Poppy and Seed Bagelry

Christal Cheng and Alex Daniel own a cafe in Tokyo named Frankie Melbourne Espresso. Closer to home, they were the pair behind Little Ramen Bar in Melbourne’s CBD. Poppy and Seed moves away from anything Japanese, following the couple’s trip to Canada and the US, where there seemed to be bagel shops on every block.

Here, 18-hour boiled bagels come in eight different varieties: plain, sesame seed, poppy seed, all seeds, dark rye, blueberry, cinnamon raisin and gluten-free. You can go for something simple – cream cheese or avocado filling or a housemade spread – or one of the more substantial “sandwich fillings”.

The Not a Reuben is a crowd favourite, loaded with corned beef, American mustard, melted cheese and gherkins. Another go-to is the Tuna Melt, filled with skipjack tuna, mayo, beetroot, melted cheddar cheese and greens. The Veggie Patch comes with beetroot, tomato, cream cheese and caramelised onion relish. All sandwich-filled bagels also come with a pickle and pretzels.

There’s more to Poppy and Seed than bagels – you’ll also find Doughboys Doughnuts, smoothies, juices and coffee by Allpress.