CLEVELAND, Ohio – Restaurateur Zack Bruell has confirmed that Monday, May 20, will be the final day of operation for Ristorante Chinato, one of the East 4th Street restaurant anchors.

“It feels like a death, if you want to know the truth,” Bruell told cleveland.com. “This is part of my family.”

The decision follows months of negotiations with the restaurant’s landlord, MRN Ltd., he said. The parties could not reach an agreement, Bruell said.

Representatives from MRN could not be reached for comment.

Friday, Bruell's concern remained with the workers. Between 25 and 40 employees worked at the Italian restaurant, depending on the time of year.

"I'm placing the employees in my other restaurants, so no one is out of a job," he said. "These people have put in time and effort into this business, and I couldn’t turn my back on them. That’s important to me."

Bruell did not discuss details, but said he has no plans to close any of his other restaurants.

Chinato was Bruell's fourth Cleveland restaurant of his current roster, opening in early 2010 and right after L'Albatros Brasserie in University Circle, Parallax in Tremont and Table 45 at the InterContinental Hotel. The Italian-focused restaurant boasts an extensive menu that relies on much more than typical spaghetti and meatballs.

Named for an Italian fortified wine, it goes beyond traditional dishes. It offers mussels, antipasto, osso buco, polenta and many other Italian favorites, but it also serves grilled sardines with white balsamic onions, eggplant involtini, a lasagna-like meal; braciole, rolled-up seasoned flank steak marinated in tomato sauce; tongue, grilled octopus and more.

Bruell remains equally interested in a restaurant's aesthetic details as much as the food. It seemed the goal with Chinato was to make someone think of Florence, Italy, when they walked into the dining room. Tasteful, inviting tones and a mural fill the space. Even its website has an image featuring the soft tones of Tuscan light.

Service at Chinato's bar is friendly, and the restaurant prides itself on having a small but solid core of craft-beer offerings as well as an extensive wine selection. It achieved a duality of being a fine-dining restaurant but approachable for Cleveland Indians fans wanting something more than wings and a lager before a game.

East 4th Street has been a steady dining-entertainment district with an array of different restaurants and bars. Michael Symon's Lola Bistro and Mabel's BBQ, Jonathon Sawyer's The Greenhouse Tavern and Nick Kostis' Pickwick & Frolic are all neighbors. Butcher and the Brewer, Wonder Bar, Xocalo and House of Blues also are among those populating the area.

Chinato, at 2079 E. 4th Street, is located at the south end of the row of restaurants, at Prospect Avenue and across from Flannery’s.