11zero50 closes in Port Washington

Luke Torrance
The outside of 11zero50 before it rebranded in August. (Photo courtesy of Google)

11zero50, the rebranded restaurant that opened in Port Washington in August, announced on Wednesday that it was closing.

Michael Tizzano, who co-owns the restaurant with Massimo Gammella, posted on the Real Port Washington Facebook page that he and Gammella “will not continue to operate it anymore.”

“We are not sad, we are mad,” Tizzano wrote. “Mad at a system that does not protect employers, a system that allows ‘others’ to reach into your pocket and entitles them to whatever they think they are entitled to.”

He wrote that he was “overwhelmed” by the response from customers and added that “the next time around will be a different story.” Tizzano told Newsday that the closure was largely due to a labor dispute, but he could not be reached for further comment.

The restaurant, located at 52 Main St. in Port Washington, has gone through several rebrandings since it first opened at the spot in 2014. For the first three years of its existence, the restaurant went by Rosso Uptown and mainly served pizza. In the autumn of 2017, Tizzano and Gammella changed the name to Brick Osteria, and expanded the Italian offerings to include recipes that were popular at Tizzano’s previous Port Washington restaurants, Brio and Romantico.

But Tizzano said that made the restaurant too similar to the one he operated in Manorhaven, Pepe Rosso 24. So in August, the restaurant returned with pizza and much of the other Italian fare stripped from the menu, and a new name: 11zero50, a reflection of Port Washington’s ZIP code.

“It instills a sense of community,” Tizzano said at the time. “It’s something that belongs to the town and has a nice ring to it.”

Pepe Rosso 24 remains open for Port Washingtonians who still hunger for Tizzano’s and Gammella’s offerings.

Reach reporter Luke Torrance by email at ltorrance@theislandnow.com, by phone at 516-307-1045, ext. 214, or follow him on Twitter @LukeATorrance.

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