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Harvard students will be able to pop in to PopUp Bagels starting next Friday, Oct. 10, seven months after the East Coast bagel chain announced it was coming to Harvard Square.
PopUp Bagels will be located at 1440 Massachusetts Ave., replacing the Pokeworks that previously occupied the space. The store will kick off with festivities at 8 a.m. on opening day, according to owner Brian Harrington.
“We have a DJ at every one of them, so it’ll be super high energy and great music. We have a couple little things planned that are a surprise the day of,” Harrington said.
“We have some fun stuff that we’re doing here as well, but they got to come and find out,” he added.
PopUp Bagels announced the new Harvard Square location back in March after opening its first Boston location in Seaport at the beginning of the year. Harrington said that since their announcement, people have been looking forward to the new bagel spot.
“People just constantly stepping in the door saying, ‘When are you opening?’ and ‘We’re super excited,’” Harrington said. “We’re right in front of the T stop, so everybody that comes up the steps sees it and generates a lot of buzz from that.”
Harvard Square is already home to Black Sheep Bagel Cafe and Pavement Coffeehouse, with Bagelsaurus just down the street. But Harrington said PopUp Bagels will make a name for itself as a no-frills eatery with bagels and rotating flavors of cream cheese and whipped butter.
“The bagels are fantastic,” Harrington said. “We don’t complicate them with eggs and turkey and lettuce and sprouts and figs. It’s just all about the bagel.”
Customers at PopUp Bagels must choose at least three bagels and a schmear when ordering, which Harrington said would appeal to Harvard students as they study and socialize on campus.
“Three bagels and a schmear is the perfect snack to grab when you’re heading to study for a midterm or crank out a paper or do a group project,” he added.
Harrington said he looks forward to the increased foot traffic from the many annual fall traditions in Harvard Square and Cambridge.
“We’re opening the day before Oktoberfest and a week before Head of the Charles, so we’re coming right into a really busy time of the year in Harvard Square,” Harrington said.
More than anything, Harrington wants PopUp Bagels to provide a positive pick-me-up for Harvard students, Cambridge residents, and other visitors at any time of the day.
“It’s the best six minutes of everybody’s day that walks in the door,” Harrington said. “It’s the happiest place in the world.”
“The tunes are great, the vibe is awesome, and then the bagels are incredible,” he added.
After its opening on Oct. 10, PopUp Bagels will begin their normal hours of operation — 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., seven days a week.
— Staff writer Jaya N. Karamcheti can be reached at jaya.karamcheti@thecrimson.com.
— Staff writer Kevin Zhong can be reached at kevin.zhong@thecrimson.com.
