Moment in Time (June 30, 2022)
The Gourmet Market, later known as Spagio, is shown in a 1980s era photograph. The deli/restaurant is regarded as instrumental in the revival of the successful commercial strip along Grandview Avenue.
Grandview Avenue between 1st Avenue and 5th Avenue is regarded as one of the most popular dining and shopping areas in Columbus, but for many years it was ignored. Businesses had moved out and buildings had fallen in disrepair. It has been acknowledged that the persons most responsible for the revival of Grandview Avenue as a destination for shopping and restaurants likely were Hubert and Helga Seifert. Hubert (commonly known as ‘Chef Hubert’ or just ‘Chef’) started a career as a chef in Europe before he and Helga travelled to the United States. He was hired as the personal chef to architect and shareholder in the Cincinnati Reds and Bengals, Austin “Dutch” Knowlton, and he and Helga and their daughter Nicole decided to make Columbus their home.
According to Chef, he met Columbus otolaryngologist Dr. Leo Wagenbrenner at an event one evening, who told him about the Grandview Bank Block, which anchored a strip of shopping along Grandview Avenue. It had fallen in disrepair thanks to a non-resident owner, and Leo (Tad) and his brothers Tom and Mike had plans to renovate the iconic Grandview complex and were looking to find potential tenants. Chef and Helga decided to open an upscale delicatessen as a storefront in the north end of the Block in 1981, which they named the Gourmet Market. They sold bread, cheeses, fish and meats, and select packaged products such as pâtés and caviar, and also did some catering out of the store. At first it was only a carryout, but the couple added some small tables outside on the sidewalk. Another storefront next door became available, so they added a dining room.
In an extensive interview for WOSU, Chef indicated that he and Helga had a desire to expand the deli into a full-blown restaurant, but didn’t have a lot of money, and the space had no liquor license. That meant that there could be no sales of beer or wine or alcohol. They went door to door in the community to lobby for a vote to allow the license so that they could realize their goal of opening their restaurant. They were successful in this effort, and added a second dining area and outdoor seating (shown in this photograph). However, their high-end approach to dining (eg, wild game, delicacies such as foie gras and sweetbreads) ran head-first into a recession and changing dining tastes, and they realized they had to change to a more casual approach.
On a trip to Chicago, they saw a demonstration of a wood-fired pizza oven. They bought one and hired the head pizza cook from the California Pizza Kitchen in Chicago, and in 1991 added the more casual restaurant to the Gourmet Market. One of their customers was successful Columbus advertising and public relations expert Shelley Berman, who helped the Seiferts rebrand the restaurant as Spagio European and Pacific Rim Cuisine, or Spagio, in 1993.
They lobbied the city of Grandview to allow them to enclose the sidewalk to expand their dining space. A few years later, Chef followed his desire to open a European style high-end membership-only dining model, and opened the Aubergine Private Dining Club a few doors south of Spagio. They then expanded Spagio to an additional space next door, which they called Spagio Wine Lounge, opening an access door between them.
During the nearly four decades that the business flourished, Chef also impacted the Columbus restaurant scene in other ways. He worked with students at the culinary apprentice program atColumbus Technical Institute (Columbus State Community College) and at OSU, and also hosted sous-chef apprentices at Spagio. He hosted annual fundraising events that brought other famous chefs from across the country, supporting local organizations such as the Ronald McDonald House, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, and the James Cancer Hospital. Over the years, Chef also trained some of Columbus’ most famous chefs, who went on to start their own restaurants or join existing fine dining establishments.
Just before the pandemic hit, Chef and Helga sold their restaurant to CityBrands, owners of Katzinger’s Delicatessen and The Wine Bistro, among other restaurants. Because of the impact of the Covid shutdowns, they in turn sold it to Covington, Kentucky based Agave & Rye, which plans to open this month.
This restaurant and the Bank Block are featured in the free History Walks app.