Dining on a budget: Cafe Bagelry in San Dimas

By Stacey Wang

I've had bagels on the brains every Friday for the last two weeks due to the downtime "bagels or donuts?" discussion in the office.

As if Casual Friday didn't already make my day, I finally decided to satisfy my craving for those complex carbs.

In San Dimas lies Cafe Bagelry, a family-owned shop that has an extensive menu to satisfy bagel eaters of all kinds.

From cream cheese bagels to bagel sandwiches, the cafe has menu items ranging from $0.85 to $5.69, before tax.

I ordered a Californian - a cafe-proclaimed favorite tuna sandwich with Swiss cheese, avocado, tomatoes and sprouts on a toasted wheat bagel.

The generous portions of the sandwich alone were enough to fill me up, but the cafe offers a meal deal every Friday. Customers can order any bagel menu item, chips and a fountain drink for $6.

On any other day, my meal would have cost $7.79. It's not a huge savings, but I don't mind taking what I can get - especially if it's as gratifying as it was.

I also ordered a cafe specialty known as a Peaches 'N Cream bagel for $3.02 purely because it glimmered from its glass encasing with visual appeal.

The pastry was a bagel bread with a light spread of cream cheese. It was topped with peach slices fanned out like a pinwheel and sprinkled with cinnamon, which added a light fruity sweetness to it.

I didn't attempt to finish all of my food in one sitting - I would have cursed bagels until the new year had I tried.

The shop also offers alternatives to bagel items - including muffins, omelettes, wraps, croissants and more - while supplies last.

Some other items include an Early Bird Egg Wrap with egg, herb cream cheese and cheddar cheese at $3.13 and cookies at $0.75, which the menu proclaims is "the best" the cafe has ever tasted.

But don't expect to eat there at night. The place is open from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, and from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays.

Cafe Bagelry is at 969 W. Arrow Hwy., San Dimas. Call the shop at (909) 394-9592 for more information.