Talk about some serious after-school snack nostalgia; the mere mention of "pizza bagels" might take you right back to those chill afternoons when all you had to worry about was a chem quiz and having enough cash to catch a movie on the weekend with friends.
The owner of a Vancouver café is definitely tapped into that nostalgia.
"I loved pizza bagels when my mom served them in the 90’s so [I'm] happy to be now serving them up daily," says Vince, who operates the new and aptly named Pizza Bagel Cafe.
A pizza bagel takes virtually no - if any - explanation. It's all the sauce, cheese, and toppings you'd find on a pizza, except your crust is a thick, chewy bagel half.
Pizza Bagel Cafe's selection includes some classics, like cheese and pepperoni, as well as some bolder options like an Alfredo or Greek pizza bagel. They also do a veggie one and a vegan pizza bagel. The cafe first tried out the throwback food as an online order option only, but their popularity helped shift the direction of the cafe overall. Now customers can find the pizza bagels online for delivery orders and in-store, too.
In addition to pizza bagels, the café also serves up comfort eats like donuts, regular pizza, and smoothies.
"We have a breakfast menu that includes our delicious Bennys and fresh bagels and croissants," adds the operator via email. "We also have our pizza bourbon burger and croissant burger which [are] very popular on our all-day menu."
They're also doing some wild things to donuts; check out the description of the "Giant Donut Spiced R. Burger" as found online: "We take one really Big Donut and put inside it a giant organic Grade A patty Lots of organic Cheese, Pepperoni, Salami, Peppers, Olives, Mushrooms mmmm so so good Comes with Yam Fries or Nachos." (We aren't sure what to make of some of the menu items, case in point the "Tropical Chicken Pizza Bagel Cock-A-Doodle-Do.")
The space at 931 Commercial Dr that's home to the new Pizza Bagel Café is undergoing a revamp from its previous identity as the Covid Art Cafe - though it looks like the pink colour scheme will remain.
The café plans to add an English-style afternoon tea service soon, too.
Casual, stoner-friendly, nostalgia-fuelled grub is for sure a vibe on The Drive. The Pizza Bagel Café is in good company with places like the Drive Canteen, which opened in late 2021 in the neighbourhood and does stuff like loaded hot dogs, nachos, convenience foods, and shakes.
