EVERETT, SEPT. 23: Katherine Hillmann remembers summers filled with bagels and East Coast charm during family visits to New Jersey.
After a successful run at her first business venture with South Fork Bakery, located on the Everett Waterfront, she decided it was time for a sister shop inspired by her love for her home away from home.
Hillmann’s Bagels will open at the former Strawberry Patch Cafe on Colby Avenue in downtown Everett, and will supply a variety of bagel flavors, smears, deli sides and brewed coffee, all with an East Coast flair.
“Everyone just wants a really good, nice chewy bagel that is satisfying and sticks to the ribs. And so we are going to bring that,” Hillmann said.
Hillmann always had a love for baking and began selling pastries and baked goods from her house in 2016. Her philosophy is quality over quantity, working with the best locally sourced ingredients.
Nearly four years later she signed a lease at the Everett waterfront and the rest is history.
South Fork Bakery recently celebrated its two-year anniversary at the location. The shop offers scones, cookies, croissants, breakfast sandwiches, coffee, and more.
Hillmann’s Bagels however will solely feature the titular bagels as its main attraction, having six to eight flavors at a time. A small menu of breakfast and lunch bagel sandwiches will also be available.
“I recently got a comment where a woman said, ‘I hope this impresses my uncle from New York,’ and I was like, ‘I hope so too, babe, that’s the goal.’”
Hillmann’s will have a nightlife aspect, staying open until 10 p.m. on weekends to offer “Rippers” a New Jersey classic and canned beer, Hillmann said.
Both eateries have a ‘first-come, first-served’ principle, to ensure quality and to reduce end-of-the-night food waste. Any food leftover is donated to a local low-barrier food bank, Hillmann said.
The shop is anticipated to open after the New Year. Hours of operation are still being finalized.
