Brooklyn Water Bagel's 14-Step Water System — Dan Smith

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dan smith: There's something else my case, I think it would be a different drummers sometimes. I'd like to say each of them every time I meet some couple. So it's not like T four.

Jeremy Julian: today. Today we have a brand that's a definitely an up and comer. And I've kind of seen these guys making

dan smith: But we can kind of stand these up.

Jeremy Julian: their rounds and, you know, social and at trade shows and and all of it. And so I'm excited to hear a little bit more about their story. But before we jump into kind of the brand itself, Dan, why don't you introduce yourself to our listeners and give a little bit of your background, kind of where did you come from and kind of a little bit about where you've been at before we jump into kind of

dan smith: Before we jump into to introduce yourself to listeners and kind of where you come from and kind of want to know about what you've been talking before

Jeremy Julian: what you guys have been doing at at Brooklyn Water

dan smith: you guys become.

Jeremy Julian: Bagel.

dan smith: Yeah, thanks, Jeremy. Thanks for having me today, too. I really appreciate it. my name's Dan Smith and I am the CEO of Brooklyn Water Bagel. I've been in the restaurant business my entire career and I would say I've actually been in all aspects of the business. I started in the the QSR fast casual part of the industry, originally with Domino's Pizza and spent some time with the young brands out there, and then got into casual dining and entertainment, eatertainment, I guess we should say, and did that for a period of time and then sort of evolved into boutique hotels and fine dining and did that as well. along the way I did some consulting. And while I was consulting, I got involved with Brooklyn Water Bagel and just fell in love with the concept. I mean, it's just a fantastic restaurant concept. I really liked the quality of the products. I liked the culture and the people. And I was asked to join the company full time at the time of the pandemic, and I did so, and I've enjoyed every minute of it.

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dan smith: I love it. I guess talk to a little bit

Jeremy Julian: since you've been kinda all over the place within within the the world of of restaurants, talk to me about what what made Brooklyn Water bagel unique enough that you said, Hey,

dan smith: Absolutely.

Jeremy Julian: this is where I want to my hang my hat for some period of time. because I I think you guys have got kind of unique a unique story and quite honestly it's hard to hard to get good bagels in in l in lots of places in the world, especially I'm a I'm originally an

dan smith: Like they can look over again and quite hard to get bagels to look and look at lots of places and we're just

Jeremy Julian: East Coast guy and I'm used to having good bagels and and living here in Fort Worth. There is one guy that's figured it out, here locally, but he's an East Coast guy that kinda kinda kinda spent a whole bunch of time trying to figure it out. But I'd love to understand what about Brooklyn Water Bagel drew you to to say, Hey, I

dan smith: I was kinda kinda kinda kinda spent a whole bunch of time trying to figure out, but it helps out understand what about Brooklyn Bagel do you?

Jeremy Julian: wanna hang my hat here for a little bit.

dan smith: Yeah, I think it was the focus on quality and the details. that the restaurant concept really encapsulated both of those things together. And I think a lot of people talk about quality, but it is an absolute reality here. And I and the details. So Brooklyn Water Bagel once To be able to make an authentic New York bagel wherever we are in the world. And if you are from New York or lived in New York or visited New York and you have New York pizza or New York bagel, people say, What's the difference? Why is this so great? Why is this so unique? And locals will say, It's the water. It's all

Jeremy Julian: Mm-hmm.

