Lox, Stock & Bagel: DC-Based Call Your Mother is Coming to 19th & Manning
The DC-based bagel deli with a cult following is taking over the space Metropolitan Bakery called home for 32 years.
The corner of 19th and Manning is about to get a very colorful makeover.
Call Your Mother, the DC-based bagel deli with the devoted fanbase and the very, very, VERY pink aesthetic, has signed the lease at 262 S 19th Street aka the space that Metropolitan Bakery occupied for over three decades before closing its doors in late 2025. ETA is this summer!
So…Who or What is Call Your Mother?
If you haven’t crossed paths with Call Your Mother yet, here’s the quick download: founded in 2018 in Washington, DC, the deli built its reputation on hand-rolled bagels, house-cured lox, and sandwiches that have racked up a genuinely devoted following.
Eater DC and the Washington Post have both covered their lines-out-the-door openings across the DMV, and they’ve since expanded into Maryland, Virginia, Chicago, and even Colorado, with additional states in the works.
The vibe is equal parts nostalgic deli and modern Instagram paradise, and, like Lily Pulitzer apparel, hard to miss. Think pink and mint green everywhere, branded cups that are very much part of the experience, and an energy that makes grabbing a bagel feel like, well, an event. It’s the kind of place that becomes a weekend ritual pretty quickly.
Big Shoes to Fill on 19th Street!
Metropolitan Bakery was a long, long, long time fixture at that corner—32 years is no small thing, and so many Rittenhouse mornings started there. We bid it a fond farewell when it closed in late 2025, but there’s something really charming about the fact that the owners met and handed over the keys to the Call Your Mother team.
Call Your Mother is a different kind of operation—more colorful, more deli-focused, and built around the kind of all-day drop-in energy that fits Rittenhouse’s walkable rhythms pretty naturally. The space is well-positioned for it: visible from multiple angles, deep in the neighborhood’s residential core, and right in the flow of weekend foot traffic.
Tracking the Coming Pink Walls
The interior transformation from Metropolitan’s warm, European-bakery look to Call Your Mother’s signature pink paradise will be—we’re guessing—a fairly significant build-out. We’ll be keeping a close eye on 262 S 19th as construction progresses through the spring.
This also continues a streak we’ve been watching closely: established concepts from other cities, concepts that have done the work and built real followings elsewhere, keep choosing Rittenhouse as their Philadelphia landing spot. Granted, and we may be a wee bit biased, but we’re not surprised, and we absolutely love seeing it.
ETA is this summer!
📋 TL;DR: Call Your Mother Rittenhouse
What is Call Your Mother? Call Your Mother is a bagel deli founded in Washington, DC in 2018, known for hand-rolled bagels, house-cured fish, and a distinctive pink and mint green interior.
Where is it opening in Philadelphia? 262 S 19th Street, at the corner of 19th and Manning in the Rittenhouse Square neighborhood.
When does it open? The expected opening is summer 2026, though construction is still underway and an exact date has not been announced.
What was there before? Metropolitan Bakery occupied this location for 32 years before closing in late 2025.
Does Call Your Mother have other locations? Yes — they operate multiple locations across Washington DC, Maryland, Virginia, and Chicago.
What kind of food does Call Your Mother serve? Hand-rolled bagels, house-cured lox, and bagel sandwiches, along with a coffee program.
