SOUTH HADLEY — South Hadley’s knead for a bagel shop will soon be filled.
Tandem Bagels will roll out its seventh location at the former TD Bank building on 460 Newton St. this summer. The announcement last week marks the latest of Tandem Bagel’s expansion of bagel shops and cafes throughout the Pioneer Valley.
After Tailgate Picnic closed at the end of 2025, Tandem Bagel owner Chris Zawacki saw an opportunity to bring bagel sandwiches to the town. The bagel restaurant has already established itself in other college towns, but not near Mount Holyoke College.
“We were looking to open another location and we’re not in South Hadley,” Zawacki said. “It’s not super close to all our other locations, we felt like it was a good area we could do well in.”
Tandem Bagels first opened at a former Easthampton railroad depot in 2013 to fill the need for a cafe-style bagel shop. Since then, it spread its bagels and schmear to Hadley, Northampton, Florence, Ludlow and West Springfield. The company also bought a historic train station in Westfield to build an additional cafe, but Zawacki said the renovation there will take significantly longer.
“We’re doing a lot of to keep the historical preservation in tact so we’re going through a lengthy process to reserve all the historical attributes,” he said.
The timeline to open South Hadley’s location will not take as long. Renovations to convert the building on Route 116 to the cafe’s signature decor have already begun. The cafe will be around the same size as the Florence and Easthampton locations, Zawacki said, and offers the same full menu.
“We’re so excited to have Tandem Bagel coming to South Hadley,” building owner John Pettengill, who worked with Region Commercial of Springfield to secure a lease with the company, said in a statement. “Chris and his team have built something truly special. Tandem creates a warm and welcoming atmosphere and is the kind of local business that helps bring people together. It will be a great addition to our community.”
Residents can expect to enjoy an iced coffee and one of Tandem’s 60 bagel flavors sometime in summer.