dan smith: about the water. It's all in the water. and in fact, they're right. New York water coming out of the cat skills. Has a mineral composition that is specifically great for the baking process. So a Brooklyn water bagel, we said we want to start doing New York style bagels everywhere. We knew we needed to have the water. And originally we looked at shipping water to Florida, which was really expensive. And you actually can't take water over state lines like that. So we went to a water expert and we analyzed what is unique about New York water. And we created a 14-step proprietary water system that actually filters the water, purifies the water, and adds those New York minerals to give it that success, that strength in baking that regular water in other areas just doesn't have. So we could really make a New York style bagel. That to me, going through that whole process and being focused on that, so that you can make that really special bagel. is awesome. And then there's a bunch of other things. You know, we out of the gates used non-bromated flour, other concepts use bromate, potassium, bromate's cancer causing. we kettle our bagels. So we actually boil them so you get a crunch on the outside. We're boiling them in that water and so forth and and giving it that extra yard. And and even today as we continue to do our bagels, we do special things. Like recently we introduced a line of sourdough bagels. We have to hand roll those sourdough bagels and because the stickiness of the dough and so forth, and you're you know, you're growing that sourdough and nurturing it every day and so forth. And that's not something you're finding in other bagel restaurants because it's unique. It we pride ourselves on being old world artisanal bakers and giving that experience. And then it just goes into everything out there. When I said the details part of it, we have our own coffee roastery. We we go out and purchase our own coffee beans from South America and Africa, and we roast our own coffee. So we're not selling a a commodity coffee at all. We're doing it a special way. But when we give you an iced coffee, we actually make coffee ice cubes. So we make coffee

Jeremy Julian: well.

dan smith: ice cubes by the way your grandmother used to on a coffee tray. You have to break them and you put the coffee ice cubes in there. But that's the details, that's the focus on quality. It's like anybody could go out and buy commodity style coffee and anybody can pour it over ice and say that's an iced coffee. With us, it's you know, you don't want your co your iced coffee diluted with, you know, regular ice cubes. When our ice cubes are melting, they're injecting that flavor of coffee in into your drink. And it's it's special, it's unique. And nobody else does that because it takes extra time, it takes extra care. That's the commitment to quality though, and that's the commitment to the details that make us unique. And it's why I want to be involved and I think why our team likes being involved with the concept.

Jeremy Julian: Well, and and it's amazing to hear that you guys have gone to that length for something that I don't want to say is humble, but a bagel's just kind of a humble meal that a lot of people have. It's kind of pick it up, you know, in New York City or pick it up on the way to work out of a out of a you know, a cart on the side of the road. Yes, there's some fantastic bagels, but at the same time, I look at what you're saying. Funny enough, I didn't realize that that transporting water across state lines was an issue. we had a customer years ago that was a pizza place on the West Coast and they used to get the dough made in New York and ship the dough. and reproof

dan smith: Right.

Jeremy Julian: it back on the West Coast and you know, you could get real, real New York style dough on the West Coast. But it was very much the same idea of like, hey, how do I take this and transport it? Because anybody that's had a true New York well done bagel, it's different.

dan smith: Yeah, and in that pizza place, I mean they're going the extra yard I mean, that makes a difference. And the guests can tell that you've put that kind of care, that kind of love into your product, and that's what's helped us be successful.

Jeremy Julian: Yeah, no, and I and I appreciate you you walking through that, Dan. So what I guess drew drew this this concept to bringing bagels, I guess, that that people need to experience. You guys are, I think, based in Florida. So it's like you, you you've taken kind of this New York, New York deal. You can

dan smith: Yeah, yeah.

Jeremy Julian: find a bagel just about anywhere, but there's a difference in in what you guys are offering. I guess why go to that lengths?

dan smith: Yeah, tricky.

Jeremy Julian: It's expensive, it's hard to maintain, it's hard to continue to innovate. And I

dan smith: Right.

Jeremy Julian: love listening to brands that go, you know what? Because it's worth it. You know, you said it earlier and I I

dan smith: Yeah, yes.

Jeremy Julian: guess I'd love to to as a leader in the business, how do you continue to enforce that? Cause it's hard. It's hard to, you know, it's easier to cut corners. It's easier

dan smith: You're

Jeremy Julian: to be like, we're not doing this fourteen step process to to do the water. I'm I'm gonna use some of this, you know, regular yeast or whatever it is on your sourdough. I guess I'd love to to have you kind of walk through a little bit of that. why is that such a critical component to the brand and what it is that you guys believe in?

dan smith: It is a commitment. And when our team members join the company, that explanation is given to them right out of the gates. You know, we've trademarked it's all about the water. We have a water system in every one of our locations out there. So they know that this component is core to what we do. And that allows us to talk about all the other products that we're doing and why the details make a difference. And you can just tell when you get our bagel and it's got that nice crunch when you buy it in. And it's, you know, got a bit of a chew, a bit of a pull with it, it's different. We also put seeds around our entire bagel. A lot of concepts only seed half the bagel. We want the guests when they come in to say, wow, that is a special, unique experience, and come back time and time again.

