Spaghetti King, Chef Boyardee, World War II Hero?

by John P. Allen

Hey, did you know those canned Ravioli’s that you eat in front of the TV have a war history!  Yeah, Hector Boiardi, better known as Chef Boyardee, helped feed the troops in World War II. 

Better known as the smiling Chef Boy-ar-dee on canned spaghetti labels, Hector (Ettore) Boiardi began his business in Cleveland.

Born in Piacenza, Italy in 1897, Boiardi came to New York around 1914 to work at the Ritz Carlton. A few years later he moved to Cleveland to become the Hotel Winton’s chef. His famous spaghetti dinners were known throughout the Midwest.

In Cleveland, he began to sell his canned spaghetti sauce and other products.

In 1924 he and his wife, Helen, opened their first restaurant, the Giardino d’Italia. Located at East 9th Street and Woodland, the restaurant opened a special kitchen on the second floor to fill takeout requests. The orders became too much for the space to handle, so in 1928 Boiardi moved the business to a factory with assembly-line production.  The products became so much in demand that there is a story that he catered President Woodrow Wilson’s second wedding.

The venture was so successful that it thrived in the Depression while many other businesses had to close. The original dinner for four included spaghetti sauce, uncooked spaghetti and some Parmesan cheese for 60 cents. The chef’s business got a boost during World War II when the government asked him to prepare food for the military. 

Used as food supplies for American soldiers serving overseas, Chef Boyardee products contribute to the war effort.  Almost all the troops on the ground carried can openers around their necks so that the could eat Chef Boy-ar-dee foods.

When the war ended, the Chef was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his wartime support. American Home Prods. Corp. bought Boiardi’s company for $6 million. The Italian-born chef continued to be active locally, acquiring several Cleveland restaurants.

When he died in June of 1985 at the age of 87, Hector Boiardi, the founder of Chef Boy-ar-dee products saw his products bring in over $500 million a year in sales. His wife Helen passed away in 1995.