Photo by Kelli Weldon

Photo by Kelli Weldon

Photo by Kelli Weldon

As Carl Zapffe steps outside the restaurant he has owned for the past 31 years, a customer stops him and asks, "You haven't changed your mind?"

He laughs and shakes his head. Earlier this month, Zapffe announced he plans to shutter Bakehouse Restaurant and Bar on June 15. Upon hearing the news, some of his customers apologize and others congratulate him. The latter is most appropriate, he said.

"For me, it's a great thing," he said.

Bakehouse opened in July 1983 and has offered dishes such as steaks, sausage chowder and South Austin Wellington, which consists of chopped sirloin steak baked in puff pastry with mushrooms and cheese.

Zapffe said when the owners of Strange Brew offered to buy the space to convert the restaurant into a new 24-hour cafe, he decided it was time to close. He said he will miss his customers and employees, but not the stress that comes with owning a restaurant.

"I couldn't do this forever, and it's a great opportunity," he said. "It's just so sweet the way it's working out for both of us."

While he doesn't have plans for a new business venture yet, Zapffe does plan to take his employees who stay until closing on a trip to Las Vegas later this month.

"I tell people that the last time I had seven days off in a row was when I got married 21 years ago, and the last time I had five days in a row, I can't even remember that. So, I'm just going to casually look for opportunities," he said. "I might work for somebody again, I might do something else. I can always say I was the owner of the Bakehouse, as opposed to the first owner or the original owner. Because there won't be another Bakehouse. Maybe."