After decades of running properties such as Union Station, the Cheshire Inn, the Hilton at the Ballpark, Lodging Hospitality Management has added to their properties at Westport.

by Grayling Holmes / photographs provided by Lodging Hospitality Management and Basso on the Plaza

St. Louis, you’re in for a treat. Upscale Italy has crossed the pond and come to Westport. Mega developer Lodging Hospitality Management, headed by Robert O’Loughlin and his son, Stephen, has spent years reinventing Westport Plaza in an effort to make it one of the region’s top entertainment districts. The next time you visit Westport, which has been a cornerstone of West County for five decades, take a look around. The changes are popping up all over. From 360 Westport, atop the iconic, soaring gold tower, to the renovated plaza and now to the newest jewel in the firmament, Basso on the Plaza.

When meandering through the plaza, the striking sign above the patio of the Westport Basso beckons the new and now.

The sister restaurant to Basso Cheshire on Clayton Road, the new Basso merges the old with the new. For those who have meandered down the winding staircase at the Cheshire Inn and been enveloped in the historic ambiance of the Italian eatery with its gaslit lanterns, Old World woodwork and roaring fireplace, you will feel right at home at the new restaurant. Wind through the bustling plaza. You will feel the energy infused by people vibing on the revamped areas. Upscale fun abounds. There’s live music this summer and every third Thursday as well as Sunday movie nights.

Basso on the Plaza maître d' staff ensure that you are guided to your reserved table.

The open kitchen at Basso on the Plaza welcomes you as if you were a guest at their home. There to greet you are Head Chef Dan Sammons (center), flanked by General Manager Amanda Dyson (left) and Lodging Hospitality Management Director of Restaurants Blaise Pastoret (right).

Unlike the original Basso, which is basically underground, this new version gently connects the feel of the outdoor plaza with floor-to-ceiling windows that let light flow indoors. The vibe is relaxed. The appointments are new.

“Basso on the Plaza honors the tone of the original location,” said Todd Hotaling, vice president sales and marketing for Lodging Hospitality Management. “We married the natural lighting with the historic undertones found at Cheshire. Our goal was to bring the same treasured experience to the new place.”

Fine Italian wines, craft cocktails and a first-rate variety of lager and pilsner beers are available on Basso’s Gastropub menu.

Guests enjoy the relaxed Basso atmosphere and sense of frivolity at happy hour while listening to live music on the plaza.

At the new Basso, one instantly feels at home with leather couches surrounding an over-sized chimenea. The kitchen is entirely open. Chefs and sous chefs busily prepare fresh-made pasta, homemade pizza, grilled steaks and seafood right in front of you on grills, in ovens and on wood fires. The menu that patrons have grown to love at the sister Basso has carried over with a few welcome additions. Once seated, the servers anticipate your every need. Like a 5-star restaurant, if a crumb of delicious food falls on the table, they immediately corral it and remove it.

“You know you can find good Italian food in St. Louis, but even before you enjoy the amazing ingredients that make our menu so desirable, you are welcomed into a dining setting unparalleled in the area,” Hotaling said. “You walk into Basso on the Plaza and you’re walking into an experience and when you leave, you’re walking away from a wonderful dining event.”

“At Basso on the Plaza, you feel like you’re sitting at a family’s table in Italy,” he continued. “We marry the old country with the West County new.” Basso (www.basso-stl.com) is open for dinner and lunch.

Reinventing an Original