Pagan's enthusiasm for creating not just bagels, but fabulous cream cheese spreads, house-cured lox and lunch foods including salads and sandwiches, is fueled by both her scientific background and a passion to make a difference.

PROVIDENCE

It's tempting to say chemistry has helped Milena Pagan build a better hand-rolled and boiled bagel. But that would only be part of the story of her Rebelle Artisan Bagels.

Her enthusiasm for creating not just bagels, but fabulous cream cheese spreads, house-cured lox and lunch foods including salads and sandwiches, and even her own coffee blend, is fueled by both her scientific background and a passion to make a difference.

Those who line up mornings at her shop, which opened at 110 Doyle Ave. in Providence just two short months ago, are seeking fuel to start their day. Lucky for them it comes with wholesome goodness and flavors that bring smiles. Sesame, poppy, onion, everything and pretzel bagels are on the menu daily, beet on Wednesday, a surprise wild card on Friday and pumpernickel on weekends.

Few would guess that Pagan studied chemical engineering at M.I.T. and had a job in business strategy at CVS before she ever made her first bagel.

Growing up in Puerto Rico, she learned to love bagels visiting her sister who lived in New Jersey. She applied to M.I.T. on a whim.

"It's a place where the best minds of my generation study. I felt an obligation to go and try to make a difference in the world," she said.

Pagan began her bagel journey less than a year ago when she left CVS after a three-year stint that brought her to Rhode Island from the hallowed Cambridge halls. Her first batch of bagels, made in her kitchen, were "horrible." But she got into not just baker mode but science, and read up on everything flour and water.

"I knew with practice I could do it," she said. Still her research showed her some fascinating work scientists are doing with yeast and flour. "You'd be amazed to see how many people put bread under a microscope."

She brought her bagel making to Hope & Main, the culinary incubator in Warren. She did her first pop-up bagel event last January at the former Kitchen restaurant on Federal Hill when the caterer Laughing Gorilla took over the space for a time. It was mayhem, she recalled, with a line out the door. She made some 300 bagels, working the dough in her home-size Kitchen Aid mixer. But when it was over, she felt exhilarated.

"I asked myself, 'What just happened?'" Pagan said. "But I was hooked on a feeling."

There's instant gratification and feedback when you feed people, she added.

At each step, she documented her journey on Instagram with photos of beautiful bagels. And that's how she came to move into Doyle Street.

"The space found me," she said. Her landlord reached out to her to offer her the space because his wife was a fan on Instagram. It was a perfect fit. With her baker Chris Zimmerman on board and her boyfriend Darcy Coleman, a software engineer, offering another set of hands, she got to work.

They cleaned up the space that was the Corner Store, opened it up by exposing the windows that were hidden with fridges and freezers, and by adding a window bar and tables for spots to sit. By 6:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, all are filled with diners headed to work. She is also open Saturday and Sunday.

She's grown the menu beyond bagels to include sandwiches on bagels and she makes pickled salads, whitefish salad and chicken and egg salad. The menu includes chopped liver and pastrami and dill lox. Her cream cheeses are a great vehicle for adding fresh flavors, Pagan said. She offers varieties that include vegan (made with cashews), chive, caramelized onion, pumpkin spice, beet and horseradish, and chipotle bacon.

The secret for all the products is not such a secret, she said.

"I start with good ingredients," Pagan said. That includes Borealis Coffee in a blend she worked on with the East Providence roaster, sniffing and tasting bean after bean until she found one that was fruity and nutty and not too dark.

It also includes King Arthur Flour from Vermont, the only one she'll use. That can be confining she said, because they currently have no wholesale source for whole wheat flour or other specialty flours. It's simply too expensive to buy them retail. Though she does just that to make her pumpernickel bagels each weekend. And she makes a wild card bagel each Friday. Last week it was a black squid ink version with black sesame seeds in homage to Halloween.

People ask Pagan about the water, among other things, and she said, "Providence's water makes perfect bagels."

Details: Rebelle Artisan Bagels, 110 Doyle Ave., Providence, rebelleartisanbagels.com. Opens 6:30 a.m. Wednesday to Sunday until 2 p.m. or until they sell out. You can order online from her website.