Founder Of Caroline’s Cookies Announces New Lafayette Bagel Concept
One of Lafayette's best-known local entrepreneurs is expanding beyond cookies.
Caroline Merryman, founder of Caroline's Cookies, has officially announced Bagels!, a new quick-service restaurant concept that will bring fresh, house-made bagels, breakfast and lunch sandwiches, and real-fruit smoothies to Lafayette.
The announcement was made on the company's newly launched social media pages, where Merryman introduced the founding team behind the new venture and confirmed that a location reveal is coming soon.
While many details are still under wraps, the announcement has already generated excitement among local food lovers eager to see what the growing Lafayette business community has coming next.
The Team Behind Bagels
Bagels will be led by three familiar faces.
Merryman will oversee the business and operations after successfully growing Caroline's Cookies into one of Lafayette's favorite local bakeries.
Joining her is her older brother, Reece, who helped build the Caroline's Cookies brand from the beginning. He'll take the lead on the creative direction and branding for the new restaurant.
Also joining the founding team is Ashlyn, a longtime member of the Caroline's Cookies family.
According to the announcement, Ashlyn has spent more than four years with the company and will oversee the day-to-day operations of the new restaurant.
The team said they're excited to bring the concept to Lafayette, adding that plenty more details, including the location, are on the way.
What Will Be On The Menu?
Unlike many grab-and-go breakfast spots, Bagels plans to make everything from scratch.
Merryman told us the restaurant will make all of its bagel dough in-house before boiling and baking each bagel fresh.
Customers can expect everything from simple toasted bagels and bags of fresh bagels to signature breakfast and lunch sandwiches.
The menu will also feature locally sourced ingredients whenever possible.
Another feature Merryman believes fills a need in Lafayette is a lineup of real-fruit smoothies.
Together, the menu is designed to offer a quick-service option centered around fresh ingredients and made-from-scratch preparation.
From Pandemic Cookies To A Second Brand
Many in Lafayette first discovered Merryman during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.
She developed her signature cookie recipe from home in 2020 before opening the first Caroline's Cookies brick-and-mortar location in 2021.
Since then, the business has built a loyal following, making the announcement of a second concept a natural next step for many longtime customers.
Rather than expanding the cookie business alone, Merryman is now branching into an entirely different category while leaning on the same family-driven approach that helped launch her first company.
A Location Reveal Is Coming Soon
For now, the biggest unanswered question is where Bagels will call home.
Merryman says that information isn't quite ready to be shared yet, but confirmed that a location announcement is coming soon.
She also shared her excitement about what the team has been building behind the scenes.
"I am so excited to be bringing our new quick-service restaurant concept, Bagels, to Lafayette alongside my two founding partners, Ashlyn and Reece!
Ashlyn has been part of the Caroline's Cookies team with me for over four years. Her people skills, attention to detail, and ability to lead others have made her such an asset to our team, and she will oversee and lead the day-to-day operations at Bagels.
My brother, Reece, helped me create the Caroline's Cookies brand and continues to lead us creatively today. I'm so excited to have him alongside us as we build another strong, exciting brand and bring an entirely new concept to Lafayette.
At Bagels, we'll make all of our bagel dough in-house, boiling and baking our bagels fresh. We'll serve everything from bagels by the bag and simple toasted bagels to signature breakfast and lunch sandwiches, incorporating local ingredients wherever we can.
We'll also have real-fruit smoothies, filling another gap we feel exists in the Lafayette market!
We can't wait to share more, including our location very soon. We're hoping to open by the end of the year if construction goes according to plan… ha!"
If construction stays on schedule, Lafayette could have a brand-new destination for fresh bagels, breakfast sandwiches and smoothies before the end of the year.
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Gallery Credit: Joni Sweet
