It’s been two months since Tali’s Bagels & Schmear closed its Ward Centre location, according to business owner Talia Bongolan-Schwartz. While the business's Kailua store has remained open, the bagel biz is soft opening another Honolulu location in a spot that's close to Ward Village.
Tali’s Bagels & Schmear is opening on Friday, Aug. 21, on Waimanu Street, at the new artist co-working/gallery venue called OurSpace. While the new space is conducive to takeout, customer seating is also available.
“A bunch of the folks who started OurSpace came from BoxJelly,” Bongolan-Schwartz explains. “They asked us if we would be interested (in coming here) when we were still open at Ward.
“OurSpace is quite new; they’ve got an artist co-working space and they do a bunch of events, too,” Bongolan-Schwartz adds.
During the business’s soft opening, only in-person ordering will be available. The biz still features its most popular menu items, including the b.e.c. ($13.99) — crispy bacon, scrambled eggs, cheddar and muenster — and the OG NYC ($17.99), which features premium lox, classic schmear, local dill, capers, tomato and red onion.
Newer menu items feature turkey, ham and pastrami bagel sandwiches, according to Bongolan-Schwartz.
“We decided to step up the lunch game,” she says. “The biggest difference you’re going to see on the menu is a whole line of Boar’s Head meats and a bunch of homemade sauces — we’re making a horseradish Russian dressing, lemon caper remoulade and spicy brown mustard. We’re slicing the meat fresh, too; none of it’s pre-sliced.”
New options include the deli ($15.99) — Mesquite-smoked turkey, black forest ham, housemade lemon-caper remoulade, cheddar, Swiss, local lettuce, tomato and sprouts — and the Jewish deli ($16.99), which comprises fresh-sliced pastrami, Swiss, housemade spicy brown mustard and house pickles.
Bongolan-Schwartz expects the business’s hot pastrami ($18.99) — fresh-sliced pastrami, housemade Russian dressing, Swiss, sauerkraut and a side of house pickles — to become a customer favorite.
“That is a New York classic, kind of going for the Katz’s Deli (vibe),” she says. “We’re basically going from a bagel shop to slowly expanding into a delicatessen.”
All sandwiches are served on the customers’ bagel of choice; the Everything bagel is the most popular flavor, according to Bongolan-Schwartz.
“We’ll normally have our full assortment of bagels,” she says. “I really like the onion (bagel); it’s a good complementary flavor. I would add onion onto any sandwich anyway, so it kind of cuts out the need for that.”
The biz also features an expanded drink selection at this location. Besides sparkling water and soft drinks, customers can opt for Israeli iced coffee ($7.99) — a cold brew slushie with oat milk, local mac nut syrup and a honey-tahini drizzle — and Shaloha slush ($6.50), which is made with local lilikoʻi and a pomegranate-tahini drizzle.
Tali’s Bagels & Schmear will be open from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesdays to Mondays (closed Tuesdays). The biz has extended its hours compared to its previous location, which was closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.
“We’re definitely excited to see our old customers,” Bongolan-Schwartz says. “That was important to us — to stay close enough by that people who have been loyal to us for three years at Ward Centre would be able to hopefully just walk over here. We’re excited to see how the new menu does.
“We were nervous about the new menu because we made a lot of cuts,” she adds. “We cut a lot of things off the old menu that are pretty traditional, like our white fish salad, which is a New York deli staple. But I think this menu is going to suit the needs and desires of the people here.”
The biz will eventually do a grand opening. For updates, follow Tali’s Bagels & Schmear on Instagram.
CONTACT
Tali’s Bagels & Schmear
1052 Waimanu St., Honolulu
talisbagels.com
Instagram: @talisbagels
Open 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesdays to Mondays (closed Tuesdays)
Kelli Shiroma Braiotta can be reached at kelli@alohastatedaily.com.
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