Construction plans have been submitted for a renovated restaurant at Spanish Springs Town Square.
The restaurant going in at the former Augustine’s 1812 House will be christened Bella Vita, according to documents on file with the Town of Lady Lake.
FMK Restaurant Group headed by Fred Karimipour will take over the location and could open Bella Vita as early as this fall, in time for the arrival of the snowbirds. Karimipour has an undisputed record of success in Florida’s Friendliest Hometown, operating Blue Fin Grill and Bar and Harvest at Brownwood, The Chop House at Lake Sumter Landing, Coastal Del Mar at Spanish Springs and several country clubs.
Prior to Augustine’s 1812 House, the restaurant Demshar’s opened in that location in 2017. Demshar’s closed in 2020 and blamed its downturn on COVID-19 and the closure of the town square and The Sharon L. Morse Performing Arts Center during the height of the pandemic.
Prior to the opening of Demshar’s, the eatery had been named Luigino’s and shut its doors in October 2015.
Originally, the restaurant was named Augustine’s and was owned by The Villages. It offered Italian food and a highly popular salad with breadsticks. The name Augustine’s 1812 House was a tip of the hat to the original name of the restaurant back when Spanish Springs offered the one and only town square in The Villages.
