The History Of The Deluxe
Over 90 years have passed since a team of homes dug the foundation for the Deluxe Restaurant & Grill in the northern part of the small city of Geneva. The area at the corner of north Genesee Street and Gates Avenue was primarily farmland in 1933, when two Italian immigrants, Nicholas Aquilano and his wife Carrie Raphael, planned their new business. Hailing from the Abruzzia and Reggio de Calabria regions of Italy, the two wanted a solid and rooted business, and solid it is, the footers are 2 feet thick poured concrete, with masonry block covered in stucco, sitting on 12-inch beams.
Today, the restaurant remains a favorite among local families who have enjoyed its hospitality and good food for generations. The Deluxe feels as familiar as your mother's dining table, whether you're of Italian descent or not.
Torrey Park
When millions of immigrants streamed into the U.S. during the 19th century, Irish, Italian, German and Syrian immigrants found their way to Geneva. They settled there alongside citizens of mainly English descent, in numbers large enough to help shape the city's future.
The Wright, Rose, Burrell, Sherrill and Torrey families owned large farms on the town's perimeter. Samuel Torrey, whose family had settled primarily in New England and New York following the Revolutionary War, owned a 175-acre farm on Geneva's north side. He fell ill in 1871, and eventually had to relinquish the farm. The Torrey Park Land Company was established in 1891 to allocate some of the original acreages for sale as residential building lots, and some for railroad land requirements, and continued farming. The Deluxe was built on one of those lots.
Little Italy
Sixty years before that, Raymond Del Papa arrived in Geneva. He became a labor agent who enlisted newly arrived immigrants to construct the canal system, local infrastructure, and the railroad. Using the "padrone system," as it was called, Del Papa arranged housing and passage from Italy for immigrant families looking for work and served as workforce boss.
That same year, the Lehigh Valley Railroad line built an extension from Buffalo through the northern part of Geneva. The growing Italian and Irish population supplied the labor. When the Italian workers settled north of the station, the neighborhood became known as Little Italy, and Del Papa "the king of Little Italy."
In 1897, when Geneva's mayor suggested naming a street after him, Del Papa refused, and said he'd prefer to name it Umberto Street, after Italy's king at the time.
Today "Umbert" Street, just around the block from the Deluxe, remains a neighborhood hub. Nearby is Club 86, a restaurant that has been owned by the Leggitt family for generations. It began as a bar serving the Italian immigrant railroad workers at the end of a long day, then became a popular supper club in the '40s and '50s and featured famous bands and singers. Today, Club 86 is a banquet hall and caterer for special events and wedding receptions. The Torrey Park Grill (formerly Fronti's Restaurant) and Uncle Joe's Pizzeria complete the much loved and frequented eateries that remain in Geneva's "Little Italy".
The Family
The Deluxe was built with three apartments above the restaurant for family members. Janet Knopp, granddaughter of its founders, lived there with her parents Angelo Tiballi and Mary Aquilano until she was 13. Her childhood memories were formed by the sights and sounds of the busy daily routine of the restaurant and the aromas of classic Italian dishes.
Janet vividly remembers when chickens were delivered from the farm, cut the word the day before, and the next day Janet's Aunt Rose (Rose Bruno), and Janet's mother Mary would assemble in the basement. Chickens would be unloaded from a truck and slid down to them on a wooden plank by the basement stairway.
Janet's grandmother Carrie, the matriarch of the family, was known as "The Boss." She was in charge of the day to day operation of the restaurant and creating the restaurant's signature sauce. Her (Janet's) uncle Nicholas (Nicholas Aquilano), Aunt Rose (Rose Bruno), Aunt Angie (Angie DeFelice), Mary (Mary Aquilano), Micheline (Micheline Evangelista), and Uncle Sam (Sam Aquilano) were all part of the family business. Today, there's no one there to cut your hair, but the building still stands. Janet's mother Mary, and uncles Nicholas Junior and Tony ("Tut") rounded out the family.
The closing of the restaurant on Christmas Eve for the large family celebration is a particularly precious memory. Tables covered in white tablecloths would be pushed against the north wall, and to pasta, there were seven fish dishes including clams, fried smelt, halibut in sauce, the antipasto featured crock olives, figs, mussels, and grapes and oranges. Under the careful eye of Carrie, who had very high standards, the event was carried out with perfection. Grandparents' house to open presents. The men would move into the kitchen to play cards and smoke cigars.
In 1988, Nicholas Junior and Tut sold the restaurant to Louise and Paul Whittaker. One of the caveats, at the insistence of the Aquilano family, was that nothing change. They wanted to preserve the old traditions of hard work, simple good food and dedication to family and friends. The family believed that those values helped to hold up the restaurant's sturdy walls.
Today, the Deluxe is owned by Louise's son Charles "Charlie" Leggitt and his wife Linda. It's a true family business that includes their sons Daniel, 19, and Patrick, 15.
Charlie's mentor was Paul Heistrom, who owned and operated the Franklin Hotel in Waterloo in the 1970s. The two began working together in 1995 at the Crow's Nest Restaurant on Seneca Lake. Being of Italian descent himself, Paul understood what the Aquilanos wanted to protect, and Charlie quickly understood why.
At the Deluxe, you can still feel the energy, joy and love of the family who built it. It's in the walls that have absorbed the laughter and conversations of thousands of people who have celebrated special events and shared simple meals together.
- Article excerpt written by, Marguerite Abbott.