After more than 50 years in the pasta business, Anthony “Tony” Bonfigli is ready for the next chapter.

“I’m going to miss the customers mostly, but I’m looking forward to resting in the morning [and] not getting up too early,” Bonfigli said.

Earlier this year, he and his partner Gisel Riccoboni decided to close Cassinelli Pasta in Astoria, shutting down a pastaficio that first opened its doors back in 1912.

“It’s very hard because my mother worked here her whole life and my husband, so it’s difficult,” Riccoboni said.

Riccoboni’s late mother Nella Costella and Bonfigli bought the business together back in the 1970s, having both worked for the original owner.

“My mother was a very tough boss,” Riccoboni said. “If you came in here, you would hear her screaming if things were not done exactly the way she wanted it done.”

They mastered the art of of making fresh pasta like ravioli, rigatoni and fettuccine.

“Love is one of the ingredients, but you need flour, eggs and water,” Bonfigli said. “But love is very important. I love to eat it.”

The business has been a family affair that has attractd a loyal customer base over the years.

Riccoboni’s husband also worked at Cassinelli Pasta until his death 12 years ago. Their daughter Maura is the latest to follow the tradition, working at the shop when she’s not in school.

But after Costella’s death last year, Bonfigli says that now that he’s 80, he’s ready to retire.

“I’m ready to relax. My knees don’t hold me up anymore,” Bonfigli said.

The closure is a loss for a neighborhood that has seen a lot of transition.

“Astoria is changing. It’s terrible” Riccoboni said. “I’ve known it since I was born and everything is changing and closing.”

But Bonfigli is ready to pass the baton to the next proprietor looking to make this community their home.

“There’ll be other people. They’re going to be younger people with energy, you know, and they’ll carry on. I’m sure,” Bonfigli said.