Bagel Me! Owners Alex and Pattie Córdova, along with staff, show off their eatery’s creations.  Pictured here (from left) are Alex, Pattie, with Manager Yolanda Garcia, Cook Carina Jaimes and Manager Deisy Lopez.  The Córdovas say that in addition to expanding their menu, they are experimenting with new coffee drinks and want to be known for those items.

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Bagel Me!

Bagel Me! has been an Old Towne fixture for 17 years, and new owners Pattie and Alex Córdova plan to keep it that way.

The couple took over the business on October 8, marking a milestone in a journey that started long before they became restaurateurs.  Pattie, who serves as Chief Executive Officer of the Orange Chamber of Commerce and runs the I Heart Old Towne Orange brand, had been searching for the right restaurant opportunity with her husband, Alex, who operates Buen Día Services, an accounting and bookkeeping business.  It had been Alex’s longstanding dream to open a restaurant.

“As a small business owner in Old Towne, it really allows me to be further involved in the business community and see where the stresses and opportunities are,” says Pattie.  “It has been a great experience getting even further integrated with the culture here.”

The Córdovas had been regular customers for nearly a decade, and after building a friendship with the previous owner, they decided it was the right next step for them to take over the business.

“We have been going to Bagel Me for almost 10 years with our kids, and we would even do a first-day-of-school routine where they always chose Bagel Me! at the start of every school year,” says Pattie.

Pattie and Alex plan to keep the core concept intact while introducing changes to highlight what customers might be missing, like hamburgers and sandwiches.

“Once people taste them, we often have customers say they’re the best hamburgers in Orange County,” says Pattie.

Bagel Me! marks the first time the couple, who have been married for 24 years and have three teenage sons, have officially been in business together.

“You don’t know what to expect when it comes to running a business as a couple, but it has been amazing,” says Alex.  “I enjoy the numbers and operations side of it, and Pattie is great at being creative and working with the team, so it has been a natural split.”

For the Córdovas, preserving what makes Bagel Me! special to the community remains the priority.

“Above all, we want the community to know we’re not changing anything, we’re just trying to make things better,” says Pattie.  “The business has been here for 17 years and is so established, so it is a privilege to carry that forward.”

Bagel Me!
60 Plaza Square, Old Towne Orange, CA 92866  /  714-633-2243