A restaurant, a castle, a pair of sculpted swordsmen — the Casa Basso property has it all. And for $6.5 million, the Westhampton establishment can be yours.
The 91-year-old restaurant is being sold by owners Bejto and Zyli Bracovic, according to Behind the Hedges. The couple bought it in 1986 and are only the third owners since its establishment in 1930. Douglas Elliman’s Enzo Morabito has the property listing.
The restaurant may be known for its Italian eats, but the buyer will receive much more than a fine dining experience. For one, a castle has stood on the property for more than a century. Sculptor Theophilus Brouwer built the medieval manse in 1906, drawing inspiration from his travels in Spain, the publication reported.
Sitting adjacent to the restaurant, the castle’s ground-floor space is rented out to a pastry business, while a pair of studio apartments are on the second floor.
Guarding the castle and pottery studio-turned-restaurant are two giant swordsmen, which tower over the entrance to the property, decked in coats and fanciful hats.
For Bejto, the sale of the restaurant marks the end of an era born of the American dream; Bracovic started as a dishwasher at the restaurant five decades ago after escaping the Communist regime in then-Yugoslavia. He lived in the castle, which at the time served as a dorm for Casa Basso’s employees.
Bejto and Zyli married in 1976 and went on to buy a home in Middle Village, Queens. They sold it a decade later to fund their purchase of the restaurant for $750,000.
According to Behind the Hedges, there are no plans to shutter the Italian eatery while the owners look to sell the property. The family hopes that the eventual owner doesn’t change too much about the establishment’s identity.
“I hope that somebody will come in and keep it as a restaurant,” Bejto told Behind the Hedges. “If you’re willing to work, you can make a good living.”
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[Behind the Hedges] — Holden Walter-Warner