Chewy, airy, and delicious are words often used to describe Japanese-style bagels, and soon, Vancouverites will be the first in Canada to taste them. Aburi Restaurants Canada (Aburi) is opening its brand new WA-BAGEL concept in the heart of downtown Vancouver in late-spring. Located at 666 Burrard Street, the new eatery will feature both sweet and savoury bagels, available in a constellation of inventive and classic flavours and fillings.
At 1,887 square feet, WA-BAGEL follows in the footsteps of its sister restaurant, WA! CURRY, as a counter service spot to start, offering take-out and delivery options. Guests can also order and dine across the hallway in the building’s spacious communal concourse.
“Japanese-style bagels are my favourite type of bagel because they are more light and smaller in-size, often with a filling, similar to another Japanese snack-favourite, the onigiri,” explains Seigo Nakamura, founder and CEO of ABURI Restaurants Canada. “They are becoming more and more popular in Japan, and there is really nothing like it in Canada yet. I thought it would be a great idea to introduce something new to the Canadian market. There are so many different kinds of flavours. Have you ever had a mochi cheese bagel or a lemon peel and azuki bean bagel? They are delicious!”
WA-BAGEL’s bagels are made with Canadian flour and a koji-based yeast. When it opens in late-spring, WA-BAGEL will have 14 flavours of bagels and bagel sandwiches to start, including red bean paste and cream cheese, sweet potato and black sesame, Aburi Market’s fresh cut salmon lox & scallion cream cheese sandwich, and eggplant and bacon with miso and cheese. There will also be a variety of drinks, such as coffee and tea.
Leading WA-BAGEL is head baker Yukiko Iikura, who founded her own popular bagel shop in Japan named Kepo Bagels.
“I love baking and I also love chewy-textured things and WA-BAGEL’s dough features the texture and aroma of mochi,” explains Iikura. “In Japan, we use many different types of flavours and fillings for our bagels, and we’ll definitely be using some very Canadian-inspired ingredients in some of our options. I’m very excited as Canada has some of the best flour in the world, and we’ll get to use it in our bagels.”
WA-BAGEL has tapped Japanese interior designer Takahiro Ibe to design the space, which will have a unique bagel kitchen meets “urban” forest feel. Ibe also designed Aburi Restaurants Canada’s Miku Toronto.
More information to come. To stay up-to-date on WA-BAGEL news, please visit www.wabagel.com.
