PopUp Bagels officially opened its doors in Oceanside, California, on May 22, 2026, and brought one of the country’s most talked-about bagel brands to North County San Diego.
The East Coast-born concept (Westport, Connecticut, specifically) has built a cult following over the past few years for doing something deceptively simple: serving hot bagels fresh from the oven with whipped schmears and butter, then encouraging customers to “Grip, Rip and Dip” instead of turning every bagel into a towering breakfast sandwich.
There’s something about grabbing a warm everything bagel, tearing it apart with friends, and eating outside near the coast that fits the city’s laid-back energy almost too well. I went with my family, and it was fun to see all the opening hubbub.
PopUp Bagels Oceanside At a Glance
- Location: PopUp Bagels
- Address: 510 Vista Way, Oceanside, CA 92054
- Opening Date: May 22, 2026
- Known For: Hot bagels served whole with schmears and butter
- Signature Phrases: Grip, Rip and Dip and Not Famous, But Known
- Original Home: Westport, Connecticut
- Oceanside Franchise Operators: Paul Goodman and Griffin Thall
- Located In: Freeman Collective development
- Popular Menu Items: Everything bagels, scallion cream cheese, seasonal schmears, flavored butters
- Overall Vibe: Fast-paced, social, trendy, and beach-town casual
What Makes PopUp Bagels Different?
Part of the appeal is that PopUp Bagels doesn’t really operate like a traditional bagel shop.
There are no overloaded deli sandwiches stacked six inches high with bacon, eggs, and hash browns. It doesn't have endless menu boards with dozens of customizations. Instead, the focus stays almost entirely on the bagels themselves.
Customers typically order bagels by the half-dozen or dozen alongside rotating schmears and flavored butters. You cannot buy one bagel, though. The minimum you can buy is three, which is definitely an interesting concept. The bagels arrive hot enough that steam escapes when you tear them open; I practically burned my fingers ripping into it. That tearing part matters.
PopUp Bagels built its entire identity around encouraging customers to rip bagels apart and dip them in cream cheese rather than slice them for sandwiches. It sounds gimmicky until you actually try it. The crust stays crisp, the inside stays airy, and every bite tastes fresher. It's truly best immediately; even after a few hours, it loses its softness.
The company originally started during the pandemic as a backyard pickup operation in Connecticut before exploding online and expanding nationwide.
Where is the Oceanside Location of Popup Bagels?
The Oceanside location opened inside the Freeman Collective development, taking over the former Blackmarket Bakery space near Tanner’s Prime Burgers.
That part of Oceanside has become one of the city’s busiest food hubs over the past few years. Restaurants, coffee shops, breweries, and boutique food concepts continue popping up there, and PopUp Bagels slides right into that mix without feeling overly polished or corporate. It's interesting to see how this area has changed over the years; it's really trendy now.
PopUp Bagels taps into a different kind of breakfast crowd. Oceanside already has beloved local bagel shops and longtime brunch spots, but PopUp Bagels attracts people as much for food trends, social media hype, and standout textures as for breakfast itself. It’s the kind of place where people genuinely discuss the chewiness of the crust as if it were wine tasting notes.
Opening day reflected that energy. Lines formed early on May 22 as locals, influencers, curious visitors, and bagel fans packed the shop for its grand opening. The Oceanside launch even featured a special collaboration schmear created with San Diego chef Brian Malarkey: a Blackberry Jalapeño Crunch cream cheese made specifically for the Oceanside and La Jolla stores.
That flavor alone kind of captures the PopUp Bagels approach. Familiar enough to feel comforting, strange enough to make you curious.
What are the PopUp Bagels Oceanside Hours of Operation?
Monday through Sunday: 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.
What are the Prices?
3-pack with one schmear is $15.
6-pack with one schmear is $24.
12-pack with two schmears is $46.
What’s on the Menu?
The menu is intentionally compact, which makes ordering feel less stressful. Instead of overwhelming customers with endless combinations, PopUp Bagels focuses on a handful of core bagel flavors and rotating schmears.
Bagel flavors include:
- Everything
- Plain
- Sesame
- Salt
- Poppy Seed
Then come the schmears and flavored butters, where things get more creative. Depending on the season and location, customers may find offerings like:
- Scallion cream cheese
- Elote cream cheese
- Chimichurri butter
- Strawberry shortcake schmear
- Hot pickle butter
- Lemon pepper schmear
- Blackberry Jalapeño Crunch schmear
The rotating menu keeps things interesting. You might walk in expecting a simple cream cheese situation and suddenly find a limited-edition butter that somehow tastes ridiculous and perfect at the same time.
Texture also plays a huge role in why people love these bagels so much. PopUp Bagels are known for crisp exteriors and softer, lighter interiors.
The “Grip, Rip and Dip” Experience
A huge part of PopUp Bagels’ success comes from the experience itself. You can see the employees boiling the bagels and baking them in the background. There are groups of people standing around, tearing off pieces and passing schmears across the table.
Popup Bagels even has a Grip, Rip and Dip slogan.
Social media definitely helped push the brand into viral territory. Videos of steaming bagels being ripped apart have spread everywhere online, and the Oceanside opening generated excitement long before the doors officially opened.
Is PopUp Bagels Worth the Hype?
That’s probably the biggest question surrounding any viral food opening. A lot of trendy concepts explode online, generate huge lines for a few months, then quietly disappear once the novelty wears off. But PopUp Bagels feels positioned a little differently because the actual product is genuinely strong.
At the center of everything is still a very good bagel. Just hot, fresh bread. I'd say it's a good bagel, particularly because it's so fresh.
And in Oceanside specifically, the concept makes sense. The city has become increasingly food-focused over the last several years, with locals and visitors actively seeking out destination-worthy restaurants and bakeries instead of defaulting to chains.
PopUp Bagels fits neatly into that evolution: trendy enough to draw attention, casual enough for beach-town mornings, and tasty enough that people will probably keep coming back after the opening-week excitement fades.
For now, though, the lines are real, the bagels are hot, and Oceanside officially has one more place people won’t stop talking about.
PopUp Bagels Oceanside Information
Address: 510 Vista Way, Oceanside, CA 92054
Located Inside: Freeman Collective development
Known For: Fresh hot bagels, rotating schmears, and the “Grip, Rip and Dip” experience
Tip: Go early. Sellouts are part of the experience.







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