Snuggled in a La Jolla street corner is PopUp Bagels, one of San Diego’s new, not-so-hidden gems. After it opened just a few weeks ago, Falcons flocked south on weekend mornings for a taste of these new bagels. Famously known across the Northeast, with locations in New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut, they are expanding westward with the new spot in La Jolla and plans for locations in Los Angeles and Orange County, Calif.
Upon arrival, during peak breakfast time, the line wrapping around the corner was a bit of a scare, as was the struggle for parking in the area. About halfway through the line, a worker came around and handed us a paper bag that listed each bagel flavor and count, where we checked off our desired choices. This bag was given at the counter for us to make our payment, and then it was added to a lineup of all other bags, each one being filled with fresh bagels.
Shockingly, we had bagels in hand within 20 minutes of arrival. The efficiency of all the workers was notable through the timeliness of this quick process.. Unlike other bagel shops in the area, the menu consists of combos of three, where one can purchase three, six or 12 bagels. Each set of three bagels comes with a tub of schmear, a cream cheese of your choice.
We ordered three bagels: Plain Bagel, Everything Bagel and Signature Salt Bagel. With a tub of plain cream cheese, the total cost added up to $15, a price that arguably should be normal for bagels, but feels refreshing given the outrageous prices at other shops. With limited seating at the shop, most people walked to a local park to eat their bagel while enjoying a view of the ocean.
When we couldn’t find any knives to cut the bagels around the store, it was clear that this bagel was slightly different. PopUp Bagels has a unique twist of encouraging people to tear off pieces of their bagels and dip them in their schmear of cream cheese.
Fresh out of the oven, these bagels were warm to the touch. The thickness of the bread was delicious, but after a few bites it became very filling. We tried the plain bagel first, and the taste was beyond the typical bland plain bagel because of the noticeable quality of ingredients and bread. At times, it tasted just like bread because each bite was torn off. Overall, this bagel was a nice treat from the usual thin and less fluffy bagels from other shops.
We also tried the Everything Bagel. It had the classic seasonings, but what made it special was the fresh and airy taste in every bite. The bagel is crafted to perfection, served practically steaming and unlike a typical bagel. The Everything Bagel had flavors of garlic, poppy seeds, sesame seeds and salt, ringing in the tastefulness of a classic everything bagel, but this new form almost assisted in bringing a new charm to this classic bagel flavor.
Lastly, we tried the Salt Bagel. It is considered a customers’ favorite at Pop Up Bagels and was recommended to us when choosing our flavors. It had a slightly harder outside than the plain bagel and tasted almost like a pretzel. It was topped with big pieces of salt, contributing further to its pretzel-like form. After trying the Salt Bagel, we soon understood why it had been recommended to us; the bagel had a great ratio of saltiness to sweetness and was immediately our favorite bagel of the day.
Plain Bagel Rating: 4 / 5
Everything Bagel Rating: 4.5 / 5
Salt Bagel Rating: 5 / 5
The other bagel options were Sesame Bagel and Poppy Bagel, and other schmear options were Scallion, Salted Butter, the specialty schmear and specialty butter of the week. Overall, the fun experience and solid price creates a worthy experience, although, because it is around a 25-minute drive from Torrey Pines, it can be a haul. The other downside is that because of their airy and made-to-be-eaten hot nature, it seems like they would not stay good over a day or two, and the combo packs available could be an issue for solo bagel connoisseurs. Despite a few flaws, the bagels themselves make it all worthwhile, and we will definitely be going back for seconds.
