Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, during an Oct. 16 interview on “Drink Champs.” Photo by YouTube screenshot

By Louis Keene October 27, 2022

Was it an admission of defeat? An act of self-parody? Or was the canceled rapper simply hungry?

Kanye West’s bewildering rebrand as a vitriolic antisemite took an ironic turn yesterday when, reportedly on an unsolicited job interview trip to Skechers headquarters in Manhattan Beach, California, he stopped for lunch — at a bagel shop.

Pictures of West, who changed his name to Ye earlier this year, at Manhattan Bread & Bagel, in Manhattan Beach, California, surfaced on social media Wednesday and were first reported by TMZ.

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The irony of a man spewing Jew hatred seeking out arguably the most iconic of Jewish foods was not lost on the people who spotted it.

Mike Ochoa posted a photo on Instagram of West standing in line, wearing a blue hoodie, matching fatigue baseball cap and pants, and black rubber rain boots on a sunny Southern California day.

“At least he like bagels,” was Ochoa’s wry caption.

In an interview Wednesday, Ochoa told the Forward that West definitely ordered a bagel, but that he was not sure what kind. Ochoa (turkey sandwich on a garlic bagel) said he was tempted to ask West for a photo but that the “Good Life” rapper looked angry. (TMZ reported that other onlookers saw West sitting at a table with a companion, eating a bagel, and that he seemed to be in good spirits.)

Commenters on Reddit seemed amused by the latest turn of the saga of a man who declared he was going “death con 3 on Jewish people” two weeks ago — and who lost lucrative business partnerships with Adidas and Balenciaga, among other companies, and has been shunned by the entertainment industry as a result.

Perhaps alluding to the report that West is no longer a billionaire after Adidas parted ways with him, one user wrote: “I hope he can afford it now. We can’t let his family starve.”

Another joked: “But will the bagel shop cut ties??”

West was escorted out of Skechers headquarters, which, like the bagel shop, is also in Manhattan Beach, after a brief conversation in the lobby, according to TMZ. A spokesperson for the company, which was founded in 1992, said it condemns West’s divisive remarks and has no intention of ever working with him.

Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel riffed on West’s trip to the bagel store: “He shouldn’t be allowed to eat bagels anymore, right? At the very least.”

He added: “Lox him up!”

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