The Bagel Blog

2015 and 2016 have been years of growth and transition for us.

For more than 20 years, our original Bank street store remained open almost constantly, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, all year long. In that amount of time, we’ve baked and served millions (literally) of bagels. Last year, we started the process of renovating our flagship location in the Glebe. This was a long overdue update on not only our store, but our brand. We want to provide one of the best, if not the best, casual dining experience you will find, with a product and menu that is unparalleled. Not many businesses see the kind of traffic that we do on a daily basis. We’ve been extremely fortunate in the support we’ve received from the community, and it’s that very support that motivated us to give Kettleman’s a fresh reset and look beyond the Glebe. Read more

We’d like to sincerely thank our customers for their honest feedback regarding our logo contest that was launched a few weeks back. We were positively overwhelmed by your enthusiastic and observant responses, and swiftly reminded of how incredible our customers are!

The overall reaction was that the logos we presented were not representative of who we are and what we mean to the community. With careful consideration to these reactions and reasoning, we fully agree with you!

We’ve decided to regroup with the team to create something better suited to our brand with all your input in mind.

We feel very privileged to have such a loyal group of customers, who not only visit us regularly, but also offer their insights and opinions on our initiatives, and motivate us to work harder.

Thanks, The Kettleman’s Bagel Co Family

We’d also like to announce the winner of the six dozen bagels is Jennifer Comacchio, who in her submission said, “I really enjoy the no-wall policy that is unique to your customer experience. Read more

You live a busy life. Between work, your family, your friends, and all the activities you love, your to-do list never ends. While your schedule may be busy, that’s no excuse to skip the most important meal of the day, and thank to the delicious bagel choices at Kettleman’s Bagel Co., you don’t have to.

Here are just a few reasons you should be making breakfast a priority in your schedule. Read more

When many people walk into Kettleman’s Bagel Co., there is one thing they are after: the perfect bagel. As much as we all love these warm and chewy delights, however, how much do we actually know about them- other than they are delicious?

Fun Facts About Bagels

• According to popular belief, bagels date back all the way to 1783, and were created in honor of King John III Sobieski of Poland. An Austrian baker create the first bagels in the shape of a stirrup after the famous horseman protected the people of Austria from Turkish invaders. He named after the Austrian work for stirrup, beugel. As the beugel became more and more popular throughout Eastern Europe, the bagel was transformed into what we see today, a circular shape with a hole in the middle.

It may seem like you couldn’t be happier than you are right now. Perhaps you’ve got a great job, a loving family, and maybe you’ve had a chance to travel and explore the world. Despite all this, however, there are times when you long for the years before. What you used to consider a lackluster adolescence now has a glow that you find magical. Those first years out of college, when you lived on ramen and could barely scrape together enough money for rent each month now seem fun, free, and exciting.

This yearning is something known as nostalgia. According to Webster, it’s a yearning to return to earlier times that we remember as pleasant and happy or a former item or place that brings back happy memories. It’s wanting to return to a time when things were simpler. Read more

It’s that time of year again, when families come together to celebrate the holidays. Whether it’s Hanuka, Kwanza, Christmas, the new year or any other celebration, one thing is certain, you’re going to need a lot of food!

Rather than spending hours upon hours, cooped up in a hot kitchen preparing meals, try something different this year. Let us here at Kettleman’s Bagel Co. cater your holiday. Vegan, vegetarian, kosher or just hungry, we have platters to suit every need. Read more

Autumn is here, and it’s the perfect time to say, “I do.” especially if you love the crisp fall weather and the breathtaking colors that mark the changes of the season. Because of the rich and historical nature of our area, there are plenty of unique wedding locations right here in Ottawa, –an idea that more couples are taking advantage of. From a century old, gothic castle which is part of the Canada Museum of Nature to private historical homes and gardens, there’s something for every taste.

One thing to keep in mind when veering away from the traditional venue, is the fact that you’ll be responsible for more of the direct planning, especially when it comes to dining. In fact, one thing we hear all too often here at Kettleman’s Bagel Company, is the last minute (rather frantic) request for a catering order especially for the wedding vendors. It’s an easy thing to overlook, and if you’re big day is coming up soon you may want to double check your to-do list to make sure you’ve got this covered. Read more

“Yo Kettleman’s. What’s the deal with your knishes? They’re friggin’ delicioius”. – a guy named Lance who came to the store at 3 a.m. after a show at Irene’s Pub. 

Knishes. The deliciously simple snack food. We make them in the potato, pizza, and spinach variety. They’re considered one of our house specialities. Whether you’re on the go and need a quick snack, or if you’ve just waltzed into the store at 3 a.m. like our friend Lance, there’s never NOT a good time to have a knish. The question’s been asked regarding what the deal is with knishes. Well…there’s no deal really. Come in to our store on Bank Street, and we’ll gladly provide a single morsel, a half dozen of them, or an even dozen knishes for a very reasonable price. With that said – if you’re interested in a few small facts about the knish – we’re here to share.

According to Wikipedia….the knish was introduced to North American palettes by Jewish immigrants from the Ukraine around 1900. Read more

“Thanks for the delicious sandwich and veggie platters! My husband’s birthday party went over great and our out of town guests who originally lived in Ottawa were pleasantly surprised when they found out we had ordered food from Kettleman’s. You have a happy customer!” – Lisa Vachon, Ottawa

We’re known for our bagels – voted the best in Ottawa for 8 years running now by the Ottawa Xpress. Since 1993. We’ve essentially been constantly open 24 hours a day making them – in the authentic Montreal style. What you might not know, is that our catering service is ideal for delivering not only our famous bagels to your event or office, but also the delectable array of sandwiches and platters that we’re also known for and that we’ve been making for years.  Our breakfast and lunch catering is ideal for offices, luncheons and lunch meetings, birthday parties, family events, and even schools. This is known as “casual catering”. If you’re looking for a hip of beef and carving chef or a hot buffet  – we’re not your best pick. Read more

We’ve been around the Glebe since 1993, and we thought we’d share some of the common questions we get on a regular basis – and our answers to these questions for those of you curious about the tasty stats. Sometimes we get these questions at 3 a.m. Sometimes we get them on Sunday mornings. Sometimes we get them when people are sampling cream cheeses. When you’re open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year – you start to mentally record some of the more regular queries our customers throw our way and you’d be surprised how often we get them.

Q: How many bagels do you make a day?

Great question. We make 6000 bagels a day, or about 42,000 bagels a week, or roughly 168,000 bagels a month. Is that a lot of bagels? The answer is yes.

Q: How many eggs does your store go through in a week?

We go through 225 dozen eggs a week, or about 2700 eggs. Read more