How did Masses Bagels start? What sparked the idea and how did it all begin?
Our obsession with bagels started almost 8 years ago now, we were living in Japan at the time and there was the best little bagel shop in the town where we lived. We ended up making friends with the owner and she taught us how to make our first bagels.
These bagels were very different to what we now make at Masses Bagels — they were much fluffier and sweeter but she made really interesting flavours like brown sugar and walnut or Earl Grey — always packed full of cream cheese. That was the beginning of the bagel journey and we spent the next five years perfecting our bagel before we launched Masses Bagels.
Can you share a bit about what you were both doing before Masses Bagels, and whether this was a natural step or more of a leap into something new?
Jack is originally from a small town called Feilding in central New Zealand and has been a chef for the last 15 years. He moved to Melbourne 9 years ago and has worked in heaps of great restaurants, including Embla, Etta and as the head chef of Hector’s Deli when they first started expanding.
Since the pandemic, Jack has moved into baking. He has worked at a few bakeries in New Zealand, headed up the bread programme at Sherwood in Queenstown, and spent the past year at Wild Life Bakery in East Brunswick. I feel Masses Bagels is all of this experience combined into a fermented bagel.
As for myself, I studied and worked in Fashion for most of my adult life and when we came up with the idea of opening Masses Bagels, I left fashion and got a job at Market Lane Coffee. Prior to opening our shop, I worked there for 5 or so years and managed several of their cafes across Melbourne. We now use Market Lane coffee and still work very closely with them.
For those who haven’t tried one yet, how would you describe a Masses bagel?
Refined but not pretentious — we are just trying to create something that we love to eat.
What’s your most popular order, the one people keep coming back for?
110% the Pickled Green Tomato on an Everything Bagel.
Your menu changes seasonally, with really fab flavour combinations. How do new ideas come to life? Is there a lot of testing and experimenting behind the scenes?
First and foremost, we use the best produce we can get. We currently work with Dog Creek Growers, Day’s Walk Farm and Natoora and we are always experimenting with preservation methods to add depth of flavour.
Is there a bagel on the menu or in development right now that you’re particularly excited about?
We have had a persimmon bagel on the menu now for some time and it has become a cult favourite. Sadly persimmon season is slowly coming to an end and we will shortly be replacing this.
Next on the menu will be slow roasted celeriac and shallot, goats curd and crispy cavelo nero. This bagel is particularly good when made dairy free/vegan. We created this one last year at the markets — replacing the goat’s cheese with our salted cashew cream is a great hack.
How did the evolution from the markets to your Fitzroy bagels shopfront take place, and what has the shift felt like for you?
With a lot of patience and perseverance! We both worked full-time and did Masses Bagels on the side. We prepped late nights and baked early mornings to get our bagels ready for the market. We did this for two years, saving enough to sign a lease of our own.
What do you love most about being based in Fitzroy, and how has the neighbourhood shaped Masses Bagels?
We love being a part of what some might call the ‘sleepy’ end of Smith Street, and we are seeing more and more cool places pop up and bring more life into this part of Fitzroy.
Are there any local spots you find yourselves returning to for a meal, an after-work drink or just a change of scene after a busy day?
So many places — we love Calere and City Saints, they both do the best coffee. When we were building the fit-out, we lived at these two cafes.
You’ll literally find us every Tuesday night having a steak at the Marquis of Lorne or lasagna by Nostra at the Gem. I also have to mention Gogyo Ramen, Fluffy Torpedo, Pidapipó and the girls down at Reh Liquids! I’m also really looking forward to trying The Pontian Club across the road from us.
Finally, can you share what’s coming up next? Are there any flavours, collaborations or ideas you’re working on as we head into the (even) cooler months?
We’re about to introduce a side of soup. I am really excited for this, I am a big soup fan and I love having a cup of soup with a bagel. These will be the same concept as our tartines. Simple, seasonal and just using great produce. We also have some exciting collabs coming up that we can talk about soon!
Stay tuned for Masses Bagels meets Pidapipó
Masses Bagels will team up with Pidapipó Laboratorio to create a limited-edition sourdough doughnut inspired by their signature bagels. This limited-time collaboration will be available at Pidapipó from 4 to 10 August.
🕰️ Open Tuesday to Saturday, 8 AM to 2:30 PM
📍Masses Bagels: 5 Smith Street, Fitzroy
📸 Images: Charlie Hawks
