat some loss. Most pass on those increases, but we’re not,” Drayton said.
Eatery photo tour
