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Launch Chattanooga’s Kitchen Incubator nurtures the food startup scene

Staff photo by Matt Hamilton/ Sesame and cinnamon raisin bagels made by Adam Grabel of Grabel's Bagels are seen at the Kitchen Incubator of Chattanooga on Aug. 7.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton/ Sesame and cinnamon raisin bagels made by Adam Grabel of Grabel's Bagels are seen at the Kitchen Incubator of Chattanooga on Aug. 7. Staff photo by Matt Hamilton/ Sesame and cinnamon raisin bagels made by Adam Grabel of Grabel's Bagels are seen at the Kitchen Incubator of Chattanooga on Aug. 7.

Bagels were always a part of Adam Grabel’s life growing up in New York City.

“They’re fascinating, right?” he said in an interview. “It’s just a piece of bread, but there’s something about a bagel that’s so flexible. You take it on the go if you’re in a rush. You pick one up on the way out of the house.”

Grabel moved to the Chattanooga area about three and a half years ago for a remote position. A year and a half later, the business laid him off, and suddenly Grabel was at a crossroads. He had multiple interviews, but Grabel said he simply wasn’t connecting with another job.

(READ MORE: LAUNCH Chattanooga provides business tools and guidance to underrepresented entrepreneurs in the Scenic City)

“I was at a fork in the road and trying to figure out where to go from here,” he said.