Call Your Mother
In an area that has long suffered from a dearth of good bagels, a hot-pink and teal trolley has come to the rescue. Located in the parking lot of the old Bethesda Community Store at the corner of Old Georgetown and Greentree roads, Call Your Mother deli serves up wood-fired bagels you can really sink your teeth into. Generously coated with poppy or sesame seeds, everything seasoning or za’atar spice blend, these bagels can stand alone with just a schmear of cream cheese or whitefish salad, so we often buy a baker’s dozen and freeze them, defrosting a couple at a time to last all week long.
For those who like to get more adventurous with their bagels, the menu features plenty of interesting sandwiches; one favorite is The Gleneagle, with candied salmon cream cheese, cucumbers, crispy shallots and seasonal greens inside a za’atar bagel. The trolley, which came to Bethesda in July, has worked particularly well during the pandemic, with online ordering, easy parking and pickup, and outdoor picnic tables. Owners Andrew Dana and Daniela Moreira have three brick-and-mortar locations in Washington, D.C., and have extended their lease at the Bethesda space for the foreseeable future. At press time, they were exploring the purchase of the community store and had plans to open a new location at Pike & Rose in the spring.
Also not to be missed: the chocolate babka muffins, studded with chunks of rich Valrhona chocolate. Tell your mother.
