Legendary New York Bagel Shop H&H Bagels Is Opening in Los Angeles | Eater LA

"An East Coast bagel shop is opening its first West Coast location on Montana Avenue in Santa Monica on February 26, 2025 (710 Montana Avenue, Santa Monica, CA 90403), operating daily from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Expect a menu similar to the New York locations featuring “loose bagels,” sandwiches and more — specifically a classic bacon egg and cheese on a choice of bagels, a lox sandwich, a whitefish salad sandwich, buttered bagels, tubs of cream cheese and deli salads to-go, and the option to take a dozen bagels at a time. Founded in 1972 by Helmer Toro and Hector Hernandez on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, the shop built a reputation for serving a quintessential New York bagel with a “chewy exterior that comes from kettle-boiling,” and it has appeared in films and TV shows like You’ve Got Mail, Sex and the City, Seinfeld, and more; the shop today uses the same recipe it was founded on. The company’s recent history includes a 2010 indictment of Toro for tax fraud, grand larceny, falsifying records, and violating labor law (he was sentenced to 50 weekends in jail and fined $500,000), the 2011 closure of the original Upper West Side and a Midtown outpost, and a 2014 purchase of the company’s name and assets by Jay Rushin (including an Upper East Side location). Under Rushin the brand returned to its original neighborhood in 2022 with a new Upper East Side location and has expanded to seven locations across New York City; the business also has locations across New York and one in Boca Raton, Florida, and plans further expansion to Washington, D.C., Chicago, Knoxville, and Echo Park. To give back locally, the Santa Monica franchise owner, Phil Gross, will be donating 100 percent of the first week’s profits to the California Community Foundation’s Wildfire Recovery Fund." - Rebecca Roland