“The Best Place to be is Together” reads one of the first signs that a customer sees upon entering Mendham Bagel and Coffee. After spending the afternoon with Michael Looney, one of the owners of Mendham Bagel and Coffee, it is clear that they value our community and bringing us together.

For the first time in Mendham’s history, we finally have a bagel store. After the famous Coffee Shop burned down a few years, Looney seized the opportunity to not only bring back such a valued community place, but to also expand on the menu and finally bring genuine bagels to Mendham. You might remember Mr. Looney from Mangel’s Home Made Chocolate in Chester. Mangel’s is no longer open, but Looney has taken his experience and success from there to create Mendham Bagel and Coffee Shop as a welcoming environment that encourages people to come together and to eat some delicious food. Besides the friendly atmosphere, their menu is extensive and delicious. With 20 flavors of both cream cheese and bagels, it’s no wonder business is booming. 

According to Looney, the breakfast sandwiches and bagels are the most popular items on the menu. They make everything from scratch including their tuna, chicken, and egg salads. They have incredibly creative sandwiches and bagel options. Looney assisted The Patriot Staff in making some bagels so we could try them freshly made. He walked us through the process of actually making the bagel, to baking it, and finally putting cream cheese on it. We can fully confirm that the bagels and cream cheese are delicious. The bagels themselves are nice and light; they have a toasted outside with a fluffy inside. Looney creates his bagels so they aren’t “as dense, so that they can pair well with sandwiches or deli meat and not overtake the actual sandwich.” We paired our onion bagel, a light savory flavor, with 4 different types of cream cheese: blueberry, oreo, brownie batter, and birthday cake. Though we paired a savory bagel with sweet cream cheeses, it was still incredibly tasty and the onion flavor surprisingly paired well with the cream cheeses. Their other cream cheese flavors include both savory and sweet: lox, vegetable, scallion, cinnamon raisin, and many others.

Bagels and breakfast sandwiches are only a small part of their menu though. They also make different kinds of avocado toast, deli sandwiches, salads, omelettes, and even some creative sandwiches topped with chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks, and fries. Looney also felt it was necessary to include fresh healthy ingredients in their menu items as well. Their menu includes whole wheat items, mostly all grilled food, and there isn’t even a microwave in the whole place.

Since they are very community driven, most of their sandwiches are named after local places. They even have a Mendham Minuteman sandwich. They have also a clean and impressive self-serve coffee bar with dairy free options. Though the food is great, what really stands out about Mendham Bagel and Coffee Shop is the ambiance that Looney has created. His place is “good for families and for the community” according to him. We noticed this right away, especially with all of the comfortable tables and even a counter area where people can gather. If you visit on a Saturday or Sunday morning, you will see tons of families coming in for breakfast and coffee. Looney is looking to connect even more with our community by creating a wall that is filled with photos of customers and community members’ accomplishments, as well as sponsoring community events and teams. It is clear that Looney has put a lot of hard work and effort into getting to know the people in our community and he hopes to “know the majority of people by name.” 

Looney’s most memorable comment was incredibly telling of how he runs his business: “We are a family place.” It was clear in his actions and words how much he truly cares about our community and school. The Patriot wants to thank him and the rest of their staff for not only teaching us how to make bagels and how the business works, but for also allowing us to feel so welcomed and comfortable, as if we were hanging out at home with an old friend.

If you’re looking to enjoy some great food and catch up with friends, this is the place to do it. Check out Mendham Bagel and Coffee Shop in the Village Shopping Center next to Piattino’s and nearby King’s. You can also browse their extensive menu items on their Instagram posts, as well as reviews on Yelp.