Jeremy Julian: Love that. I was talking about the guy that's just up the road that that kind of, you know, again, New York guy couldn't find a bagel that he liked here in Dallas and and decided

dan smith: Cal it's

Jeremy Julian: to go literally was a I think it was an attorney or something and and he decided, and so he's local here in the town that I live in, but he kind of went down that same route of I I gotta figure this out and and went down that route. I know you guys don't just sell bagels, bagels and cream cheese, bagels and butter. There's more to kind of the bagel offering. I guess I'd love to have you walk through a little bit more of the offering because again. Unfortunately a lot of places, it's just bagels I'm only open in the morning. I know you guys have got some other offerings that kinda help not only transpose to you know, the morning day part, but some of those other day parts to to expand their menu offerings and deliver real high quality, not just at the bagel level, but everything else.

dan smith: Yeah, sixty percent of our of our mix is breakfast, but forty percent is lunch. So besides doing, you know, bulk bagels and spreads and salads and so forth, like chicken salad and tuna salad that we make fresh daily in our restaurants, besides that we're making you know breakfast sandwiches. and we are making deli style sandwiches and melts and so forth on the menu. and we have soup. We have our infamous bagel dog that people love, that we actually take a hot dog and we wrap it with our bagel, and it's got you know great flavor. so we have a lot of elements and a lot of things that people can choose from. And we also are trying to meet everybody's health needs. So We have vegan bagels, we have gluten free bagels, we have sourdough bagels. We're doing, you know, for those people that really have an active lifestyle, we do avocado toasts on a sourdough bagels, you know, that you're picking up the superfood component that's really beneficial to you, and you're picking up the gut health issues with sourdough and so forth. So we are concerned about that. We're focused on those things as well, and I think people appreciate that.

Jeremy Julian: Yeah, and in that, I you talked about the, you know, a newer offering and then kind of the sourdough style. Is that brand new? Is that, you know, six months a year? It again, you guys had something that was working. I guess I'd love to understand what what went into that process. Because again,

dan smith: Yeah, so that was not gonna be something to understand.

Jeremy Julian: as as you've been in the restaurant space for a long time, some people try and do too much and it ends up hurting the product. So I guess I'd love to to understand for our listeners out there, how did you balance meeting the customer demand where

dan smith: So on for our listeners out there, talk to that material.

Jeremy Julian: they wanted it, but being able to execute still at a high level?

dan smith: Yeah, we introduced our Beggles with Benefits program in January. And that's when we got into sourdough. But I think there was certainly interest that was growing across the country. people looking at sourdough and participating in sourdough. When you when Taylor Swift starts talking about making sourdough bread and that's a part of her every day and how much she appreciates it as part of her diet and so forth. Know people start to to get interested. And we said, hey, let's let's get involved in sourdough and see what we could do. We were able to create a different type of bagel and a really fantastic bagel. So it's a little bit more of a crunchier bagel, which I I really, really enjoy it. But you pick up that sourdough flavor in there and so forth, and it's special. so we we did that, but I think we're always looking at sort of trends and nutritional issues. and dietary issues that people have. And again, trying to give people what they want, make our menu part of what they do without really compromising and going in some crazy direction that makes no sense. a sourdough bagel makes sense. An avocado toast bagel makes sense.

Jeremy Julian: Yeah, well, and again, you guys have got the got you know, Brooklyn Water bagel on on the building. You know, if you guys start

dan smith: Right.

Jeremy Julian: serv serving ribeyes, it's gonna be maybe a challenge. People go, Am I going there for ribeyes? Probably not.

dan smith: Maybe I can see a bit music.

Jeremy Julian: what's what talk to me a little bit about the menu offerings beyond kind of just the standard bagels. You know, you guys I did some research on on the company. Like I said to you before we hit record, I've not had the privilege of of going. I've met a couple of people on your team at different trade shows throughout the years, but what is

dan smith: That you've got a bond of climate and petrol chills throughout the years. But what is outcome this gap reaction is obviously covered.

