Inglourious Bagels, located in the La Costa neighborhood of Carlsbad at 6955 El Camino Real (92009), opens this November, serving up traditional New York style bagels and schmears with bravado.

Along with the Tarantino-style spelling, the shop’s name is also inspired by the real Jewish heroes of Operation Greenup, the real-life story in which (Tarantino’s film) Inglourious Basterds was based – a general sense of strength through adversity. Inglourious is also in reference to the imperfection of handmade, locally produced food.

The menu, inspired by Jewish New York bagel bakeries and delicatessens, boasts over a dozen bagel flavors, an equal number of flavorful schmears, and a multitude of stacked bagel sandwiches. Coffee and espresso are also prepared on-site with local roasts from Café Motto, as well as smoothies, salads, pizzas and even a Matzo Ball soup. Everything is made in-house, using premium ingredients, with focus on local and organic when available.

The shop is currently open as a “soft opening.”

A Grand Opening celebration will take place on Saturday, Nov. 26 from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and will feature the full menu, plus giveaways, a raffle to win a free bagel & schmear every day, for a year,

live music, face-painting for the kids, and more. 20% of all proceeds on the grand opening
will go to
Surf for CF (Cystic Fibrosis Foundation), a charity near to the owners’ hearts.

Inglourious Bagels is a joint venture between Brian Gruber, owner of La Costa’s award-winning Notorious Burgers, and a few of his close friends – Phil Gunther, Andrew Brewer, and Randall Sims.

“It’s all about the water,” says Gruber. “We really wanted to capture the great texture and flavor of the bagels that you expect in Brooklyn and Manhattan. I studied the technique and the ingredients, visited some of the best bagel shops, and even learned from a few that were willing to share their secrets. The one thing that was missing was the water.” As some may have heard, New York water has an almost magical mythos when it comes to food and baking. Experts suggest that this is due to the relative “softness” of the water in the Big Apple, and its mineral and salt content.

“Obviously we couldn’t ship water all the way across the country,” added Gruber. He and his business partners hired a chemist to assay the water from some of the best spots in the city and they formulated a process and a recipe to recreate it.

“We start by distilling our local water to make it pure,” explained Gruber. “Then, we balance the pH, mineralize, and add the necessary salts to replicate New York’s.” The result is a crisp copy of that magical water that they believe adds to both the quality and authenticity of their New York style bagels.

Inglourious Bagels believes in charitable giving and the community. In addition to working with Surf for CF, they are making weekly donations to The Gleaning Field Foundation, an all-volunteer faith-based organization that serves the homeless, poor, and low-income of North San Diego County.

Additionally, they have created a Strawberry bagel, pink in color, where 50 percent of the sales of that flavor through the end of the year will be donated to Susan G. Komen for breast cancer research and support.

The shop is open Monday through Friday from 6:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 7:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. To reach the store, please call (760) 444-0434.

For more information, visit www.InglouriousBagels.com, and follow @InglouriousBagels on Instagram.