Barcelona’s Gràcia neighbourhood now has a new bagel shop, Bagel Boy, which opened three months ago at Torrent de l’Olla 115. The bakery says it is bringing authentic American bagels to people in Catalonia who have missed them, according to co-owner Israel Hernández.
Hernández said the business has already attracted American and Polish customers, especially between 10am and 1pm each day. He also said the shop has been a success and has changed his life.
He said Bagel Boy’s bagels are different from others sold in Barcelona because of the ingredients and the daily artisanal process. The dough is prepared 24 hours in advance, and the team makes it from scratch each day. For more local food coverage, see our news tag.
The dough uses yeast, flour, water, salt, olive oil, sugar, butter and eggs. It is shaped with the classic hole in the middle and left to cool for 24 hours. Each morning, fresh dough is taken from the fridge, and more is prepared for the following day.
Hernández said boiling the bagels before baking is essential. He said that if this step is not done, it is not a bagel. The boiling gives the bagels their dense, slightly elastic texture, which he described as typical of New York-style bagels.
Customers can buy bagels to take home or eat them in the shop as sandwiches or as daily bread. The menu includes sea salt and garlic, sesame and plain bagels, with fillings such as bacon, eggs and cheese, pastrami with Dijon mustard and gherkin, and salmon with lemon, onion and capers. Hernández said the salmon option on an everything bagel is the authentic New York bagel, with toppings of poppy seeds, sesame, garlic and onion.
The project began ten years ago when Brendan, the other co-owner, who is from St Louis, became interested in making bagels. He moved to Amsterdam, where he met his wife from Menorca, and the couple later settled in Barcelona to be closer to her family. In 2023, he started making bagels at home and promoting them, first through Instagram and then through orders for cafés, gyms and corporate events. After Hernández, who worked in technology and start-ups, tasted the bagels, the two men connected and opened Bagel Boy in Barcelona.
