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Providence Bagel expands again, this time to URI’s campus in Kingston

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Some people say that size doesn’t matter, and in Providence Bagel’s case, it’s true. The ever-expanding local bagel chain (or shall we say, fledgling breakfast food empire) has bought and opened its third store in just as many years, this time setting up shop in a tiny 500-square-foot store on URI’s Kingston campus. Owner Chris Wietecha says that you’ll still be able to get all of your Providence Bagel favorites here, plus other special sweet treats from KNEAD Doughnuts.

It wasn’t Chris’s plan to take over the space in Kingston, the opportunity fell into his lap. “One day I got a letter in the mail that someone was selling a bagel shop in South County. I responded to this mailing with a phone call, and set up an appointment to go look at it,” says Chris. The building was actually not an old bagel store, but a snack shack. It turned out to be exactly the kind of property that the owner was looking for. After six weeks of hard work, crazy hours, and charming design, the new Providence Bagel made its debut on August 24.

Like the North Main Street location in Providence, the URI shop will get its deliveries from North Providence, where Providence Bagel does all of its baking for the business. However, the eatery will also serve Knead donuts daily, a new facet to the menu not available at any of the other sister stores.
The number three seems to be Chris’s magic number these days. The fast casual restaurateur is on his third shop, his third year in business, and he will soon be a father, thrice over. But he doesn’t want to stop there. He picked up some help from a former Chick-Fil-A general manager along the way. “My long term goals are to continue to expand and create a regional chain… [she] has really helped nail down the day to day operations.”

Aspirations aside, Chris is still solidifying his operations at the URI Emporium, but you never know where another one of his places is going to pop up next! 

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