Three months after it closed, ending a 319-year run, the Lincroft Inn in Middletown changed hands earlier this month, and a local restaurateur is planning something new there, redbankgreen has learned.

According to a deed recorded with Monmouth County December 15, an entity called 700 Newman Springs LLC paid $1.3 million for the property, located at Newman Springs Road at Middletown-Lincroft Road. Principals in the LLC are three members of the Hesse family of Atlantic Highlands, according to other records.

Tommy Bonfiglio, who owns Tommy’s Tavern + Tap in Sea Bright with his wife, Yvette, confirmed that he’s involved in a project to create a new restaurant at the inn. But he declined comment, pending completion of design plans. 

The inn operated continuously since 1697, and was known as the Leedsville Hotel in the 1800s, according to a 1953 article in the Red Bank Register. The sellers were Terry and Martha Daverio, whose family had owned the business since 1927. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge).