Serafim was born in Viniani and was the son of George Mantis and Maria Papaspiros (Mantogeorgena). He came to America in 1953 and married Lillian Klasnick in 1956 in Library, Pennsylvania. They had two children: George and Mary Ann. In 1969, they moved to Charlotte, North Carolina, where he worked in several restaurants before owning the Golden Eagle Rest.

In 1980, Serafim & Lillian moved to Chicago, Illinois. He was a member of the American Culinary Federation of Chicago, as well as the Head Chef at Lake Forest Academy at Lake Forest, Illinois, from 1981 to 1983. In 1985, they moved back to Charlotte to be with their children and grandchildren. Serafim made his last trip to Greece in 1993. He passed away a year later in 1994. Serafim was a skilled chef, bowled both casually and competitively (the latter as part of a team called the Golden Greeks, which won several local tourneys in Chicago), and was a proud Mason and Shriner. He was a loving father and grandfather, and is survived by his two children (Mary-Ann and George), his four grandchildren (Justin, Jason, Nichole, and Joshua), and four great-grandchildren (Lillian, Sophia, Hunter, and Mason).