After Eric Mueller was laid off from his corporate job a year ago, he made an unexpected decision: going “full bagel.” 

“I spent 25 years in Zoom meetings or meetings, on my Outlook schedule, doing PowerPoints,” Mueller told Williamson Scene. “I wanted to do something different.”

Jeff’s Bagel Run, a franchise owned by Mueller, opened in at 7344 Nolensville Rd. in Nolensville on Friday. 

Ahead of the store’s opening, Mueller and the team prepped 2,500 bagels across 15 flavors, plus a special “bagel of the day” flavor. They’re New York style, with a simple recipe of flour, yeast, malt, salt and water. No preservatives means they have to be served fresh. The bagels are boiled, then baked and served hot whenever possible. They are not toasted or made into sandwiches (it’s the Jeff’s Bagel Run way) but they are paired with cream cheese, butter and coffee. 

The New York Bagel is a bit of a learning curve for Southerners, an area that Jeff’s Bagel Run founder Jeff Perera considers a “bagel desert.” With 34 locations nationally, Nolensville is the first location in Tennessee. 

“Middle Tennessee is not known for its bagel culture at all,” Perera says. “We found that people have to be introduced to it, because the majority of the bagels that they're eating are coming out of a grocery store. … Part of our education process is helping customers through the journey of: we don’t toast, we deliver a hot bagel as often as we can, and we think that is the supreme bagel.” 

Perera’s story mirrors Mueller’s. He started the business in 2019 at his wife’s urging following his own corporate work layoff. Mueller and Perera bonded over the traditional path they had chosen until their 40s. Right out of college, they prioritized a job with a paycheck, 401k and insurance — neither thought of owning a business as an option. 

“You sometimes just have to take that leap and learn,” Perera says. “This has been an amazing journey, and I think it's great when you've got partners like Eric, who have been in leadership roles, who know how to treat a team, who know how to deliver a product or service to the community in a way that is reflective of what that community is looking for. It’s invaluable.” 

For Mueller’s son Owen, 20, the bagel shop was a chance to reevaluate his own schooling and professional path. He had completed two years of college at the University of Alabama, Huntsville, and took some time off to help his dad open the business. Owen left as an aerospace engineering major and will return to school as a marketing major, inspired by the work he did with the family business and what he learned from Jeff’s. The early mornings making bagels brought the father and son closer together, too.  

“I think we’ll always be talking about how we opened this bagel shop together, even if I’m not always working here,” Owen says. “I’ll be stopping by the shop and that growth in our relationship will last.”

Community support was evident during the shop’s soft opening on Wednesday. The first person in line was another of Eric’s sons and their neighbor, wearing Jeff’s Bagel Run gear. Eric’s brother waved customers in from the road. Two more neighbors were among the first customers. For Eric, it’s nice to be in a field where people are smiling. 

“We're doing really great bagels all day long, really great spreads that are hand whipped and an amazing lineup of drinks,” Eric says. “It’s fun to be in a role where everybody is happy.”

Eric’s passion for this new business is only rivaled by his passion for the St. Louis cardinals, Owen observes.  

“It's been really great to see him so passionate about one thing and working so hard to make this dream a reality,” Owen says. “Being there with him along those steps has been really rewarding. And so, as weird it is to say we run a bagel shop…” 

“We do,” Eric finishes with a chuckle.