“My love of bagels comes from having a good hockey game and my mom would take me to Dunkin Donuts to get a toasted sesame bagel with cream cheese and I thought it was just the bees knees,” said Hutchinson, who is chef and owner of Olmo.
When he put down the hockey stick, he picked up another hobby: serving up the best bagels in town.
“A bagel with cream cheese should reinvent your expectations of a bagel and cream cheese when you come eat with us,” Hutchinson said.
It’s a bold quest for a food that’s been around for more than 400 years but the owner says there’s a formula behind their enormous success.
“New Haven water start there,” Hutchinson said.
Next, freshly milled grains and a hearty resting period.
“We do a long fermentation process on it, which builds a lot of flavor, so it’s actually more similar to a sourdough than it is just like a normal New York bagel if you will,” said Hutchinson.
Bakery manager Zena Alexiades says the real secret is the friendly faces behind the counter.
“We have so many regulars that always come in and say how much they love to come for the staff. And it’s really a testament to their hospitality,” Alexiades said.
When it comes to putting together some of their most popular items like their bacon egg and cheese, lox with love, or the health nut, the rule is local is always best.
“We love to use local ingredients. We work with a number of local purveyors and partners for our coffee, our dairy, even like our printing and we can stay as close to our home base, we do,” Alexiades said.
