Big Apple Bagels is one chewy-doughmaking vendor ensuring East Lansing remains an authentic draw for matriculating Michigan State University students.

In his location near the busy intersection of Abbott Road and Saginaw Highway, franchise co-owner and operator Gerry Stachowiak says he draws as many commuters heading into law firms or downtown businesses as he does students during the rush cycles of a typical day. One particular spot in the café — monikered “the man table” by Stachowiak and staff — fills up with a group of lawyers and businessmen every morning. Between 7 and 9 a.m., Stachowiak says a line backs up to the door, and many customers know exactly what they want before they set foot inside.

“We probably have 100 people in here every single day ordering the same thing,” Stachowiak says. “My staff has regulars’ orders ready before they pay.”

In the morning, freshly made bagels (with cream cheese, $1.99 each/$6.49 a dozen) and muffins ($1.89 each) fly off the shelves. Stachowiak is proud to make nearly every menu item from scratch on-site. In the prep area, an enormous mixer stands ready to combine pounds of flour with sugar, yeast and assorted ingredients into a massive mound of dough. Bit by bit, handfuls of dough are placed onto a conveyer belt machine which balls the dough and shapes it into a bagel. In the freezer, rack upon rack of raw bagels wait to be boiled, baked, sliced and served.

“We’ve had a dough lady for 10 years,” Stachowiak says, emphasizing a commitment to consistency. “And we go through about 500 pounds of bagel dough a day.”

Bagel flavors run the gamut, from cinnamon raisin and apple strudel to cheddar herb and tomato basil, with old favorites such as poppy seed, salt and blueberry in between. There are 22 different bagels in all.

The homemade cream cheeses are eclectic as well. The sun-dried tomato cream cheese, a recipe created by Stachowiak, has a bit of a bite to go along with a rustic flavor. In contrast, the strawberry cream cheese is sweet and delicate, a great complement to a blueberry or whole wheat bagel. But if it’s savory you want, you might try the cheddar bacon cream cheese, with bits of green onion, on a garlic or “everything” bagel. Of course there’s plain cream cheese, but pineapple walnut, cucumber ranch and salsa provide adventurous eaters a range of flavors.

Come the noon hour, though, bagels begin to morph into a lunch-time tool for sandwich making. Over a dozen sandwiches ($4.99-$5.29) can be ordered or built to a customer’s specifications. Grilled chicken, tuna, vegetarian, roast beef and turkey with guacamole are a few, served on bread, if desired. For a heartier appetite, the tripledeckers ($7.49) pile meat, veggies and sauces between three slices of toasted bread; the California club combines turkey and havarti cheese with lettuce, guacamole, crispy cucumber, sweet slices of tomato and a bit of tangy mayo.

A few salads and a soup of the day round out the menu, and catering and party platters are available as well. A full-service espresso bar whips out coffee, cappuccino and mocha in the morning, smoothies and ice lattes in the afternoon.

When dieters ran hysterically from carbohydrates a few years ago, Stachowiak says business took a major hit. Inflation has been an obstacle as well, with the price of flour tripling and shipping surcharges from spiking fuel prices popping up over the past couple years.

But Stachowiak has weathered those storms.

“If you make a consistent product that tastes good, your service is good and people are friendly, the economy does not matter,” Stachowiak says. “And we try to be like a family in the community.”

Big Apple Bagels

248 East Saginaw Road, East Lansing 6 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Friday 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday (517) 324-4400 $, TO, SF