Clematis Street is due to welcome a bagel-bearing newcomer with aims to bring a bit of New York to West Palm Beach.
The restaurant 212 Bagel Co., which takes its name from the Manhattan area code, is owned and operated by Max Ayoub and his business partner Gus Lange. It is slated to open in November in the 500 block of the popular downtown street.
Born and raised in New York City, but recently relocated to West Palm Beach, Ayoub is no stranger to the bagel or bread game.
His family has been in the baking industry for decades. Ayoub's father Joseph Ayoub founded Aladdin Bakers in Sunset Park in Brooklyn in the 1970s. They produce pocket pita bread, flatbreads, breadsticks, bagels and more. They additionally sell baked goods through their company
Baked in Brooklyn.
When he was growing up, Ayoub also worked at both Aladdin Bakers and at the retail store Baked in Brooklyn.
With ever increasing competition for bagel supremacy in our neck of South Florida, Ayoub said one thing that sets the bagels at 212 Bagel Co. apart is the water. And, no, though he jokes about it, Ayoub will not be schlepping backpacks full of bottled New York City to Clematis. Instead, 212 Bagel Co. will have a water filtration system that creates the magic for them. "A third party comes in, they test the local water supply and fine tune the filter to match the pH and minerals of New York tap water," he said.
Beyond the water, 212's bagels are hand rolled and kettle boiled for 45 seconds on each side right before being baked to perfection. He said it's the kettle boiling that helps give them that beautiful "sheen."
All of those elements are key to creating the quintessential New York bagel, but Ayoub said there is one step that many don't fully understand... "it's all in the fermentation."
Letting the dough rest for the proper amount of time is absolutely essential, he said. "That's when all the flavors are released... it's really the secret to any good bread."
Ayoub said that 212 Bagels will start by offering plain, sesame seed, poppy seed, everything and salt bagels. The cream cheeses will include plain, scallion and a specialty of the month flavor. They will also offer butter.
The restaurant will offer multiple sandwiches.
They'll have four open-faced bagel sandwiches including The Upper East Side featuring Nova salmon, scallion cream cheese, tomato, capers and pickled onion; The Upper West Side topped with whitefish salad, cucumber and pickled onion; The Soho made with cream cheese, tomato, cucumber and dill; and The Tribeca featuring cream cheese, tomato, lemon zest and chili flakes.
212 Bagel Co. will also build five egg sandwiches including The New Yorker filled with bacon, egg and cheese; The Bronx featuring sausage, egg and cheese; The West Village, a healthy delight with egg white, avocado, pepper jack cheese and spinach; The Murray Hill made with sausage, egg, jalapeño, pepper jack and avocado; and The Staten Island made with bacon, sausage, hashbrown, egg and cheese.
The one sandwich everyone should try? "Probably The Soho. It's very simple, but it's cream cheese, tomato, cucumber and dill. The Tribeca is amazing as well," Ayoub said. But then, "Let me change my answer. It's the bacon, egg and cheese. It's the bacon, egg and cheese on an everything bagel. That's the New York way... we perfected it, it tastes just like New York."
Coffee or matcha to go with those bagels?
For the beverage department, Ayoub is going with the experts. "I'm all about bagels. I don't know much about beverages." To that end, 212 Bagel Co. is partnering with Musa Coffee. Ayoub said that Musa founder Joaquin Gonzalez reached out to him recently and said "Max, can I come over and make you a cup of coffee?" After agreeing to the proposal, he said it was "the best cup of coffee ever."
Musa Coffee will be curating the beverage menu to include classics like lattes, cappuccino and espresso as well as some signature drinks like The Little Italy, The Big Apple and more.
The restaurant will also feature three specialty matcha drinks which Ayoub was very excited about. "Our matchas are going to be radical."
"Our whole thing is we're bringing New York down to West Palm Beach. I know there are a lot of New York transplants that live in Palm Beach so you know when they come in, I hope they get a little taste."
212 Bagel Co.
Where: 527 Clematis St., West Palm Beach
Hours: opening November 2026; 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday to Friday and 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
Information: 212bagelco.com
Eddie Ritz is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at eritz@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: West Palm Beach to get a taste of New York with new bagel restaurant
