Last Monday, I pointed out that a bagel shop may open at 165 Avenue A in the former Monk Thrift space... that it would be from the people who own the Bagel World stores in Brooklyn.
Well, Christopher Pugliese who runs those shops has confirmed the opening. As he said: "We're going to bring the bagel back to the East Village."
Pugliese, who has lived in the East Village the last four years, shared a lot of information with me (including the rent amount: $9,000 monthly) ... so here are some excerpts:
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If all goes well, we should be open by October the latest. When David's closed, I was very angry/disappointed. That's when the seed was planted to open a shop. I was kind of on the fence about it for a while. After I learned about how David's was pushed out by Hot and Crusty, I was motivated and on a mission to open.
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My partners and I grew up in Brooklyn and we've been making bagels since we were kids. We're going to hand roll and kettle boil our bagels. The whole place is going to be old school NYC. We're naming it Tompkins Square Bagels. We're all big into NYC history. We'll have a full deli with cold cuts, home made cream cheeses, lox, whitefish, etc. I'm going to bring in a chef to do some simple breakfast, brunch and dinner food.
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We are going to try to keep the prices really low in hopes of becoming more of a local neighborhood folks kind of spot. I'm hoping to work closely with the schools and Boys and Girls Clubs in the area, be active in the community, sponsor different events, and hire kids from the neighborhood.
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We have three shops in Brooklyn and none of them sell beer or cigarettes. I won't here either. We won't seek a liquor license. That said, I now understand why Alphabet City is overflowing with bars and restaurants yet at the same time lacking the most basic of neighborhood businesses; butcher, bookshop, fish market, etc. The only way anybody can afford to pay the insane rents that landlords around here are asking is to sell something you can markup as much as liquor.
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Honestly, some nights I get really freaked out about whether or not I'm making the right decision. None of my shops pay anywhere near that amount [of rent] and I'm in great areas: Park Slope, Cobble Hill and Fort Greene. If we're not extremely popular right from the get go, we probably won't last a year.
Previously on EV Grieve:
Bagels for Avenue A?
21 comments:
I will definitely support Thompkins Square Bagels. Seems like good folks.
13 years in NYC, and I've never had a bagel (I'm a donut guy). Since this is on my block, I now have no excuse! Can't wait, and welcome to the block TSB!
This sounds good!!!I think I have patronized the shop in Cobble Hill!!For a party we ordered a large bagel for 10--it was great. If this is not the shop--this is a good idea for a party. I am so a foodie.
I'll be there opening day!
I agree with you all. We need to support these small businesses. No more chain restaurants!
Very excited to hear about this. Hopefully it works out for them.
when can we expect it to open? i've been dying for a bagel that didn't involve a schlep to bagel bobs.
i'm convinced. sounds like a real mensch.
maybe he can work in the word "appetizing" in his signage.
I like this guy's attitude. I'll definitely dine there when he opens.
Like every other business, I will support them if they have a good product, good service, and a good price.
Tomkins Squagels! Not yo daddy's bagel!
I used to get breakfast at Bagel World in Cobble Hill all the time when I worked in Brooklyn, great bagels, and always super affordable! This is awesome, hope people keep the place packed.
Every Saturday or Sunday morning my girlfriend wakes up thinking about bagels. Our favorite Ess-a-bagel is a bit of a schlep, so we will definitely give this new place a try. As long as their offerings are better than the stale H&H's from Veselka, I don't see why a really good bagel shop can't thrive here.
How about bialys too? I miss having Kossar's on 14th between A and B...
Also onion discs -- everything!
yessss!! i'll be bageling there for sure. something so "new york" and yeah, we don't have any in the hood. can't wait.
Even though I'm allergic to gluten, I'm delighted to hear this.
Hey Chris , I'm going to do something gluten free. We're working on it now . Thanks to everyone for all of the nice comments .
I love a good bagel. With Connecticut Muffin now closed, any chance we can get a bagel place on the bowery, instead of another g d bar. heck, i'd settle for a donut shop.
To Bowery Boy: We'll deliver ;-)
Jeremiah, you stole my thought - using the word Appetizing, which by the way is on a sign on 3rd Avenue on a relatively new store, but I haven't had the chance to photograph it.
Hello Brooklyn Bagel Boys, I love you already. I hope there are enough people to pay your extremely ridiculous rent. They would never get a bar in that space, too many on that block, and still they can get that rent, it's unconscionable. Maybe Bagel Boys you can buy the building, it might be cheaper!
Or, perhaps the Blog Mafia can put out a hit on the landlord (ha ha that was a joke, not a real threat from a real mafia.)
Yes, I like this guy too. Why don't the landlords share some of the pain of this tough economy??
I did some basic math assuming a $5 bagel. To cover rent and other costs, he needs to sell maybe 80 bagels a day every day. That's alot of bagels.
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