-PDBM/FXT
Better Bagel says goodbye By Daniel DeBolt
T
he Better Bagel’s last day in business was a teary one, as loyal regulars said goodbye on Oct. 31 before the doors closed for good at 1040 Grant Road, to make way a new fitness center. “I’ll miss the people, all my customers, because I’ve been here so long,� said manager Annie Ngov, employed there 10 years by her cousin, owner Ted Lam. “All my customers don’t want us to leave.� In a June City Council meeting, seniors decried the loss of the bagel shop, to be replaced by “City Sports Club� — a 24-hour fitness center for the “upwardly mobile.� New York Pizza and Rite Aide also closed Thursday to make way for the fitness center. One of Better Bagel’s regulars is 104 years old, and comes just to hang out with his friends every morning, Ngov said. “Retirees, they just cover this place,� said regular customer Steve Alpine. He said the draw was the convenient location near many homes, the fresh bagels and the friendly service. Alpine used to own a bagel shop himself, on Pier 39 in San Francisco. He said he could understand how hard
MICHELLE LE
Steve Alpine, a longtime customer, hugs Annie Ngov goodbye on the last day before the Better Bagel closed for business.
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â– Mountain View Voice â– MountainViewOnline.com â– November 8, 2013