Jeremy Julian: You know, kinda what's the offering? Is it a is it a walk up and and you you know, you see the bagels? Is it a walk up and grab it yourself? Kind of talk me through the offerings of just kind of the standard bagels and then how does that fit into kind of the lunch, you know, how do I how do I make a a a a sandwich out of a bagel? I'd love to kind of walk through that menu offering and kind of what's the guest experience look like?

dan smith: Yeah, we're all about service. We're all about giving you a great full service experience. and I I maybe you're touching on this. I know some concepts are out there right now and they you know, they're not gonna toast your bagels or cut your bagels or put your cream cheese on your bagel or anything like that. that's not us. We're gonna do that for you. We're gonna put your show

Jeremy Julian: It blew me away. I walked into one of those new phone concepts and I'm like, what? I gotta I gotta put my own smear on. I gotta go cut my own bagel. What is this crap? I was like, I'm nothing against them. The bagel happened to be pretty good, but it was like this is a weird experience and I paid just as much as if I would have had somebody help me do it.

dan smith: Yeah, and putting a schmear on a bagel, like you just said, Jeremy, I mean, that's that's that's heart and soul. That's part of the bagel experience out there. So yeah, we're gonna make sandwiches for you, we'll toast your sandwich, we're going to put your cream cheese on a sandwich, we'll make a Reuben for you, we'll make a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich for you, we'll make a tuna melt for you or a pizza bagel for you. We're gonna do all of those things and and make it a special experience for you. So you get in, you walk

Jeremy Julian: I appreciate you sharing.

dan smith: in and you get your bagel your way. What I don't wanna go is, you know, somebody's like, I I want my bagel triple trip triple toasted. Okay, great. We could do that. I want my bagel scooped, of course. We're gonna do that for you. Some people don't want, you know, the full bagel. You want it scooped? Done deal. We got you squared away. People ask all different kinds of things. We want to take care of the guests and give them experience. I'm gonna go, no, we don't do that. No, we don't do that. No, we don't do that. It's not a great place to be.

Jeremy Julian: Well, and I think that really comes in from kind of some of your background of work in full service and some of these other places that says, no, this is we're in the hospitality business and this is what we do. Dan, I'm gonna pivot

dan smith: Right. Exactly right.

Jeremy Julian: just a couple of minutes. Talk to me a little bit about your off prem

dan smith: Okay.

Jeremy Julian: business. I know a lot of times, you know, again, the traditional bagel shop is walk up, it's breakfast, it's lunch, you know. obviously I I think a lot of our listeners, myself included, have been to lots of different bagel shops. But the one thing I love about bagels is they

dan smith: Practice. It's one, you know. obviously I I no longer listener myself included have been lots of different backlash, but the one thing I really

Jeremy Julian: travel well. They travel well, whether that's for off site, for catering. They also travel well for delivery and third party, you know, offerings. I guess I'd love for for you to tell our listeners a little bit about the strategy there and how do you keep the quality of your product but still be able to deliver because oftentimes if you walk in and you got a couple hundred dollars worth of off prem sales, that helps to bolster that meal period for you quite a bit.

dan smith: Yeah, it it is critical. And the great news is we've spent a lot of time working on it and the integrity and the quality of that of those bagels and sandwiches really endure and really go well, especially in a delivery scenario. During the pandemic, it was obviously tough for everybody. We actually had you know positive sales during the the pandemic because of all the interest in the delivery component that we had. so I think third party delivery is and first party delivery is significant part of the business. Carry out is a big part of the business too. About roughly right now, about seventy percent of our business is off premise.

Jeremy Julian: Love that. What else have we not talked about about the brand, Dan, that you would want, you know, before we kind of talk about how do people engage and and experience the brand, what are some of the things that

dan smith: Well to be gonna talk about the brand data that you would you know, before we kind of talk about how to engage and experience having that. So

Jeremy Julian: I guess might set you guys apart and make it a little bit unique? Again, I love the, you know, the fourteen step water process. That's amazing. Kind of the quality of the ingredients and kind of how how much pride you guys take in what it is that you're doing. But what are some other things that people might not know when they walk in, even as

dan smith: I guess it would be no.

