TACOMA, Wash. — At Tacoma's Howdy Bagel, the quick grab and go may not yet be an option, but it might be the tastiest excuse ever to be late for work.
"This is like my 7th or 8th time here," said customer Michael Rabb, "and I've waited a minimum of an hour every time. It's worth it. It's fantastic."
"It has been overwhelming," said Daniel Balgovich who began making bagels with his husband Jake Carter during the pandemic. "Lot of folks have been lining up before we open. It's a good problem to have."
They've come for bagels that are crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside.
"We probably spent a good year and a half only just working on our recipe and trying to get it to where we want it to be," said Carter. "We boil and bake our bagels in kind of the traditional way."
They sold their widely praised bagels at farmers markets and popups before opening Howdy Bagel on South Tacoma Way in June 2023. Such is the demand that they typically run out of bagels by 1 p.m. so the staff spends the rest of the afternoon hand-rolling up to 1,400 bagels for the next batch.
"So, there's a lot of love that goes into each of these product," Carter said.
He's a Texan and says the name "Howdy" has a special meaning.
"It kind of invokes this sense of warmth and bringing people together, bringing people in and I think we are trying to foster a place of inclusiveness to everyone," Carter said.
"Daniel and I both grew up in environments they were not always that way, especially to queer folks, and so to have a storefront that feels welcoming to everyone I think is a big part of who we are and what we believe the space should be," Carter said.
And if you're stuck in an hour long line, Blagovich and Carter say make the most of it.
"We had a lot of fun stories come forward about folks meeting in line and going on dates afterward or just making a new friend,"Blagovich said.
Howdy Bagel is located at 5421 South Tacoma Way and is open from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays and from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekends.
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