John McKinley-Ward disputes the criticism that the greater D.C. area lacks good bagels.

“Well, if that was true, it isn’t true anymore!” he told the Hyattsville Wire.

In March, the Mount Rainier resident launched Towne Bagels to bring top-quality sourdough bagels to the Route 1 corridor.

McKinley-Ward sells about 80 bagels weekly from home, and another 300 or so on Saturdays at the new Gateway Farmers Market on the border of Brentwood and Mount Rainier. He’s now sold out five weeks in a row.

Previously, he worked at nearby Pennyroyal Station, in a horse barn, and as a line cook and pizza chef, but he taught himself how to make bagels.

“I learned in the school of DIY,” he said.

For now, Towne Bagels sells plain, sesame, poppy seed and everything bagels, with the latter being the most popular. McKinley-Ward says he’s planning to add more bagels when the timing feels right and after he finds a commercial kitchen that will allow him to increase his volume.

His ultimate goal is to open up his own shop in the area and sell bagels to local coffee shops and delis as well.

“Ideally, I’d like to run a business operated by crafts people, people from baking and other disciplines, to create a model for sustainable, green bakeries and restaurants that others can follow,” he told the Wire.

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