Longtime Owners Of Iconic LI Eatery Reflect: 'It's A Happy Ending'

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Southampton Town Supervisor Maria Moore told Patch that the town has a contract to purchase the property for $4 million for open space. The restaurant building will be demolished but the historic castle will be preserved, she said.

Moore said, perhaps, an art studio would be a good fit for the castle, which the town has been told is structurally sound. “We’re still looking into possibilities,” she said.

At a Southampton town board meeting this week, a public hearing was held on the proposal, and Moore said there was positive feedback on the issue of preserving the property. The board passed a resolution to move forward with the purchase and the demolition of the eatery.

“It will provide a beautiful view of the water,” Moore said.

Some commented that the town should not allow water access, given the sloping of the land, and that there is already a boat ramp nearby, the supervisor said. “So, that’s to be determined,” she said.

A work session will be held on January 9, where Town Historian Julie Greene will discuss the issue of landmark status for the castle, Moore said.

For so many, the memories of meals gone by will live forever in hearts and minds — and those longtime customers and fans of the establishment will now have the chance to say good-bye.

The estate sale offers the chance to take home a treasured piece of local history, imbued with memories of sumptuous dinners and so much conversation and laughter. Antique artwork, restaurant equipment, kitchen appliances, furniture, chairs, tables, barstools, pianos, chandeliers, dishes, glassware, utensils, pots, pans, and much more will be available for sale.

Currently owned by the Bracovic family, the business has been in family hands since it opened in 1928, changing proprietors only three times.

According to the Casa Basso website: “Throughout our 80-plus years, the single goal has been customer satisfaction. We achieve this goal by providing the finest Italian cuisine and exceptional service in an atmosphere that is nothing short of amazing. Between the food, the 18th century castle, and the abundance of historic statues, you will not leave our establishment without a feeling of complete satisfaction.”

Bejto Bracovic and his wife, Zyli Bracovic, affectionately called Julie, have owned the eatery since 1986, only the third owners since Casa Basso was first unveiled.

Speaking with Patch this week, Julie said last weekend’s estate sale brought back many beloved and familiar faces. “A lot of people came who had nice memories,” she said. “It’s always nice to hear those memories.”

Elyse Richman, who owns the local business Shock Ice Cream in Westhampton Beach, bought the phone booth that long stood in Casa Basso. “A piece of nostalgia in my old-fashioned ice cream store — and most kids probably have never sat in an old-fashioned phone booth.”

Richaman wishes the Bracovics only happiness. “When you see owners like them, that operate their own stores and restaurants and work basically 24/7 and put in the hard work day in and day out here — it’s an end of an era. I’m happy for them.”

Both Julie Bracovic and her husband were born in Montengro, a part of then-Yugoslavia. Their families came to the United States when she was nine and he was 16, she said.

“We were from the same village, the same school. And then our families came to Brooklyn,” she said. “We met up again in Brooklyn and a few years after we got married.”

They bought the restaurant from the previous owner Rene Mondini. “He loved my husband and treated him like his own son,” Julie said.

Her husband, she said, had begun working for Mondini at 17 as a dishwasher in 1972. After they married in 1975, she, too, worked at Casa Basso until she got pregnant with her son in 1979; they purchased their East Quogue home in 1981, and their daughter was born in 1984 — an American dream realized.

By 1986, the young couple had two babies and a mortgage, Julie said, and so, when Mondini decided to sell the restaurant, he told the couple he would not sell it to anyone else. “He waited for my husband to have enough money to buy it,” he said. “The only thing he wanted was to be able to, after the sale, come and go as he pleased in the restaurant. And so he came and worked with my husband in the kitchen for the next 10 years. He never wanted to be paid a penny. He just wanted to still have his place — he’d hang out and help my husband all day long. We have amazing memories with Rene.”

She added, her voice warm with remembering, “He was family to us.”

That same sense of family was shared by the many who dined at Casa Basso for generations. “A lot of them came to buy things last week,” she said. “Most of them with tears in their eyes — and hugs and kisses.”

Many exchanged phone numbers with the Bracovics, promising to meet for dinner. “That’s the only thing that makes me sad,” Julie said. “A lot of people have these nice memories, and we’ll miss them.”

But on the whole, the decision to close the restaurant was a joyful, natural transition for Julie and her husband, she said. “We’re doing this just because we wanted to,” she said. “Not because we had to. We have two kids and three granddaughters. For 40 years, we never got to enjoy them fully because we were always working, weekends and holidays. We’re happy, we’re healthy. It’s time to relax. We made a choice.”

They wanted to make the move while they were still young and healthy enough to enjoy themselves, Julie said. “I would have wanted to retire five years ago, but my husband didn’t want to. He kept saying, ‘One more year. One more year,'” she smiled.

Together, they share a deep sense of pride over the legacy they’ve built. “There are not that many places anywhere that have stayed in business for 40 years,” Julie said. “It’s something we’re proud of.”

The memories are vibrant and beautiful, Julie said. “Everyone was amazing. We have a lot of people to thank, because it was the people that kept us in business all these years — and we appreciate that with all our hearts.”

The recipes, the foods, rich with flavor, kept customers raving for years — favorites included the veal chop, the branzino, the osso buco and the Napoleans.

So many have their own memories of the restaurant where milestone moments unfolded. “Two weeks ago, we had a couple we didn’t even know. She told us her mom and dad were born in Westhampton, but that she didn’t live here anymore. She showed us pictures of her mom and dad and I recognized them. She said, ‘I grew up here,’ and then, she started crying. She was so upset. I told her, ‘Don’t be upset. It’s a happy ending.'”

Another couple came in and wanted a photo at the table where the husband had proposed to his wife, so many years ago. “Those are the kinds of memories — those are the people I’m going to miss,” Julie said. “We have so many amazing memories.”

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