The scene following the interment of Gerry Geffen—owner of the North Shore’s exceptional Once Upon franchise of family restaurants—made his son, Steve, stop on the way to his car in February.
And listen.
It then nearly melted him. “Dozens of employees, past and present, had surrounded my dad’s gravesite,” Steve Geffen recalls. “There might have been close to 100. Several of them spoke about what my dad meant to them and their families. It was like another funeral service for my dad.
“It was the most wonderful thing I’d ever seen.”
Gerry Geffen, who opened his first eatery— Once Upon A Bagel in Highland Park in 1982— died of natural causes on February 17. He was 76. Other visions he had turned into must-visit restaurants were The Mean Wiener and Lucky Fish in Highwood; another Once Upon a Bagel, in Winnetka; and Once Upon a Grill, Once Upon a Deli, and Once Upon a Cafe in Northbrook.
The allure of the delicious fare at the fairytale-sounding establishments has been real since Year One.
Steve Geffen succeeded his father at the top of the company nearly six years ago; Gerry, a Rogers Park native and Lincolnshire resident, served as a Once Upon consultant from 2014 until his death.
“He never stopped,” Gerry’s son marvels. “He never stopped thinking, too. He was always trying to improve his restaurants or come up with the next big idea. He wanted to grow, to build. Always. That kept him going, that constant desire. That gave him energy. His home was his work.”
The late Gerry Geffen founded the first restaurant in his franchise, Once Upon A Bagel, in Highland Park in 1982.
Steve Geffen’s second home, in his youth? Easy. Wherever Gerry Geffen happened to be working that day—even on a workday that started as early as 3 or 4 a.m. Rising and shining well before the birds’ first chorus never bothered a 13-year-old Steve.
“I’d go to work with him, when it was still dark outside, sit on the floor, and watch him bake dozens and dozens of bagels,” says Steve, adding he and his older sister, Cynthia, learned everything they needed to know about the restaurant game from their driven, kind father. “I was in awe. He taught me everything; I was blessed. I’m the businessman I am today because of my father.”
But what separated Gerry Geffen from most other restaurateurs was the way he treated his employees. When you punched in at a Once Upon family restaurant, you essentially checked in as a Geffen family member—and felt like one until it was time to punch out. All those postinterment mourners who’d been hired by Geffen? They hadn’t lost just an unforgettable, caring boss; they’d also lost a warmhearted “father” or “brother.”
“Dad loved his employees,” Steve says. “Loved all of them. Considered them family. He loved interacting with them and making them feel comfortable. He cherished his customers, too, because they lived in amazing North Shore communities and showed their loyalty to our restaurants. We’re all about providing good products, consistent products, but Dad knew that the social aspect of the dining experience in the restaurant was as important as the meals were. Dad was a one-of-a-kind, and he built a legacy that’s unparalleled.”
Gerry’s wife, Sonia, wore way too many hats to count as one of Gerry’s tireless colleagues for decades. S h e could probably teach a couple of advanced Ins & Outs college courses in a Restaurant and Food Services Management program in the morning and offer customer service tips to cashiers and servers at five restaurants in the afternoon.
“My mom knows so much about restaurants,” Steve says. “If I have questions about anything, she’s there with the answers.”
Steve’s Q & A sessions with Dad Geffen at work usually preceded their animated conversations about Chicago sports. Gerry loved the Cubs. When he wasn’t beaming hard after the Cubs had finally won a World Series in 2016, he was resting his smile muscles . Gerry also rooted for the Bulls.
“Dad took me to my first Bulls game,” Steve says. “He got great seats, floor seats, at the old Chicago Stadium. I don’t remember the Bulls’ opponent that night; I don’t even remember who won. Details like that don’t matter to me today.
“What matters to me was the experience that night, being there and enjoying the game with my father.”
Other survivors are daughter Cynthia’s husband, Steven Harfield; son Steve’s wife, Shana; grandchildren Andrew, Rebecca, Nathan, and Matthew; and siblings-in-law Renay Larson ( James) and Michelle Karlin.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude Children’s Hospital (st.jude. org) or Telshe Yeshiva Chicago (telsheyeshivachicago.com).
