In San Francisco, there are two schools of thought on bagel production. The traditional recipe, handed down from grandma and grandpa in true New York style, calls for boiling, then baking. The fatter, fluffier and doughier bagels that one finds at ten branches of Noah’s throughout the city are steamed, not boiled. Starbuck’s doesn’t figure into the bagel game. Here are some of the best traditional “water bagels” found in San Francisco.
House of Bagels
Family owned and operated since 1962, this is Avenue R in Brooklyn transplanted to Geary Boulevard in Outer Richmond. Credited with introducing the bagel to San Francisco, the recipe came with the Levy family nearly 50 years ago. The traditional New York-style bagels are made from scratch every day from the best ingredients, including real malt syrup. The secret to “water bagels” for that genuine New York taste and texture is that they are boiled in water and then baked on a stone hearth. The House of Bagels offers no fewer than 27 different kinds of bagels from Apple Ginger to Plain and from Everything to Pizza flavor. Their queen of bagels is called “Jen’s True New York Bagel” and for $10.20 your meal includes four ounces of Nova Lox, cream cheese, tomatoes, red onions and capers. Eat-in or take-away, find out why the House of Bagels wins so many “best of” awards year after year, including my own. 5030 Geary Boulevard. Phone: (415) 752-6000.
Bagelry
It’s often standing room only at this Nob Hill hole in the wall, known to the locals and a few savvy guests migrating from the alternative of room service at their nearby hotels. Just look for the giant bagel hanging under the street awning by the small front patio. Here’s another place that knows real bagels are boiled, not steamed, in the two-part preparation process. Crowded, but boy, it is worth the wait. Plain bagels start at one dollar. Forget about bringing your car. Bring cash. And come early. They close at 2:30 pm and sometimes run out of bagels by noon, or only have the blueberry ones left, a while before closing time. Annoyingly, no more bagels are baked once they’re gone. 2139 Polk Street (between Broadway and Vallejo). Phone: (415) 441-3003.
Katz Bagels
There is more than one location (Downtown and the Haight) but stick to the Mission one for the better service and larger interior space. Bagels are good, fillings are even better. Some remember the days when they had the little martian in a flying bagel above the front awning. Miss him…Yes, here’s another place with the emphasis on morning bagels, as they close at 1 pm and at 2 pm on the weekends. Great honey cream cheese spread evenly spread. If you stop by later in the evening, you’ll find, surprisingly, that it has turned into a highly-rated pizza joint. 3147 16th Street (between Albion and Valencia). Phone: (415) 552-9050.
The Bagel Bakery
Super nice SOMA spot with solid 4-star bagels although sometimes less than 3-star service. Importantly, since 1976, the bagels are always boiled, never steamed, as their website screams out in caps. There are 21 varieties and 11 creative spreads, so if you’re experimenting with the sweet and savoury, this is a good place to get on with choices. The Bagel Bakery’s popular “everything” is called the “all-in-one” here. The selection does include a rather difficult-to-find chocolate chip bagel. This place bakes their bagels in a stone oven and calls themselves “your destination for New York style bagels”, with which many followers do agree. 151 Townsend Street. Phone: (415) 543-0900.
Holey Bagel
Some 30 years in the business, Holey Bagel is a Noe Valley staple. While the bagels are not amazing, they’re browned to a nice and crispy finish, of course, boiled not steamed. For those who like to nurse a hangover with a bagel and eggs, these eggs are the real thing, freshly cracked open. My Noe Valley friends swear by the egg-wich on a garlic bagel, either toasted or untoasted. Grab a coffee across the street at Martha’s. 3872 24th Street (between Sanchez and Vicksburg). Phone: (415) 647-3334.
The bagel is here to stay. And the good news is, they are not as fattening as they smell and taste. Mind you, all the calories are in that yummy cream cheese “shmeer” on top.
Source:
“The Americanization of the Bagel”. San Francisco Chronicle, 1996