Jeremy Julian: a consumer?

dan smith: I think one of the things that they probably they may not know because they're going to consider look at bagels perhaps and say this is really a a breakfast focused concept is how much lunch we do and how great it is from a lunch perspective. a bagel sandwich for lunch is absolutely fantastic and we really have an extensive menu out there. Besides bagel sandwiches, we're doing wraps and so forth. The other thing I would say is we also provide a really fun bakery experience. We make phenomenal muffins. We make great cookies. We make great sweet treats and so forth that people really enjoy. And that adds another benefit out there. The interesting thing is about thirty to forty percent of our guests are really loyal frequent guests. They come in three to five times a week. That's a really strong heavy user for us. And I think they come in because of all the variety that we provide.

Jeremy Julian: Yeah. Well, we've got a I've got a long standing relationship with the Cheesecake Factory

dan smith: But just the remote CO2. But again, it's all relevant.

Jeremy Julian: and the CEO used to talk about the fact that we've got a no veto rule. I mean, obviously to extend your menu to that level is is ridiculous. And those guys doing a fantastic job of of creating some consistency. But that was his idea that says, I don't ever want people to say, Hey, I don't want a bagel today. You gotta give them some other offerings. And the fact that you guys are giving them wraps and you guys are giving them other, you know, muffins and other sweet treats makes it really something that you can get something for everybody if they don't feel like exactly what they're you know, the everything bagel, you know, you know, bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich or whatever it is, they they can come in and get something else on a on a different and the part I love about that as well is is like you said, you've got your loyal guests. You they don't always have to come in and get the same thing. They can get something different every time, right?

dan smith: Yeah. we talk about that, eliminating the the veto vote and and taking care of people and their dietary needs. So that's when we're talking about the fact that, you know, if you go and you and you're telling guests all the time, no, that you can't do you can't meet their needs, that's it's not a great culture. It's not great for your people, it's not great for the guests. We want you to walk in and feel like this is your place, that this is your neighborhood place. Where you can connect with your friends and family and colleagues and so forth and and come there regularly and really feel like you have a special experience.

Jeremy Julian: Where are you guys at geographically, Dan? How big are you guys? I guess, you know, for those listeners out there that that haven't had a chance to experience it, where are you guys at and kind of what's growth look like for you guys?

dan smith: We've got twenty locations right now, and we're strictly in Florida, but we now are expanding past Florida. So we're expanding in the Midwest and in the Southwest and in the Southeast. and we, you know, we're expecting to expand reasonably thoughtfully you know, through all areas, through all regions of the United States.

Jeremy Julian: And how I guess just how have you guys dealt with the supply chain as you guys have expanded out of your core markets? How have you dealt with even kind of build outs? That the water in Fort Worth is likely different

dan smith: Yeah.

Jeremy Julian: than the water in Florida. So does the fourteen, you know, step water process system, you know, function the same way? And you know, I guess I'd love to to have you let our listeners know that you

dan smith: system you know function the same way and you know I guess I'd love to wonder listeners

Jeremy Julian: guys have gotten to that point to figure it out.

dan smith: Yes, that 14-step proprietary water system works wherever it is, which is really the cool thing. Once you get in once you go through that filtration and that purification, you're adding those minerals to that purified water, which is also really cool. All that water is in your coffee that you're drinking with us as well. And you know, we we serve you the water if you want as well. It's purified water, it's bottled water quality. So that's in all of your products, and that's pretty cool. so that is actually a benefit. We have the same water wherever we go. I don't have to tweak our baking process because of that. but we've got good national relationships with distributors out there and we've, you know, are able to really source our products wherever we go. And that's a good scenario and prepared to do that. And and on the construction side, so forth, we've been building units and we feel confident with the team that we've got that we know we're

Jeremy Julian: Yeah. So talk to me a little bit about the build outs because I've I've talked to some different guests on the show

dan smith: Yeah, I

Jeremy Julian: over the last couple of years that are going and trying to figure out non-traditional. They're going to try and figure out rebuilds of a bank, rebuilds of just different inline, you know, end caps, drive-thru, not drive-thru. I guess I'd love to talk about what is the footprint that you guys are looking for? What's an ideal footprint? Or if of your 20, you've got a bunch of unique ones and you're like, hey, we can fit into any of these non-traditional, traditional inline. you know, NCAPs, even free you know, freestanding. Can I talk to me a little bit about where those things are at?

