With a spotlight on family and community, the Center Street Deli in Oneonta is set to reopen later this month under new ownership.
Tino Garufi Jr. and Debra Garufi are the new owners of the deli and convenience store, located at 82 Center St. Their sons, Josh Garufi and Tino Garufi III, will both contribute to the running of the store. Josh Garufi’s wife, Taryn More, also has helped to launch the business.
Inside, classic chips, drinks and other food items will be available for purchase. The deli counter sits at the front of the operation for customers to come up order fresh sandwiches and sides.
Tino Garufi Jr. retired about two years ago after selling Tino’s Pizza, which was a staple in the Oneonta community since 1986. After retirement, he and his wife decided to make a return to the food industry and reopen the Center Street Deli, which More said was in a great location.
When he ran his old business, Tino Garufi “knew his system” for pizza, More said. With the opening of the deli, he would soon “get back to the system of subs.”
More added that they were looking at adding more Italian, selling Boar’s Head meats and cheeses. While the business would start a little smaller as it gets “up and running,” the goal would be to apply for a beer license, as previous owners did.
“But ideally, a nice family deli where people can come in, feel comfortable grabbing a sub, grabbing dinner to go, grabbing a breakfast sandwich in the morning and just really try and build community here,” More said.
Though the initial plan was to potentially open sometime this week, More said the family is working on fixing some issues with the freezer. The hope is to open by sometime in mid-August for a “soft opening” before the college students return to the area for the incoming fall semester.
For construction and renovations, some electrical work needed to be done in the facility, in addition to some other small updates to “bring it into 2025,” More said.
Former property owned Frank Companie Jr. regained control of the property in April of last year, bidding close to $350,000 at a court-ordered foreclosure auction.
Companie had owned the property until 2017, when he and Robin Companie sold it to Charles Bace III and Robert Putnam Jr. While Companie held the mortgage after selling, in June 2022 Bace and Putnam defaulted on mortgage payments and fell behind on $50,000 of property taxes.
In August 2024, the Oneonta Common Council granted Companie a special exemption to sell the property. The Garufis then had to go before the Oneonta Planning Board to ensure that they could reopen the deli.
Because the facility had been vacant for a long time, two separate meetings were required to obtain approval and to make sure the board was clear about the type of business that would be operated at the location.
After receiving the approval from the board, the couple was able to purchase the property from its previous owners. Eight to nine months later, the owners are quickly approaching its opening day.
More said the family-run store would be a place where local people could come together and engage with one another, even daily.
“Previously, they had their morning coffee crew, and there was a group that would come every morning, have their coffee and talk about their day and talk about their week,” More said. “It’s things like that that I think help build community here, and that we’re looking forward to continuing.”