FEATURES

CAN A BEAUTIFULLY DECORATED HOUSE BE LIVED-IN AND LUXURIOUS AT THE SAME TIME? THIS SHINGLED BEACH RETREAT IN BRIDGEHAMPTON IS PROOF POSITIVE

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MEALTIME AT THE SARALEGUI/BEDOYA HOUSEHOLD can easily turn into a major event. Javier Saralegui is one of seven children from a close-knit Cuban family, and his wife, Angela Bedoya, has three siblings and hails from an equally tight Colombian clan. The couple have three kids and dozens of cousins, nieces and nephews and extended family members, so a little old-fashioned bread-breaking is not exactly like a trip to the corner store. Most people would resort to takeout menus, but not Bedoya and Saralegui. Their home is open to anyone and everyone who happens to drop by.

ALL THE PRETTY HORSES (click photo for larger view)

Eleven years ago, the couple went hunting for a summer home that could accommodate hosting and cooking for large family gatherings. "A cookbook called Our Latin Table, by my brother-in-law Fernando Saralegui, is all about our family and how they celebrate holidays, which is very important to us," says Bedoya. "And I always wanted a home where we could have touch football and baseball games on the lawn," her husband adds.

Their real-estate search culminated in a 3,800-square-foot postmodern farmhouse situated on 1.2 acres in Bridgehampton. "It's not a huge house, but it has great bones and is perfectly proportioned for the lot," says Bedoya. "And it has the front yard my husband has always dreamed about."

KITCHEN CACHET (click photo for larger view)

The former rental property was somewhat the worse for wear, but other than redoing bathrooms and completing some basic cosmetic work, the couple stuck to the existing floor plan. "There's this wonderful central staircase with light flooding around it from all directions," says Bedoya, "and you can see trees everywhere you look."