Philly bagel shop owner Ringo Roseman got a crash course in Twitter trolling this week, courtesy of the Eagles’ Super Bowl appearance.
To honor Philly making it to the NFL championships, Roseman and his chef at The Bagel Place in Queen Village, Leo Rahill, brainstormed an appropriate special. They didn’t want to just go with green bagels, which they figured would be done by other shops (check) and reminded them too much of St. Patrick’s Day.
So they came up with a different idea: some kind of green cream cheese. Rahill, who has a background in pastry, suggested mint as the flavor.
Boom, done. The pair mixed up a batch using fresh mint leaves plus extract, added some green food coloring for an extra bright hue, and tossed in a handful of chocolate chips for good measure.
Roseman spread a healthy schmear on a pretzel bagel (which is on the regular menu), snapped a pic, and posted it online to show his hometown pride.
Then things got…intense.
Darren Rovell, an ESPN reporter with more than 2 million followers, tweeted out the mint chip bagel image.
Rovell didn’t offer any commentary or opinion himself, but his followers provided plenty. Of the nearly 125 replies the tweet inspired, the majority were critical.
“Most of the reactions were, like, vomit GIFs,” Roseman said Thursday, reflecting on the surprise response.
Twitter isn’t usually Roseman’s social media platform of choice (he uses Instagram much more regularly), so he wasn’t even aware of the commotion until a friend texted him. When he did find out, he sprang into action.
“I personally don’t know how to use Twitter,” the 36-year-old admitted, “but I got a crash course.”
Instead of take real offense at some of the comments lobbed toward his sweet-and-savory creation, which ranged from “But why???” to “Kill it with fire,” Roseman decided to try to have fun.
He wasn’t too taken aback by the venom of some comments, he said, “because everyone says Twitter is a really mean place.”
And, he noted, plenty of people who’ve tried the mint chip bagel in real life have enjoyed it. He even sold out of the first batch of spread and had to make a second one.
“Sweet and savory is great together,” Roseman said, noting he regularly offers several sweetened cream cheeses, including best-seller honey walnut. “I just wanted to support the city. This is a special time to be in Philadelphia.”