dan smith: It's a great question. so for our typical retail location, we're looking at about sixteen hundred to eighteen hundred square feet for a location. And most of what we've done right now is inline. But just two days ago, we opened up our first non-traditional location on a college campus at Nova in Fort Lauderdale. And it's been a fantastic experience right out of the gates and a lot of fun. And we definitely have We're excited about it. We have an appetite to do more. And I think we'll expand across additional college locations out there, as well as other non-traditional opportunities like airports that we expect to be involved in our military bases. So that's something that we're excited about trying. As well, we've got two drive-throughs under construction right now, and we're excited to see what that does for our business. That's that's something new for us. I don't know exactly what's gonna happen.

Jeremy Julian: I say buckle up, man, buckle up. That's gonna be a different business for you. I f I can promise you that.

dan smith: Absolutely right, but we look forward to that. And we also have the pickup business where we have the Brook Lane and a couple of our locations that you can actually order and drive up and have your order delivered to you and just pick it up and not have to get out of your car. So we've done that experience right now in two locations. So we're gonna be focused on on providing those opportunities.

Jeremy Julian: Yeah, I love the fact that you guys are are able to to repurpose, you know, smaller spaces. A lot of people, I need three thousand square feet, I need four thousand square feet. The fact that you guys are coming in and kind of that twelve to fifteen hundred square foot inline, you know, and and can do that. Are you at liberty, I guess, Dan, to kind of talk about where unit economics are at, you know, for people

dan smith: I'm trying.

Jeremy Julian: that are looking a franchise and kind of where you guys see those things at? And if you're not, I'm I'm totally good with just, hey, we we know that we've

dan smith: Yeah.

Jeremy Julian: been able to figure out how to make it profitable for the franchisees.

dan smith: Yeah, I'd rather yeah, I'd rather get together with those people individually and walk them through that and so forth. But we think we've got a really solid we don't think. We know we've got a really solid economic

Jeremy Julian: I love it. talk to me a little bit about what people need to do if they want to bring a Brooklyn water bagel kind of local to to their community.

dan smith: And often I'm talking about something that's

Jeremy Julian: You know, you guys talked about where you want to grow. If I'm in, you know, Washington State right now, are you guys there? You know, are you guys all the way on the west coast or is it just kind of growing from Florida out? And I'm good with all of that. I know that you know, a lot of people when they listen, when I talk with them, they're like, Okay, I need to understand why, you know, where are they going and and where can I fit in if I'm looking to add?

dan smith: Yeah, understand why you we're really going and and where can I fit in put on

Jeremy Julian: And are you only looking for existing restaurant tours that are looking to add to their portfolio or net new people, you know, across the board.

dan smith: We're we're really targeting what I would say is mid-sized franchisees and certainly open to some large franchisees as as well. But we want people that are experienced operators that have been in this business that understand this business and know how to operate that business and also are well capitalized. So that can be a partnership or it can be one individual. but we're looking at territory sizes of five to seven units. So franchisees that want to grow in that area. So not a onesie-twesie model, but not necessarily a 50-unit model. Again, if there's a large successful operator that operates 100 properties and comes in and and and is excited about working with us we're in a couple of those conversations right now, we would certainly consider that for the right partners out there. I think the key is finding the right partner. People that understand their market, are passionate about their market, are passionate about quality food and execution of quality food and that culturally we we match up well. I think that's the the key component. When that happens, then we certainly are open to expanding You know, across the US, wherever it is.

