Biff’s: more than just bagels

MARLEY GREEN

It would be difficult to find a student unfamiliar with the quaint bagel shop on the southwest corner of South Beaver Street and West Phoenix Avenue. Located in Flagstaff since 2000, Biff’s Bagels is a staple of the mountain town.

Married couple Turney and Keri Postlewait opened the business in Prescott in 1995 after finishing college.

“There was no bagel shop there, and so I started just baking bagels at my house for friends and family,” Turney Postlewait said. “I did that for about five years, kind of perfecting things, and then it morphed into a business.”

The Postlewaits said they knew Flagstaff would be a great market for bagels, and for three years, the couple managed both locations.

But there is more to Biff’s than bagels and coffee. The shop was founded on a love for northern Arizona and dogs. The Postlewaits named the company after their dog, Biff. Longtime Biff’s regulars remember when the walls were covered with photos of patron’s dogs.

Committed to love for animals, Biff’s works with local pet-related nonprofit organizations that are rotated monthly. Proceeds from their stickers available for purchase go to the month’s charity. In February, it was Yavapai Humane Society. One Christmas season, employees built dog beds for the Coconino Humane Society. It is an essential among students for before school or ski breakfasts. For some, it is tradition to bring family members when they come to visit.

Freshmen discover Biff’s quickly, even if it is with the guidance or recommendation of older students. Anna Hamilton said her roommate’s sister dropped off bagels for them on the first day of classes in the fall semester.

“It’s my favorite Biff’s memory,” Hamilton said.

Since then, she has had time to tailor her perfect order: a toasted mish-mash bagel with onion and chive vegan cream cheese, cucumbers and avocado.

“This has always been my order because this was the first vegan breakfast I was able to get in Flagstaff,” Hamilton said. “It is so amazing.”

Biff’s Bagels’ employee Emily Quiroz said the clientele goes beyond students. In fact, there are no NAU students employed at Biff’s at the moment.

“Flagstaff is such a small town that people that you see in everyday life, everywhere, always come to Biff’s,” Quiroz said. “That person that you see at the laundromat all the time is at Biff’s, people that work at the grocery store that you go to are at Biff’s. It’s kind of crazy.”

See BAGELS on PAGE 30