Don’t let anyone tell Schlock’s Bagels and Lox owner Zack Schwab that California doesn’t have good bagels.
The bicoastal entrepreneur has been on a mission to bring authentic, New York bagels to the west coast since he was a child. Growing up listening to his father lament the quality of bagels in California lit a fire under Zach, who wanted nothing more than to create a west coast bagel that could meet his father’s unwavering standards. When he moved back to California after living and working in New York, he had finally discovered the secret.
Zack challenged his former roommate James Lok, a veteran chef of premiere restaurants such as Jardinière and Benu, to see if James could apply his knack for fine cooking to the humble bagel and James accepted the challenge with Gusto. Together, the two combined their last names and Schlok’s was born.
Utilizing a signature process of kneeding, proofing, boiling, and seasoning, the two restaurateurs spent months researching and refining the perfect bagel recipe. Soon they discovered exactly what they’ve been searching for, a bagel that was chewier and denser than the local California selection, just like the bagels on the East Coast.
Begun as a pop-up in August during the height of the 2020 pandemic, Zack and James quickly discovered that San Francisco had an insatiable appetite for authentic New York bagels. Oftentimes selling out their entire day’s stock in a matter of minutes, Schlock’s needed a significant upgrade to compete with the roaring demand.
Thankfully for New York expats and bagel lovers alike, Zach was able to confirm with What Now San Francisco that Schlok’s will be opening its first brick-and-mortar store later this October at 1263 Fell Street. The new location will feature their biggest kitchen yet and should hopefully make a significant dent in the ongoing bagel shortage crisis.
