- Taylor Offer went viral and sparked backlash after he said he was refused a scooped bagel in NYC.
- Many commenters said scooped bagels are a "crime" and told him to leave New York (some joking, some serious).
A Los Angeles native went viral and drew online ire after he requested a "scooped bagel" — or ones with some of the inner dough extracted — from a shop in New York City.
Taylor Offer, 30, said in a viral TikTok that it's "stressful" ordering bagels in New York because he was aggressively denied his special order, which he said was common in Southern California. Despite waves of New Yorkers telling him a "scooped bagel" is the wrong way to consume one — and some asking he leave the city — he's committed to the cause.
In Offer's video, which has been viewed over 3.8 million views since it was shared on Thursday, he said he had just been to a bagel place that refused to give him a gluten-free, scooped bagel.
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"Guy just looks at me and goes, 'I'm not scooping your fucking bagel, bro,'" Offer said. "'He's like, 'Get the fuck out of here with that shit.'" The TikToker took it in stride and went to the next place.
Offer told Insider that, in comparison, restaurants and shops in Los Angeles would have happily executed this order.
"In LA, they support that. They're like, good for you, you're working on your health, I'm proud of you," he said.
In just a day, his short video spawned major backlash online. Many commenters said the bagel maker was "right not to do that bs," calling scooped bagels a "crime."
"So sorry but I have such a hard time respecting a scooped bagel," one top comment said; "How you not embarrassed to ask for that," another person wrote with a crying-laughing emoji.
The clip was re-shared to X (formerly known as Twitter), where it drew even more derision, including people criticizing him for bringing his LA sensibilities to New York.
"New york needs to start turning californians away at the border what the fuck is this shit," one person wrote in a post with over 34,000 likes.
Offer, who is just visiting New York, told Insider that he hasn't been bothered by the backlash. He said he's received an onslaught of disturbing hate, including one person who messaged him, "Scoop yourself a grave and jump in it." He said he's gotten DMs from people telling him to "get the fuck out of New York" and "go back to California."
"I got tough skin, I don't really let it affect me," Offer said. "I'm just a guy who wants to get a scooped bagel."
Offer said the incident happened on Wednesday in the Flatiron neighborhood of Manhattan, and he couldn't remember the name of the bagel shop (he said it was a full-fledged bagel shop and not a deli, as many people in the comments immediately assumed). After his order was denied, he went to Tompkins Square Bagels, which satisfied his request for a gluten-free, scooped bagel. (Author's note: Thompkins Square Bagels make delicious bagels).
The angry backlash and criticisms have not swayed his opinion on bagels. He's ready to push the scooped bagel agenda with full force, as he described himself as a "bagel connoisseur" and said he's "trying to educate" people about the wonders of switching to a scooped bagel mindset.
"Think about it: you don't taste the inside of a bagel… if you bite into it, you're getting mostly crust anyway, and you're not gonna taste that scoop," he said. "When you scoop it, it's a better vehicle for putting the cream cheese because it's all nice and tight."
"Now you have the cream cheese integrated with the bread in a seamless bite," he added.
Commenters also seemed to take this trivial incident as a chance to vent their overall frustrations about Los Angeles residents. One person said they could never live in LA because "everyone sounds like so much work." Other viewers said LA people are too obsessed with "ridiculous requests" and health hacks.
Offer said New Yorkers are just miffed because Southern California has nicer weather — and proclaimed that it has better bagels as well.
"I think New Yorkers are just mad LA has better beaches, weather, and bagels than them," Offer said. "I'm just visiting — I would move here if the people were nicer and the bagels were better."