The pause comes amid a surge of interest following Marigold’s transition from a farmers market favorite to a full storefront on El Cajon Boulevard. According to owner Mike Rabinowitz, the shop was structured to serve roughly 100 customers per day during its soft opening phase, not the hundreds who began lining up daily once doors officially opened to the public. That unexpected volume exposed significant operational strain, prompting the team to step back and reassess how orders are taken, processed, and fulfilled before reopening.
Marigold Bagels was founded in 2022 by Rabinowitz, a former pharmaceutical chemist whose science-driven approach to New York–style bagels quickly earned a devoted following at the Mission Valley Civita Farmers Market. Limited weekly drops, strict bagel limits, and frequent sellouts became hallmarks of the brand long before it announced plans for a permanent location. Viral social media attention only intensified demand, often pushing production to its limits.
The opening of the North Park shop was intended to mark the end of that scarcity. Instead, the debut highlighted just how intense the appetite for Marigold’s meticulously crafted bagels has become. Rabinowitz has long emphasized precision over scale, relying on tightly controlled fermentation, hand-rolling, and same-day baking without dough conditioners or shortcuts. That commitment to process, while central to Marigold’s identity, also makes rapid scaling complex.
According to Rabinowitz, the core issue was not total production volume, but order density and turnaround time. While the shop currently produces roughly 750 to 800 bagels per day and can prepare about 250 sandwiches, the sudden influx of customers placing multiple orders at once overwhelmed existing systems. Attempts to introduce ticketing and SMS notifications during opening week helped somewhat but ultimately proved insufficient.
In recent days, staff also faced mounting pressure from long lines, strict purchase limits, and heightened customer expectations. In at least one instance shared by the business, a dispute over bagel limits escalated publicly in front of other customers, underscoring the strain placed on a small team still finding its footing in a new space.
Rather than continue operating under unsustainable conditions, Marigold opted to pause production entirely. The break, Rabinowitz said, will be used as full working time to overhaul ordering systems, redesign sandwich production lines, and implement a more robust online ordering platform better suited for a high-volume bakery. The shop briefly attempted online preorders earlier this week but found the system created confusion and incomplete orders.
Marigold now plans to reopen on Saturday, December 20, operating through Christmas Eve, closing on Christmas Day, and then returning to its regular Wednesday-through-Sunday schedule. When the shop resumes service, daily bagel limits and production levels are expected to remain largely unchanged at first, with increased output planned once new systems are fully in place. Longer term, Rabinowitz said the team is exploring adding a second dough and rolling shift, which could raise daily production to approximately 1,200 bagels.
While the pause may frustrate eager customers in the short term, Rabinowitz framed it as a necessary reset rather than a step back. The goal, he said, is to preserve product quality, protect staff, and ensure a better customer experience going forward. Messages of support from longtime customers, he added, have reinforced the decision to slow down and fix systemic issues properly rather than apply piecemeal solutions.
Marigold Bagels is located at 2850 El Cajon Boulevard in San Diego's North Park. For more information, visit marigoldbagels.com.
Originally published on December 14, 2025. Updated on December 15, 2025.