In a development many feared was inevitable, the owners of Bagel Palace announced earlier this evening that tomorrow, May 20, will be their last day in business at Toco Hills. The eatery, which was a neighborhood mainstay for 25 years, cited "current rent, under the new landlord [Edens] as having made it "impossible to stay." Although the restaurant was not kosher, it was a popular eatery for the area's large Jewish community and those looking for good bagels and related fare.
Bagel Palace posted the following message to their Facebook page shortly before 9PM Saturday evening.
"It is with much sadness that we need to tell all of our BP friends and family that as of Sunday May 20th, at 4 PM, the doors of our home away from home will be closing for the last time. We never thought it would end this way when we began a new episode in our lives upon moving to Atlanta, 25 years ago. With the current rent, under the new landlord, it was impossible to stay. We have been blessed to meet so many wonderful people that have come through our doors. So many of you have become our friends and family and shared many important events in our lives as we've shared yours. When the lights go out for the last time, know that you will all be remembered dearly. We hope to keep in touch and let you know what our next adventure will be. Much love, Sue and Joe Robin and Manny"
In 2010, Goldberg's Bagel & Deli opened a restaurant in Toco Hills Promenade, the Publix center, which at the time was the only portion of the overall Toco Hills shopping district owned by Columbia, South Carolina-based Edens. That changed in late 2015, when Edens signed a 35 year ground lease with Clyde W. Shepherd III, owner of Toco Hills shopping center and son of its developer, W. Clyde Shepherd, Jr. For many in the community, this transaction seemed to foreshadow the closure of many of the center's longtime tenants.
Edens has invested heavily in updating the center: new siding, new lighting, new paving, new landscaping etc. While it is now visually appealing in many ways, it has come at the expense of many of the center's treasured gems - Shoe Center, Famous Pub, Petite Auberge - and now Bagel Palace.
New restaurants such as The Local Pizzaiolo and Spiller Park Coffee, an upscale coffee bar owned by James Beard award winning chef and restaurateur Hugh Acheson, have opened in the center, and others such as Chopt, Kale Me Crazy and Hudson Grille will open soon. Other new additions include Westside Market, a housewares shop with an existing location on the Westside.
Many neighbors would agree that the center has improved in many ways, yet many still feel that the center is fast becoming "bougie" like Buckhead with upscale shops and restaurants replacing longstanding local tenants of the center.
Over 200 comments had already been left on the closure announcement on the Bagel Palace facebook less than two hours after its release. Most comments include words such as "devastated, horrible, sorry and sad."
Stefanie B. was one of the first to comment, saying in part "Makes me so mad too because the new management was adamant that BP would stay. Never mind that they would hike the rent to push y'all out. Guess a jewel like BP doesn't fit their new, sparkly, yuppy image."
Ben P. added "Thank you for so many great years, and bagels that helped a poor homesick college kid not be so homesick (okay and maybe sometimes a homesick “grown-up” too). Sad to see the changes occurring in Toco Hills but I appreciate your community-building over the years."
Diane L. was direct in her feelings on the situation "Well they’ve finally done it! ... run off the finest establishment in the center! This is heartbreaking and infuriating!"
Bagel Palace responded to the comments "It is very hard to sit here and read these wonderful comments. You were all like family to us. It will be sad to wake up and not be able to go home to the Bagel Palace." The restaurant was later asked if they were going to open somewhere else, to which they replied "We are looking very close by."
The current 3,750 square foot space in Toco Hills is still marked as occupied, and is not yet being publicly marketed for lease by Edens. At least one family took out their frustrations about the imminent closure with multiple signs at the restaurant, praising the it and calling out Edens and Mark Doster, the leasing agent for the center, for "pushing out our beloved Bagel Palace."
What are your thoughts on the recent changes at Toco Hills shopping center? Are you pleased with the new additions to Toco Hills? Where do you think Bagel Palace should reopen?
Please share your thoughts below