Bagel lovers and the merely curious alike turned out in force for today's grand opening of PopUp Bagels at 7607 Old Georgetown Road in Bethesda. The line to get in still stretched out the door and around the block over four hours after it opened this morning. Among the draws was the chance to taste the Bethesda-exclusive Chesapeake Spice Cream Cheese schmear, which might have been worth taking the Acela south for the PopUp completist. PopUp Bagels arrived from the bagel capital of the world, New York City, with tremendous hype. Now we'll see if that hype can be sustained as the out-of-town chain confronts the local competition of Bethesda Bagels, Call Your Mother, and Georgetown Bagelry.
13 comments:
The line got shorter quick when they realized they couldn't buy just one bagel but 3 at $15 instead. A long long for a mere bagel shop is almost embarrassing.
I had their bagels. Fluffy as advertised but pretty small and not worth anywhere near their going for price. Bethesda Bagels is a much better local deal, and even call your mother though expensive has tastier bagels.
1,000% agree with both JAC and 3:17. Fools and their money…
Let a million bagels bloom.
Tried the crab seasoning cream cheese today. Kinda gross. Felt slimy. No burno 🙁
They know their customers and what they are willing to spend. Not everyone worries about $15 and bashes businesses as if it’s your job to sway people away from them.
8:25 - They definitely know their business thus far but it remains to be seen if they know their customer in this case. Bashing a business as if it's a job to sway away? This is a local blog with a comment feature. I said their product is likely good. But I question whether or not this area will be interested in paying $15 for a minimum 3-bagel order. I don't see how that's bashing or trying to sway away anyone as you say. Bagels, for folks that drive everywhere, isn't the healthiest choice anyway so there is that.
MORE BREAD!!!! there is no shortage of bread in Bethesda!
8:25 👍
Is this just a fad? We'll know in six months.
Did they think they were giving them away free?
Right. A lot of people on this blog enjoy announcing to the world they don’t have money.
Heaven help the person who doesn’t go with the crowd, eh 8:25? For the impertinence of expressing skepticism and/or disdain for the gimmicky PopUp franchise, (borne out, in my opinion, by people —all of them young, at least in the pic I have seen of the event— standing in lines around the block for *bagels*)
I shall let you in on a secret, 8:25: sometimes, people will have opinions that diverge from yours. If you want to stand in line and spend $15 for mediocre bagels —it’s Maryland, where the water is wrong for authentic NY bagels— you can get elsewhere for less, go for it, knock yourself out. Stand and be counted among the fearless who proudly shout to each passing huckster and grifter, “Me! Me! Take my money!!”
You and I see discussions and choice differently, it is clear, but we agree on at least one point: PopUp absolutely, unquestionably knows exactly “their customers and what they’re willing to spend.” Which is precisely why I say again, fools and their money…
You just know 1:45 is going to be dining at Beef 'O' Brady's tonight.
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