Local Bakery Looks for Sweet Smell of Success in St. Charles

For the Groffs, every day is "Take Your Daughter to Work Day" – and that's just the way they like it.

The Groff's customers seem to feel the same way. When they stop by , they sometimes like to interact with four-month-old Alina. Her college fund is in a hand-labeled jar on the counter ready for donations. Agi Groff said that one patron particularly enjoys giving to the effort.

"Every time she puts the change in, she'll say something like 'that's a pencil or that's for paperclips,'" she chuckles.

It's the kind of atmosphere that Agi, 36, and her husband Aaron Groff, 30, enjoy creating at 4 Seasons. Located in a former pizzeria on Campus Drive just off West Clay, the graduates of the Culinary Institute of America offer a wide variety of baked goods from scones, muffins and macaroons to German cheesecake, brownies and biscotti. A selection of sweetbreads is also available in flavors like banana nut, pumpkin and chocolate summer squash. There are even doggie treats on sale for patrons who want to share the mouthwatering experience with their four-legged counterparts.

A storefront operation is a new setting for the couple. Before the store opened in June, the Groffs concentrated on catering events in the winter and selling at an array of farmer's markets in the summer. Both activities are still a part of the operation. The catering menu offers an extensive selection of sandwiches, soups, and hors d'oeuvres. Meanwhile, in warmer weather, farmers markets in Tower Grove Park, Maplewood and St. Charles still provide a home to their culinary repertoire.

Aaron said that the farmers markets were a good way to test the market and learn whether demand would support a permanent location.

"St. Charles was one of our first farmer's markets so we have a good customer base here," he said. "We live here as well, so we're close to home. It's just getting the word out to people who don't know us. Right now it's all word of mouth."

Aaron works while he talks, kneading small hunks of raisin and almond-studded dough destined to become a batch of stollen, a type of German Christmas cake. For the past two weeks, the couple have been selling the item at holiday fairs in Hermann, Mo. Such specialties from Germany, Agi's native land, abound at 4 Seasons. The Groffs met at culinary school and married in 2004 shortly after graduation. After that, they lived in Florida. Both went on to gain experience in the hotel and restaurant industry.

Today, the couple share a marriage, a workplace and a philosophy of baking.

"We try to do everything from scratch," Aaron said. "We don't use anything premade. We also try to stay all natural as far as no shortening, no corn syrup, no food coloring. It's really bringing Old World baking back to the local bakery."

Agi concurs. The duo's roots in the slow food movement are highlighted by a commitment to fresh, local ingredients. She said that the focus on natural ingredients is a big plus for some of the customers. One she knows is sensitive to food coloring. Another can have sugar but not fructose. The eatery is even working to expand its gluten-free options.

She said the fresh nature of the food distinguishes them from establishments that use different ingredients and methods.

"It's really sad how everything comes out of a bucket nowadays," she said. "Everything's frozen. They order the cakes, they order the icing and all they have to do is assemble it. That's sad to me."

The food at 4 Seasons doesn't come from a bucket and neither does the client service. When someone comes through the front door, the Groffs want to develop a personal relationship with them.

"We try to know all of our customers by name," Aaron said. "That's really about it. Good food, done right."

Agi said she enjoys the interaction. It's one of the reasons she loves the storefront approach.

"We were just talking to someone Saturday and she said, 'I really enjoy coming here because you guys know me,'" she said. "It's not anonymous. It's not an in-and-out kind of thing."