Circles owner Tray Tepper (known to all simply as Tepper) originally moved to Hudson to work as a chef at the acclaimed Lil Deb’s Oasis. The early days of Circles consisted of a series of sourdough pizza pop-ups at the restaurant, which then shifted to include bagels. Following his time at Deb’s, Tepper continued his bagel pop-ups there on Sunday mornings throughout 2023, and eventually began holding them at various locations throughout the Hudson Valley. “A lot of local restaurant owners (at places like Quinnie’s, Kitty’s, and Fortunes) were really sweet about hosting us,” he says.
After much success with the pop-up, Tepper applied for a permanent space in the public-use community building Spark of Hudson where a bare-bones coffee kiosk had been set up and was in need of a vendor to fill it. “A lot of what Spark of Hudson does is for the benefit of the community, so they’re always looking for ways to add programs to their docket to provide services to the people of Hudson,” Tepper says. “One thing they were wanting out of a vendor was someone who could collaborate with them on a workforce development initiative.” Circles benefits from the help of local apprentices provided by Spark of Hudson who in turn gain valuable real-world insights into the food industry through their work.
Tepper designed the shop with friend and artist Luka Carter, who’s done artistic work for the Circles brand. Together the two created a vibrant, welcoming space with quirky pops of neon throughout. “We wanted it to be a fun and inviting place where people would feel comfortable,” he says. Spark of Hudson helped out by adding the equipment and resources that Tepper needed to turn the cafe into a full-fledged bagel production space.
Anyone living in the Hudson Valley knows that the local bounty of the region can act as a north star in terms of the resources used in our culinary endeavors. “The bagels I make are similar to a New York bagel shop bagel, and they intersect with the influence that living upstate has had on the ingredients that I’m able to use,” Tepper says. “The recipe is almost like a healthier and naturally leavened version of something similar to the bagels I miss eating in Manhattan.”
Circles uses local products like a Spring Valley cream cheese with a cult-like following by Ben’s Cheese Planet and produce from Gentle Time Farm in Chatham. Bacon from Kinderhook Farm in Valatie makes its way onto a popular bagel with garlic aioli, avocado, and pickles ($15). The menu features a thoughtful spread of made-to-order options, and bagels can be purchased in bulk. Tepper notes “there’s a wide variety of things to choose from, but we don’t do eggs or muffins or anything like that. We keep it pretty locked in to what we’re good at.”
The current bagel lineup includes plain, poppyseed, sesame, and everything. You can order one with grass fed butter ($5.50) or with cream cheese (regular for $6, flavored for $7). “We always have one or two flavored cream cheeses based on a seasonal ingredient. In the summer we make a corn cream cheese that people go crazy for. Last week we had a purple carrot one. We try to get creative,” says Tepper.
Nova lox ($7.25) and marinated white anchovies ($5) can be added to any creation. For a decked out bite, there’s a bagel with Ben’s cream cheese, shiso, cucumber, red onion, and chili crisp for a pleasing kick ($13). If you’re hungry for some non-bagel fare, there’s Chaseholm yogurt with granola ($12) or the (fabulously named) girlboss salad with local greens, shaved farmers market produce, and a poppyseed vinaigrette ($12, add-ons available $3-7.25).
Circles creates a dazzling experience for guests by combining the best of both worlds: a nod to the fresh New York bagel so many of us miss while outside of the city, and the nuance of the local ingredients provided by the land we call home. Looking to the future, Tepper plans to lean deeper into pickling and lacto-fermented vegetables and hopes to get more people in the know about what Circles has in store.
Circles, located at 502 Union Street, is open Friday through Monday from 9am to 3pm.