Jeremy Julian: yeah. I appreciate that. one last thing that I I like to ask all kind of franchise ours is how big of a local presence do you guys play in these communities? I know, you know, I continue to talk to people and it's like, hey, I end up being kind of in, you know, in the local community, supporting the schools or supporting the, you know, the the the soccer teams and the basketball teams or whatever. I guess I'd love to to have your thoughts and kind of how impactful is that, or is it, hey, I want to open up five of them. I don't necessarily need to be in those kind of spaces.

dan smith: No, I think it it it's very, very important. I you know, I'm I'm really impressed with Peter Kanker on what he did with Jersey Mike's. And I think he really sort of modeled, it was a role model in what he believed. He didn't just talk the talk, he walked the walk and really made it part of that company culture to give back to the local community. And I think it's a great example. And as a company, we're very, very eng engaged in the in the local communities and doing everything we can. We're very involved in the walks for Alzheimer's. we just did a big stuff the bus fundraising for folks that needed school supplies and so forth to start the school year. So I'd say year round we try and engage consistently. different events that help the community, that show that we're giving back to the community and that we care. and I think the community's been wonderful. They've really embraced us on that and then show come in all the time and show us how much they care. So it's it's it's good for everybody. If you give back, you've got

Jeremy Julian: Yeah. Well and I wanted to give you an opportunity to talk about that 'cause I just I knew that that was part of your guys' culture. So I appreciate you you sharing a bit about that. If people want to learn more, where do they go? What you know, what's the website

dan smith: Thank you.

Jeremy Julian: before I ask my last kind of question for you?

dan smith: Brooklynwaterbagel dot com. Easy.

Jeremy Julian: Okay. now last question for you, Dan, and I ask every operator this. What is your go-to? You're bringing somebody to Brooklyn Water Bagel for the very first time. You you gotta get them to experience something. And then what's your oddity? That's like one of those I've been at Brooklyn Water Bagel every day for the last six weeks, and I'm gonna create something that's unique and different that might not be a menu offering. That's kind of I just know every time I talk to restaurant tours that have been in places, they they come up with

dan smith: That's just me.

Jeremy Julian: something super unique and fun that's probably not on the menu and probably not something the staff wants to execute very well, but

dan smith: So I create something.

Jeremy Julian: But it's your unique go to.

dan smith: So I create something different. Okay. my go-to is a Williamsburg, which is I'm going to do it on a sourdough toasted everything bagel. And that's cream cheese and it's smoked salmon and tomato and onion. And I like capers on mine. So that's gonna be traditional go to. I'm a New Yorker, by birth. So that's, you know, the way I started eating a bagel and that's the way I'm gonna go for it. sandwich doing it my way. If I'm really gonna do something interesting and unique, I'm probably gonna do pastrami and corned beef on a on a toasted everything bagel with a lot of spicy mustard and some sauerkraut on there. So and I'm gonna want to pile it high and I'm gonna say hey we're gonna do this. We're gonna go double meat on this sandwich. So I'm used to some of the the old school great classic like stage deli and carnegie deli sandwiches out there that you're putting a pound of meat on there. I'm not gonna go for a pound, but I might go for eight ounces. I might go for a half pound. So yeah, that

Jeremy Julian: I love that.

dan smith: that would be something I would do. So

Jeremy Julian: Awesome. Well, Dan, thank you very much for sharing. like I said, I I

dan smith: Yes.

Jeremy Julian: have yet to to get to the brand and I'm I I'm I'm regretful that I haven't hit there yet. not down in South Florida at all that often, but I gotta go check it out next time I'm in in in your neck of the woods and so

dan smith: We are going to we're shortly going to be starting construction in Dallas. So we will be near you and I will be making sure that you get an invitation. And I'm gonna have you come over and join me with a pastrami corned beef piled high sandwich on a on a toasted everything bagel. You like?

Jeremy Julian: yes, please. I honestly that I'm a Reuben guy and every time I'm in the city I I always go

dan smith: Yeah, that's true.

Jeremy Julian: find an old Jewish deli to get a Reuben sandwich for myself. You know, I got two or three places in and around the city, depending upon where I'm

dan smith: That's awesome.

Jeremy Julian: at, that that I always hit. So for sure. well, thank you very much for what you guys have been building. I really love the the attention to detail, what it is that you guys do to really impact your community, the the the brand and where it is that you guys are going. to our listeners,

dan smith: the the the preaptor is thinking because

Jeremy Julian: guys, like I say every time I know you guys got lots of choices. So thank you guys for hanging out. If you haven't already subscribed, please do so and make it a great day.