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Founder of Caputo's Fine Foods Has Died, Family Says

 Caputo's Fine Foods, located at 460 Court St., in Carroll Gardens.
Caputo's Fine Foods, located at 460 Court St., in Carroll Gardens.
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DNAinfo/Nikhita Venugopal

CARROLL GARDENS — Giuseppe Caputo, owner of the decades-old Italian specialty foods shop Caputo’s Fine Foods, died on March 21, according to his family.

Caputo, who was 83, opened the shop at 460 Court St. in 1973, one year after he moved to the country from Mola di Bari in Italy, said Frank Caputo, his son.

The store specializes in fine Italian foods, including Caputo’s popular mozzarella, which is made fresh every day.

“My father taught me how to make mozzarella,” said Frank Caputo, 51.

Caputo’s Fine Foods, which offers tubs of olives, fresh and dried pastas, oils, sauces and an array of meats and cheese, has been described as a “mecca for lovers of house made fresh mozzarella, pasta, and all kinds of Italian specialties.”

The elder Caputo would often hand out bocconcini — small pieces of mozerella — to children who visited his shop, his son said.

“He was very well liked in the neighborhood,” he added.

Frank Caputo took over the business more than a decade ago from his father, who stopped working there about six years ago, he said.

Frank Caputo’s own children, one of whom is a high school student, haven’t yet decided whether they want to work in the family business — but he isn’t concerned with that right now.

“I’ll just continue,” he said.