By Marissa Kleckner
As I walk up to The Bagelry, a bagel shop in Colesville, Maryland, on a cool November morning, the sun is still rising. A line of 10 people extends out of the shop’s propped-open door. As I move up in line to the door, I am hit by a wave of hot air coming from the four-foot vat just to the left of the entrance being used to boil the bagel dough before taking it to the oven. Stepping inside, the small room is full of people chatting at stand-up tables waiting for their food as the workers rush around behind the counter filling orders.
Directly in front of me, a teen girl with pink hair is taking orders. Behind the counter is a wall of bagels with every flavor imaginable. There are three variations of everything bagels alone: everything; crazy 8, an everything bagel made on an eight-grain bagel; and egg-rything, an egg bagel coated in everything seasoning. Along with traditional favorites like plain, egg, everything, pumpernickel, cinnamon raisin and onion there are a set of unconventional but exciting flavors such as chocolate chip, challah, jalapeño, cinnamon crunch, pumpkin crunch, Old Bay and even a doggy bagel.
The owner’s creativity shines through in his unique spreads, including pumpkin cream cheese, white fish salad, fresh strawberry cream cheese and even a glittered dust unicorn spread (think rainbows and sprinkles).
The familiar homemade bagels, cream cheese and kind interactions are where The Bagelry stands out. The freshness, textures and wide variety of flavor options set the shop apart and give customers a reason to keep coming back. While the deli menu leaves something to be desired, you can always count on the fresh hot bagels to hit the spot. Customers love having a familiar face greet them as they order their “usual.”
All the bagels are freshly made each morning. If you come early, you can watch the bagels being pulled from the big rotating oven that almost resembles a chicken rotisserie. The hot bagels are pulled out before getting dumped directly into the wire baskets that the workers are pulling bagels from to fill orders.
The shop owner, Steven Brecher, often serves customers at the counter. He greets them as he takes orders, filling the large paper bag with bagels and spreads. Even with the line out the door, he doesn’t miss the chance to say hello and thank each customer for stopping by.
While the shop has been able to maintain its line out the door, it has not been immune to rising inflation levels over the past three years. Small, stand-alone businesses like The Bagelry have been hit particularly hard because of their typically smaller profit margin than bigger chain brands. These stores often are not able to maintain their pricing when the cost of supplies continues to grow. According to a survey done by Forbes, 24 percent of small business owners say that inflation is their most important issue right now. With prices being up approximately 20 percent on average, small businesses are being forced to raise prices to be able to afford inventory, often losing them valuable customers.
The kindness of the staff has allowed The Bagelry to be an outlier in this trend. Despite ownership changes and rising prices, the shop has been able to maintain its customer base and cement its place as a community staple. The Bagelry was opened in 2003 by Ricky and Niva Silverstein, who ran the Bagelry until 2010 when they sold it to current owners, Tracy and Steven Brecher. While the community was uneasy about the change, a good word from the former owners and a promise not to alter the recipes, the Brechers were able to maintain the customer base. Although rising overhead and inflation have caused the store to raise prices, the owner’s authentic relationship with the community has built a sense of trust. Customers seem to have accepted the rise in prices, believing that the owners are fair and want a thriving business and a happy customer base.
In the last 14 years of their ownership, the Brechers have helped the shop flourish without losing its local gem feel. They have remodeled the inside and expanded to have a full deli and catering menu but stayed true to Silverstein’s recipe that has continued to make a line form down the path for over 30 years.
If you are in the Colesville area between 7 a.m. and “whenever they run out of bagels,” The Bagelry is a must-try breakfast spot. I would recommend sticking with a bagel and cream cheese. Make sure you explore the shop’s unique flavors. My top three would be a cinnamon crunch bagel with plain cream cheese. The crisp top from the cooked sugar of the cinnamon crunch gives the bagel a unique sweetness that pairs perfectly with the smooth savory cream cheese. A blueberry bagel with strawberry cream cheese that is full of flavor is the perfect fruity mixture for anyone with a sweet tooth. Last but certainly not least is the most unique bagel I tried, the challah bagel. The fluffy inside of it was worth another trip back alone. If you’re into the more traditional bagel fare my mom would say you can’t miss, put on the white fish salad on an egg bagel.