NYC bagels coming to downtown Camas

Local residents and visitors will soon be able to get a taste of New York City (NYC) in downtown Camas.

Marcie and Jeramy Wilcox, the owners of Squeeze and Grind, also located in downtown Camas, plan to open Cedar Street Bagel Company in April, in a former dental office near the corner of Northeast Cedar Street and Northeast Third Avenue.

Bagel dough from NYC will be sent to Camas, and Cedar Street Bagel Company Manager Amber Owens and her crew will boil and bake the bagels in-house.

Owens, 47, is a longtime family friend of the Wilcoxes. She has worked in the restaurant industry for 25 years, including stints at Red Bluff Taphouse, Big River Grill and Skamania Lodge in Stevenson.

The Wilcoxes — both born and raised in Washougal — said they have been dreaming of owning a bagel shop for a long time.

“As it sits now, it is what we call a shell space — a blank slate ready to build into what we need,” Jeramy Wilcox said.

He and the subcontractors will build a new kitchen area, ADA-accessible restroom, wash area and front service counter with bagel display case. They also plan to refinish the building’s original wood floors.

After Cedar Street Bagel Company opens, Marcie Wilcox will continue to work at Squeeze and Grind — a coffee shop, smoothie and juice bar — and said that 20-year-old business will continue to operate as normal.

The Wilcoxes purchased Squeeze and Grind in 2011, and bought the building at 537 N.E. Cedar St., in 2012.

The couple hopes to offer dine-in and takeout options for breakfast and lunch at the new bagel shop, and could potentially add catering services at a later date.