EXCLUSIVE Wonder, Scarsdale’s first food hall, opens

BY Deborah Skolnik

The chain, which offers famous chefs’ and restaurants’ signature dishes under one roof, is up and running—and hoping you’ll give them a try.

Wonder bred  The birth of a new Scarsdale restaurant is always exciting, but this is the birth of new kind of Scarsdale restaurant.

For months, Scarsdale residents have wondered about Wonder, the restaurant that was poised to open in the space formerly occupied by Boston Market on Central Avenue. Its tagline, “A New Kind of Food Hall,” hinted at an entirely novel dining concept. The eatery officially launched on September 26th, and now it’s time to discover exactly what it offers. In true Insider fashion, we tracked down Jason Rusk, EVP of Restaurant Operations at Wonder, to get the scoop.

Mix-and-match restaurant-dish options

The Wonder experience is like visiting or ordering takeout from several hot restaurants all at once. “We feature [dishes from] some of the world’s best chefs, including Bobby Flay, Jose Andres, Nancy Silverton, Marcus Samuelsson, and more, along with award-winning restaurants from across the country, including Tejas Barbeque and Di Fara Pizza,” Rusk said. “[We are] enabling customers to experience any combination of these chefs and restaurants all together in one order for the first time…pioneering a new category of ‘fast fine’ dining.”

Don’t fear you’ll get pale imitations of the signature dishes on the menu, Rush insisted. “At Wonder, we work very closely with our chef partners over many months and sometimes years to perfect our dishes. Nothing goes on the menu without chef approval, and we hold ourselves to incredibly high standards,” he explained. “When you order a Bobby Flay steak or a lobster roll from JJ Johnson, know that you’re getting a dish that has been meticulously researched, tested and endorsed by some of the world’s top chefs.”

Diverse delivery

Wonder concentrates on customers who’d like to eat at home: “Everything is made to order at a Wonder storefront and delivered to your door in under thirty minutes, allowing [us] to bring an elevated, curated dining experience to you every time,” Rusk explained, adding, “Each item [is prepared] in a sequenced fashion, so that they finish simultaneously and can be delivered to the customer together.”

Think of all the harmony this can preserve: If members of your family crave different cuisines, no one will be forced to resentfully cede their dreams of pizza to the majority BBQ vote (does Wonder do presidential elections?). Additional features include seamless order tracking and personalized recommendations based on user preferences. Takeout is also available, and there is a lovely dine-in section in the restaurant as well.

Take a seat  Wonder's pleasant dine-in area.

An ever-evolving menu

Unlike many other restaurants, Wonder’s menu doesn’t remain static. “While we have a core roster of restaurants that most locations offer, we do personalize each location based on community preferences. So, for example, if we find that a community loves Italian food, but isn’t a fan of seafood, we are able to easily adapt and offer more of what the community wants,” Rusk shared. “Additionally, we are constantly adding new restaurants and chef partners, so the menu will continue to expand and evolve.”

Speaking of evolution, Scarsdalians may remember the Wonder truck of several years ago, which would prepare your order right in front of your home. People seemed obsessed with it, but then it suddenly disappeared. Why didn’t Wonder keep on truckin’? Rusk offers an explanation. “The trucks were very successful, but our founder, Marc Lore, saw an opportunity to provide even more options to our customers through a brick-and-mortar approach. Rather than the one or two cuisine options provided in each truck, we’re now able to provide thirty-plus restaurant options that customers can choose among.”

Dreams of the future

Rusk says Scarsdale has warmly received Wonder. “We’re thankful to the community for welcoming us with open arms,” he said. The chain also launched a location in Larchmont over the summer, and plans to open another in West Harrison later this fall.

“We hope that our newest location in Scarsdale will offer local families and individuals unprecedented convenience, personalization, and great quality food,” Rusk said. “With today’s hectic schedules and varying preferences, consumers want and deserve the highest quality food, even if they aren’t in a traditional dining epicenter. We want to be the solution that offers great food, while making life easier for the local community.”

Wonder, 652 Central Park Ave, Scarsdale; (855) 818-5755.