Best bagels, according to chefs
Three picks, each tied to a named taster and a public source — from Freddy Vargas, Jack Logue, Julia Moskin, Ted Allen and 3 more. Recommendations come from eatthis.com, forward.com, timeout.com and yahoo.com.
Bread & Bakery · The ranking
- 1Top pick
Ess-a-Bagel (New York; shipped nationwide)
Chosen by- Freddy VargasChef, Everdene at Virgin Hotels · New York
- Jack LogueChef, The Lambs Club · New York
Also chosen by- Julia Moskin · Food reporter, The New York Times source ↗
- Ted Allen · Host, Chopped · Food Network source ↗
“If you’re in NYC, you have to start your morning with Ess-a-Bagel… the perfect combination of crunchy and soft—a true New York bagel” (Vargas). Logue orders the everything bagel. In the Forward’s blind panel of shipped bagels, New York Times food writer Julia Moskin called it hand-stretched, starchy, with “a light touch of sourness… kind of perfect.” Hand-rolled since 1976; ships overnight by the baker’s dozen.
- 2
Whole Foods Market Bakery Plain Bagels (bakery case)
Chosen by- Rachel AppelbaumEx-Honeycomb Bakery
- Ruben TorañoThe Commissary, Dallas
The bakers Simply Recipes asked skip the bread aisle: “I would purchase something from the bakery section of the supermarket rather than prepackaged” (Appelbaum, a New York native and former chef de cuisine). Their consensus was Whole Foods’ fresh bakery-case bagels, not the bagged 365 ones: a nice bounce and good contrast, they “keep their fluffiness when toasted without turning into a hockey puck,” and at about $6 for six, “a great price point” (Toraño).
- 3
Black Seed Bagels (New York; shipped nationwide)
Chosen by- Chris ArellanesCorporate executive chef, KYU · New York
Also chosen by- Julia Moskin · Food reporter, The New York Times source ↗
“It’s Black Seed all the way” for Arellanes. Hand-rolled, boiled in honey water and baked in a wood-fired oven, a New York–Montreal hybrid with a thin, crackly crust. Julia Moskin, tasting shipped bagels for the Forward: “I love this bagel… It’s got a really good crumb.”
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Questions, answered
- What is the best bagels, according to chefs?
- MyTastr’s top pick is Ess-a-Bagel (New York; shipped nationwide), chosen by Freddy Vargas (Everdene, Virgin Hotels NYC); Jack Logue (The Lambs Club). “If you’re in NYC, you have to start your morning with Ess-a-Bagel… the perfect combination of crunchy and soft—a true New York bagel” (Vargas). Logue orders the everything bagel. In the Forward’s blind panel of shipped bagels, New York Times food writer Julia Moskin called it hand-stretched, starchy, with “a light touch of sourness… kind of perfect.” Hand-rolled since 1976; ships overnight by the baker’s dozen. Source: eatthis.com ↗
- What are the other top picks for bagels?
- No. 2 is Whole Foods Market Bakery Plain Bagels (bakery case), chosen by Rachel Appelbaum (ex-Honeycomb Bakery); Ruben Toraño (The Commissary, Dallas). No. 3 is Black Seed Bagels (New York; shipped nationwide), chosen by Chris Arellanes (corporate executive chef, KYU NYC). Each card above links to the original source.
- How does MyTastr choose these picks?
- Every pick is tied to a named chef, cookbook author or food expert and links to the public interview, panel or article it came from. We survey dozens, often hundreds, of top chefs, food writers and critics, and order reflects how often and how strongly a brand is recommended. Only organic recommendations count — paid endorsements don’t — and brands can’t buy a spot. Read how we pick.