The bright yellow sign on the front door only tells part of the story at Angelico’s Lake House. The East Hampton restaurant was shuttered Monday morning by the state for back taxes. Those who frequent the establishment were surprised to hear of its sudden closing and even more shocked to learn the reason why.
“Wow. Wow. That’s just unreal,” said Luann Dinihanian, who told us she celebrated her wedding reception at Angelico’s in 2010. “It’s a shame. It really is. It’s a nice location. Beautiful view.”
“Wow that’s crazy. I can’t believe it. I mean it’s always been a nice place to go,” added Brian Murray of Glastonbury.
He said he visited the restaurant across from Lake Pocotopaug every few months while visiting his in-laws in East Hampton.
The suspended sales permit over back taxes comes on the heels of a fire that erupted in the restaurant’s tiki bar last Wednesday. The town’s fire marshal says the cause of the fire is still under investigation.
The restaurant was allowed to continue operating after the fire, until Monday.
Documents obtained from the town by NBC Connecticut News show Angelico’s owner owed $45,000 in local, state, and federal taxes dating as far back as 2016. He owes an additional $15,600 in taxes by Thursday.
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“That’s a shocker. You would think that’s one thing you don’t mess around with,” said Dinihanian.
What happened right before the permit was pulled by the state has Dinihanian and other frequent guests questioning Angelico’s business practices. On Sunday, the restaurant advertised a gift card sale. A poster for the event labeled it a fire sale and said customers would get 50 percent off gift cards paid with cash or check. The next day, Monday, the restaurant was shut down.
“They obviously knew they were closing and I think that’s awful. That’s just awful,” surmised Dinihanian.
Murray agreed.
“I would never even think to operate like that. I think that’s kind of shameful,” he said.
NBC Connecticut tried to contact the owner at the restaurant as well as two other properties he owns in East Hampton but were unable to reach him.
The Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection said anyone who purchased a gift card from the restaurant should file a complaint with the state so they can get a sense of the scope of the problem.
“Certainly the sequence of events we want to take a look at and understand when they were selling these things what did they know about their future prospects and their ability to honor the gift cards,” explained Commissioner Michelle Seagull.
