Longtime LI Chef, From Bellmore, Dies At 63

NORTH BELLMORE, NY — A longtime Long Island chef from Bellmore has died. John Brill passed away on Saturday night, Newsday reported.

He was 63.

Brill was executive chef at numerous restaurants over the years, including Primehouse Steak and Sushi in Garden City, which posted on its website: "Every now and then a person comes into your life and affects it in a way you couldn't have imagined. Chef John Brill was one of those people. The world was a richer place with him in it and we are truly poorer in his absence."

After working in Manhattan kitchens, Brill opened his first eatery on Long Island, Shenanigans, and later named Dr. Periwinkle's, in Oceanside, Newsday said.

In 1997, Brill took ownership of Chesapeake Bay in Long Beach. Work as a chef would be his focus into the 21st century, Newsday reported.