{"id":457275,"date":"2026-09-08T15:24:43","date_gmt":"2026-09-08T15:24:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/457275\/"},"modified":"2026-09-08T15:24:43","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T15:24:43","slug":"a-new-san-jose-pop-up-makes-the-most-unique-bagels-in-the-bay","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/457275\/","title":{"rendered":"A New San Jos\u00e9 Pop-Up Makes the Most Unique Bagels in the Bay"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Wonn Bagels is rolling out distinctly West Coast bagels with a dash of Asian American flavor.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A jalape\u00f1o-cheddar corn bagel with the works from a Wonn Bagels pop-up at Spectra Coffee in San Jos\u00e9.\u00a0(Octavio Pe\u00f1a)<\/p>\n

A decent bagel is hard to find in the South Bay. A great one? Nearly impossible. I knew I was in for something special when a line formed in front of the Wonn Bagels pop-up inside a coffee shop in South San Jos\u00e9 before it had even opened. Customers gazed longingly at the display case filled mostly with non-traditional bagels, some speckled with blueberries or topped with jalape\u00f1o slices. Later, after purchasing their bagels, they slathered them with chili crisp cream cheese.<\/p>\n

As a benchmark, I ordered a plain bagel. The shiny surface was rugged and bubbly with a firm crust. The inside was dense yet fluffy and had just the right amount of chewiness; the flavor was subtly tangy and sweet.<\/p>\n

The bagel was great \u2014 and not just by San Jose standards.<\/p>\n

Tech workers Vivian Kim and Tony Nguyen started The Wonn Bagels as a weekend project this past May, popping up once a month at the San Jos\u00e9 Japantown Farmers Market. Kim is the head baker; Nguyen is in charge of business operations. The inspiration for the business came when Kim developed an affinity for breadmaking during the pandemic. Although she never cared much for bagels, she was intrigued by the boiling and shaping process. The first time she made her own bagels, she was surprised by how much she enjoyed them. The homemade bagels came out moist and springy, unlike the tough, dry specimens she\u2019d grown up eating.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"AsianTony Nguyen (left) and Vivian Kim started their bagel pop-up as a weekend project in May of 2026. They now sell their bagels twice a month at farmers markets and coffee shops in the South Bay.\u00a0(Octavio Pe\u00f1a)<\/p>\n

The bagel recipe Kim settled on after years of tinkering is an amalgamation of several regional styles. \u201cI started exploring different bagels like New York style, Montreal style and Japanese style,\u201d says Kim. \u201cI brought a little bit of everything and came up with my own.\u201d The New York influence appears in the addition of malt (to achieve the ideal texture) and slow-proofing (which helps yield a nutty flavor Kim compares to Korean scorched rice). From Montreal, she borrowed the technique of boiling the bagels in honey water to improve the crust. And like the new vanguard of bagel shops that are now popular in Japan, she uses flour with a lower percentage of protein to create a crumb that\u2019s more tender and moist than the typical New York bagel.<\/p>\n

\"CrossThe jalape\u00f1o corn cheese bagel is indicative of the pop-up\u2019s creative, seasonal approach.\u00a0(Octavio Pe\u00f1a)<\/p>\n

Instead, Kim describes her bagels as West Coast inspired, reflective of the region\u2019s diverse food scene.\u00a0 Her favorite creation so far is a sweet double blueberry bagel, which she developed after eating too many other blueberry pastries that lacked a potent fruit flavor. The first layer of blueberry comes from mixing blueberry comp0te into the dough. The second involves meticulously incorporating pieces of fresh blueberry \u2014 by hand to avoid crushing the berries, which maintain some of their juiciness.<\/p>\n

Many of the pop-up\u2019s housemade cream cheese spreads, on the other hand, do draw inspiration from Asian ingredients \u2014 a \u201cchili crunch\u201d cream cheese and another that incorporates Japanese yuzu kosho chili paste. Kim also has a fondness for sweet bagel spreads, with flavors like strawberry compote, mango coconut and sweet corn. On the other hand, Nguyen\u2019s go-to order is savory: an everything bagel loaded with bacon-scallion cream cheese.<\/p>\n

\"APlain and everything bagels for sale at The Wonn Bagels\u2019 August pop-up at Spectra Coffee in San Jos\u00e9.\u00a0(Octavio Pe\u00f1a)<\/p>\n

At the pop-up I visited at Spectra Coffee, customers could also order a box of standard bagel toppings like smoked lox, capers, cornichons, tomato and onion.\u00a0I ordered the box so that I could build a sandwich with my jalape\u00f1o corn cheddar bagel and yuzu kosho cream cheese. The shell of the bagel made an audible crunch when I bit in, and the jalape\u00f1o bagel itself was chewy, light and spicier than I expected. The yuzu cream cheese provided a tart, fragrant contrast to the salmon\u2019s richness. It was a delicious bagel sandwich.<\/p>\n

Kim and Nguyen have sold out at every event they have booked in the last few months. They currently host two pop-ups per month, alternating between cafes and farmers markets. As farmers market season wraps up, they\u2019re searching for other locations so that they can host more frequent pop-ups. Someday, they might even open a proper brick-and-mortar bagel shop.<\/p>\n

\u201cLong-term we want to switch our careers to focus on [The Wonn Bagels],\u201d Nguyen says. \u201cNot sure when that will be, but that\u2019s our goal.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Wonn Bagels<\/a> pops up around the South Bay. The next pop-ups are at San Jos\u00e9\u2019s Japantown Farmer\u2019s Market (357 E. Taylor St.) on Sep. 13 and Spectra Coffee (5353 Almaden Expy #52) on Sep. 27. Check the pop-up\u2019s Instagram page<\/a> for the most up-to-date schedule.<\/p>\n