Eli and Don Bekteshi, the beloved owners of Villa Milano who died in 2023, are forever memorialized on “Bekteshi Brothers’ Way,” a part of Plandome Road that encompasses their restaurant of nearly 40 years.
North Hempstead unveiled “Bekteshi Brothers’ Way” on Friday, honoring Don and Eli in the heart of Manhasset as their children wore matching “Bekteshi Bros. Way” T-shirts. Nancy Bekteshi, daughter of Donald Bekteshi, said the sunny day was bittersweet.
“Obviously, my dad’s not here with us, but the amount of people that showed up and told me stories about my father and just showed support was overwhelming in a good way,” she said. “A lot of people came to show love and support. And now that the name is up there, it’s forever gonna be up there, and he’ll never be forgotten.”
North Hempstead Town Supervisor Jennifer DeSena, who has been a customer of Villa Milano for 25 years, spoke. She said though the food is “amazing,” people go for special occasions because of “how they make you feel.”
“Everyone felt special,” she said. “They were just there for us, always giving, listening and encouraging others to be generous.”
Several other past and present officials of Manhasset and surrounding areas attended. Matthew Donno and Antonietta Manzi, co-presidents of the Manhasset Chamber of Commerce, were present. Donno also spoke at the town hall meeting where the street naming was decided in July.
“There’s not a point in my life that Villa [Milano} wasn’t part of my life,” Donno said.
Nassau County controller, Elaine Phillips, who frequents the restaurant after her martial arts classes, attended with her classmates. Ragini Srivastava, town clerk of North Hempstead, whose office is directly next to Villa Milano, also participated.
Additional officials who attended were the North Hempstead town board, Village of Plandome Manor Mayor Barbara Donno, members of the greater Council of Manhasset civic association and officers of the Bayview Civic Association.
Many high school students joined, as Villa Milano is an essential part of the Manhasset HIgh School community, sponsoring local events, providing free or extremely discounted food to a local program for underprivileged children and giving pizza pies to Manhasset students to sell at fundraisers.
Nancy Bekteshi said her father always checked to see that no one was hungry whether they had money or not. “He always made sure everyone was fed, took care of them, listened to their problems, gave them great advice and just always knew when somebody wasn’t themselves and knew how to make them smile.”
The town board decided on the street dedication back in July. At the meeting, several residents expressed their support for the street renaming and shared stories about the brothers. Stories told during the meeting ranged from the brothers fostering a heartwarming spot for birthday parties to offering to pay for someone’s mortgage.
The board’s unanimous vote was met with roaring applause.
