Bagel Point has soft-opened at 787 Lexington Avenue.
Rainbow. Unicorn. Spiderman. Zebra. With names like these, you might think you’re at a theme park. In fact, these are aptly named specialty bagels at Bagel Point, a Greenpoint, Brooklyn-founded bagel shop that had its soft opening at 787 Lexington Avenue (between 61st and 62nd streets) on Wednesday.
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Their grand opening will be on Monday, March 11—and they will be giving away 200 lox sandwiches for the occasion. According to co-founder Sam Kaplan, the Commissioner for the NYC Department of Small Business Services will be present. His name is Kevin D. Kim.
The Rainbow bagel at Bagel Point looks exactly how it sounds—swirls of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple. But appearances can be deceiving—the Rainbow is just a hand-rolled plain bagel with 5% vanilla.
A rainbow bagel with cream cheese.
The Unicorn, Spiderman, and Zebra all have the same taste but are colored according to their names. Another unique item at Bagel Point is the cragel—a cross between a croissant and a bagel.
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Along with bagels, Bagel Point has coffee, tea, sandwiches, fruit and yogurt cups, and rainbow cookies. Their selection of cream cheeses includes blueberry, strawberry, red velvet, pumpkin spice, apple cinnamon, and birthday cake.
Bagel Point offers both specialty and standard bagels and spreads.
Bagel Point first opened in 2019 in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, where Kaplan was born and raised. Kaplan’s father immigrated to the neighborhood in the 1960s from Yemen, where he was involved in the bread business. When he moved to the United States, he opened several grocery stores and delis, including Superior Deli on the Lower East Side. Kaplan worked on Wall Street for 25 years, but food has always been his passion. In 2000, he opened Smith Street Bagels in Downtown Brooklyn, and Bagel Point was born nearly two decades later.
Sam Kaplan at his newly opened UES shop.
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Kaplan shared that when the Greenpoint location first opened, neighbors were skeptical because it had the look and feel of a franchise but that their attitude changed when they learned that he was born and bred in the neighborhood. He further said that since coming to the Upper East Side, replacing what used to be a Boar’s Head Cafe, “we have felt so welcomed. We love it here.”
While the staff are still being trained and getting everything ready for the grand opening, they are excited to have already interacted with so many neighbors and to officially welcome everybody on Monday.
READ MORE:
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Olde Brooklyn Bagel Shoppe Opening on Second Ave
Tompkins Square Bagels Opening on Upper East Side
Everybody needs an angle. Good luck!