“New Wave Bagel earned its brick-and-mortar on Coast Highway the hard way — one sourdough pop-up at a time.”

Where the Ale House down the road is pouring pints and flipping unusual proteins, New Wave is doing something entirely its own: applying serious fermentation craft to a format most of Encinitas had to drive to San Diego to find done right. The sourdough base isn't a gimmick — it's the whole argument. That tang, that slightly blistered crust, that chew that takes a second to negotiate — this is not a grocery-store bagel wearing a costume.

The community watched these folks grind through the pop-up circuit before landing at 312 N Coast Highway, and that origin story matters. It means the recipes got road-tested in front of real people who had opinions. It also means there's a genuine following here — locals who remember when you had to track down the table at a farmers market just to get one.

The cherry cardamom is the move if you want to understand what New Wave is actually about — fruit and spice rolled into a sourdough base, toasted, with plain cream cheese. It sounds like it shouldn't work on a weekday morning before the marine layer burns off. It absolutely does. The Apollo and the everything are your savory anchors, and the bacon and egg bialy is worth building a post-beach Sunday around.

Fair warning: the sourdough-forward approach has its detractors. If you grew up eating New York–style bagels and treat that as the one true standard, you may find the crust more assertive than you'd like. That's a legitimate perspective. But if you're curious rather than dogmatic about what a bagel can be on the California coast, New Wave is exactly the neighborhood staple Encinitas deserves.

Arrive early — not just for selection, but because walking out onto Coast Highway with a warm bag is one of the better small rituals this stretch of San Diego's coastline has to offer.

New Wave Bagel

Google Reviews

BonVivant Reviews

Similar Spots

Ferlini Coffee

Parfait Paris

Figaro Dessert Cafe

Contact & Hours