JEM of a HOLE Business
by Cate Murway
‘Our Daily Bagel’ will RISE to the occasion by opening up shoppe in mid-January 2022.
It's time to chomp on your edible halos!
Two former teachers will be bringing awesome bagels and FUNtastic shenanigans to Conshohocken.
There WAS no bagel shoppe, and the former BYOB Fayette Street Grille, after struggling through the pandemic as a dine-in only had vacated, presenting a perfect location.
The Villa Joseph Marie college preparatory students are dubbed JEMS.
Entrepreneurs Marielle Bermingham Link, VJM ’03/ Fairfield University and Alysa Quinn Wylie Yakeley will be serving up CLASSY selections from their bagel mecca - not “nothing but bagels”, as the menu choices will highlight solid delectable breakfast sandwiches that may include bacon, egg, cheese, pork roll, or sausage. One of their plans is to introduce one of their own concoctions, some brie with green apple, cherry relish and bacon loaded bagels, along with a variety of fresh baked goods and muffins.
An eclectic assortment of mouth-watering cream cheeses will be offered.
Try the pastrami lox schmeared on your blissfully carby toasted discs!
The word bagel apparently comes either from the Yiddish beygel, which means bracelet, or buegel that is German for stirrup. The latter oft-repeated theory holds that in the 17th-century, a Jewish baker fashioned the first bagel to commemorate the victory of Polish King Jan III Sobieski’s Battle of Vienna over the Turks in 1683. The roughly hand-sized ring of the roll’s stirrup shape honored the ruler’s equestrian obsession.
It has since defined breakfast for Americans for centuries.
No horsin’ around!
Bagels should be found in the dictionary under delicious, [“An American Dictionary of the English Language" has sold more copies than any English book except the Bible], but according to Noah Webster [1758 – 1843] (who most probably liked his with a thick shmear), a bagel is "a hard bread roll made of yeast dough twisted into a small doughnut like shape, cooked in simmering water, then baked."
New York-style bagel dough traditionally consists of flour, water, cake yeast, salt and malt syrup, but the boiling is what makes a bagel more than just a roll with a hole!
After the rings have risen, they’re briefly immersed in a kettle of briskly boiling water and it is this step that produces the characteristic dense, chewy, doughy interior texture. This also keeps the crust from becoming too crisp when the bagels-to-be are subsequently baked at 425 degrees for about half an hour.
Once relegated as a bland breakfast food given flavor by the addition of lox and cream cheese, there are now more bagel flavors than you can imagine. The bagel has also risen up in the culinary ladder beyond breakfast fare into real meals to become a popular base for sandwiches.
Short on time? A traditional bagel can be long on taste!
One can easily elevate a morning bagel to a HOLE new level with a tempting spread.
As the new owners have confessed to not being privy to the arcane knowledge with which one must be equipped to produce a spectacular bagel, and not adept in the hallowed alchemy of bagel creation, they are planning to reach the pinnacle of “bagelness” by serving the authentic, incredible Kismet Bagels.
A bagel, you see, isn't meant to be a muffin gone awry with delusions of donuthood.
“This ‘Our Daily Bagel’ venture will be a significant departure from what I am used to doing,” confirmed Marielle. But this former Villa Joseph Marie/ St. Joseph Prep Religion teacher has always been committed to helping others, so teaming with the Kismet Bagels business fell perfectly in line.
The noun, kismet, [kĭz′mĕt] means destiny; fate.
Kismet Bagels was founded quite by accident! In the early weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic, longtime friends/ husband-and-wife, Jacob and Alexandra Cohen’s jobs in sales and entertainment were put on hold. To pass the time and find a sense of comfort amidst quarantine uncertainty, they began baking bread each morning. They started crafting/selling bagels to their neighbors and donating the proceeds to Project Home, a local organization helping the homeless in Philadelphia. To this day, a portion of every single sale benefits community charities and causes.
When each customer takes a first bite of his/her very first Kismet Bagel, each will know that the future of ‘The Daily Bagel’ is bright. Bagels are a delicious food anytime, but especially in the morning, and these Philadelphia-made bagels can truly compete with New York standards.
Co-owners/ operators, Marielle and Alysa, who formerly taught at Norristown HS, originally “met because of our daughters”, Marielle’s Hope Bernadette [6 ½] and Kendall Paige [8 ½], and Alysa’s daughter, Fallon are friends.
They are currently ambitiously refurbishing their very own 308 Fayette Street brick & mortar storefront, utilizing pews from the renovated St. Miriam Parish in Flourtown for some of the indoor seating, and are working on establishing some area corporate accounts.
“We will partner with local suppliers, purchase exceptional meat and dairy products from local farms, and we will highlight local bakers,” confirmed Marielle.
Their coffee and loose leaf teas will come from Philadelphia Rival Bros. Roasters for the best drinking experience possible.
“We will also have bags of their custom house roasted beans to sell.”
There are no professional bakers in the Bermingham family.
Marielle’s twin sister, Rachel Bermingham Bretschneider, VJM’03/ Fairfield University, is a CPA at Oink INC Radio Commercial Creative and Production, although their younger sister, Joanna , VJM‘09/ Drexel University, an environmental [specifically water] engineer does bake incredibly fantastic birthday cakes.
“Honestly, if I could live four years of my life over, I would do high school. I loved VJM and I fell in love with my then future profession in my sophomore year religion class taught by Mrs. Bernadette Boedewig. I also loved winter track and running the 60m dash because it was short and over quickly, and really, I was going to hang out with my friends anyway on a Friday night!”
Retired VJM Theology teacher, Bernadette Boedewig shared, “Marielle has always been one of the most sweetest, charming young women I have ever met. Knowing her, I am certain she will invest her best effort into everything, just as she has always done. I am certain she will be successful. She was always interested in helping others!”
Marielle’s and Alysa’s recipe for success is simple – provide great food with loving care that will make their customers/soon-to-be friends return every time. There’s absolutely nothing better!
So, c’mon in! Order, sit, eat, and hang out, or make use of their delivery apps for individual orders.
Custom bagel orders are welcome and ‘Our Daily Bagel’ mugs and t-shirts will be available.
Marielle and Alysa hope to see you mid to late January… “The goal is Wednesday the 19th!”
Our Daily Bagel [Wednesday- Sunday 7:00AM-2:00PM]
308 Fayette Street
Conshohocken, PA 19428-1935
215.666.3877
Recommend a "Spotlight". E-mail vjmrun@yahoo.com
logo created by Tara Williamson Carr
co-owners/ operators from left Marielle & Alysa
