Popup Bagels, NYC

Yeah, yeah, yeah.  Popup Bagels is not from NYC.  NYC is a city of great bagels.  Yes, I still was excited to try Popup Bagels.

"What started as a local sensation, founded by Adam Goldberg in Westport, CT, has quickly grown into a celebrated name. It has earned acclaim from bagel lovers and industry experts alike and led to a nationwide expansion. No sandwiches here - we serve our bagels fresh from the oven, hot and whole, to Grip, Rip and Dip."

If you are unfamiliar, Popup Bagels is now a nationwide franchise with a bunch of locations, although it really did start as a popup in Connecticut.  It is still relatively young, started only in 2020.  Their concept differs from most bagel places: Grip, Rip, and Dip.  These aren't bagels to be sliced and toasted.

"Simple menu. Exceptional product. We focus on the essence of the perfect bagel, a product so good it stands on its own. Paired with a rotating menu of epic schmears that change weekly, every choice earns its place."

They don't make a slew of varieties of bagels, only the basics (plain, poppy, sesame, salt, everything).  You can't buy a single bagel, the minimum order is 3 (for $13).  You can also but 6 (for $22), or a dozen.  They do not toast nor slice their bagels, nor do they apply the cream cheese/butter.  You certainly cannot get a bagel sandwich or pizza bagel.  You are supposed to rip off pieces, and dip them into your cream cheese or butter, which they call schmear.  

They always have plain cream cheese and plain butter, and a flavor of each of the week, which is often fairly interesting.  The week I had them, the butter flavor was chimichurri, and the cream cheese was elote.  Sometimes they are savory like this, other times they are sweet.  The flavor sometimes is in partnership with another brand, creating lots of hype.  And always so limited, so all the FOMO kicks in too.  They unique style went viral a while back, and expansion has been rapid since.

And thus, people love/hate them.  They wait in long lines, despite the fairly non-customer friendly policies.  They buy more bagels at a time than they want, cuz them's the rules, but will still complain about it.  They post about it on Instagram or TikTok, showing off their prizes.   Many New Yorkers loathe the place and will passionately tell you all about their favorite bagel place instead.  Others will still line up when ZOMG the flavor is a collab with so-and-so.

Popup Bagels has been on my radar for a bit, due to all this (mostly due to walking by and seeing the looong lines and wondering what they were for).  I didn't go wait in the line, nor did I go buy my minimum 3 bagels, but rather, I got to try them when we had them at my office to celebrate a launch.

You can get 3 plus 1 schmear for $13, or 6 plus 1 schmear for $22.

Branded Box.

For catering / large orders, the bagels come in their own branded box.  We had an assortment of all 5 flavors.

Sesame Bagel.

"At PopUp Bagels, our mission is fueled by passion and dedication: to craft unmistakably perfect bagels with no frills, using the essence of simplicity - crispy crusts, soft crumb centers, and an ideal proportion of seeds. Every bagel is a product of precision, from the high-quality ingredients in our dough to the meticulous proofing process and expert bake that achieves the perfect texture and flavor."

I went for the sesame bagel.

Ok, I was impressed.  This bagel had such a remarkable chew!  I sorta see the appeal of this rip and dip style.  The crust was so inviting to break into.  It was well crusted in sesame seeds.  I'm usually one who does lightly toast a bagel, but yes, for this style of bagel, you don't need that.

A good, different, bagel experience.  I'd gladly have another, but, I wouldn't go deal with their lines/minimums for it.  4/5.

Salted Butter. $7.

I also tried the butter.  Yes, it is just salted slightly whipped butter.  But it is very good butter.  Go wait in a line for it butter?  Of course not.  But, very pure flavor, very high end butter.  4/5.