Celebrating National Bagel Day the only way we know how

Date: 1/11/2021

Ah, bagels. There’s nothing I love more than a deliciously crafted, doughy, spice/seed-ridden bagel.

On Jan. 15, the world celebrates National Bagel Day – a day commemorating these delicious, round breakfast treats. As the world honors this day, so does the news staff at Reminder Publishing.

According to nationaltoday.com, Bagels have a long history that starts with the Jewish families of Poland in the 1600s.

“Bagels made the jump to America with a massive Polish-Jewish immigration in the 1800s that firmly entrenched itself in New York City where it thrived. In fact, an entire union was created in the early 1900s called Bagel Bakers Local 338 to support the growing, immigrant-led industry,” the website explains. “While bagels were hugely popular in New York City almost immediately, they didn’t make their way to the national scale until the mid 20th-century where automation and bread slicing made mass manufacturing much more efficient. Since then, bagels have taken off to include a variety of flavors, toppings, dips and smears but still remain – by and large – exactly as they were in the 1600s.”

And so, the news staff at Reminder Publishing took to our local eateries, bakeries and one chain to taste test bagels that are for sale in our circulation area. We agreed that we would each fan out to specific locations that sold bagels – finding out who specifically made the bagels sold at each location or if they made the bagels in-house themselves. Below, readers will find individual reporters accounts of their chosen bagel shops.

Standard disclaimer: this does not encompass every local bakery that may sell bagels. We only have so many staff members, and so much time to travel to so many bakeries. The bagel shops have been listed in alphabetical order by the town they are located in.

Carm’s Restaurant and Coffee Shop
241 US–20
Chester

Carm’s Restaurant and Coffee Shop offers plain and everything bagels on its menu, along with an assortment of filled bagel bites.  

“Our regular bagels are “Perfect Bagel” brand– they are distributed for restaurants and I don’t think are available for individual sale, but they were our favorite when we were deciding what to carry,” said  co-owner Erin Patrick.

These bagels are very tasty, crunchy on the outside and soft but not chewy on the inside according to tasters.  The everything bagel is thinly coated with ingredients, with onion the flavor that stands out the most.

However, “awesome” was the description of the filled bagel bites we tasted.  Patrick makes the bagel and fillings herself, rotating between the spinach/cream cheese filling we sampled, and bacon/cheddar and sundried tomato/mozzarella.

Tasters comments included “delicious filling,” “good consistency,” and “very tasty” to describe the bagel bread part of the offering.

Carm’s is open 7 days a week, 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. The menu may be viewed at carmsinchester.com.
Amy Porter

Tandem Bagel Company
9 Railroad St.
Easthampton

Tandem has been one of my favorite bagel places since I moved to Western Mass. They offer an extensive variety of bagel flavors including everything, plain, snickerdoodle, jalapeño, egg and French toast.

One thing to note is that the bagels are not pre-cut, this wasn’t an issue for me, but important to mention. I got two bagels: an everything and a plain, which I opted to take home and toast myself because realistically that’s what I would do.

I have high standards for an everything bagel as a New Yorker, but Tandem’s always impress me. It smelled faintly of onion as it toasted and it toasted well, but I think that might vary from person to person. I was incredibly happy to see it wasn’t over-boiled as I often find and wasn’t tough. The seeds stayed on really well, even after being toasted.

I preferred the cream cheese on the everything bagel because everything bagels tend to be slightly saltier than plain bagels and didn’t want to add the salt in butter too.

The plain bagel was still flavorful despite being just that, plain. Like the everything bagel, it toasted evenly and well. However, for the plain bagel I think it’s best eaten with butter as you can really taste the quality of the bread (it tasted like a warm baguette with butter), rather than the cream cheese, which I thought took away from the flavor of the bread.?
Danielle Eaton

Java Stop
1226 Springfield St.
Feeding Hills

Initially, I was a little worried ordering a French toast bagel with cream cheese. On paper, the combination seems incongruent, a disaster waiting to happen. But in reality, the French toast bagel from Agawam Java Stop was quite effective. The bagel had a subtle, yet suitable cinnamon aftertaste. The cream cheese coating contrasted well with the bagel’s sophisticated sweetness. You can taste the elements of French toast without it feeling too overpowering, and the bagel itself was toasted to a light brown crisp. Overall, the combination was a hearty success.

I also ordered an onion bagel with butter from the Java Stop. This bagel was very well toasted, which is, in my opinion, an underrated attribute of a compelling bagel. The onion taste appeared natural, rather than manufactured. There was a nice crisp around the edges as well, which I believe complimented the onions pretty well. The butter itself was spread out equally, making each bite flavorful. Another excellent breakfast option.
Ryan Feyre

Lou’s Bagel Nook
34 Somers Rd.
Hampden

Lou’s Bagel Nook is, in a word, charming. A sunny little shop with kitschy art on the walls and baskets of bagels behind the counter. It made for a cozy place to stop in on a winter Wednesday morning.

Lou’s Bagel Nook does not make their own bagels, and instead uses Original New York Bagels. This wasn’t a deterrent in my quest for local bagels, however, because the brand of bagels isn’t sold at any of the other bagel shops we sampled and there’s more to an enjoyable eating experience than the origin of the food.

Not only were the staff more than willing to accommodate my request to halve the bagels and put butter on one half and cream cheese on the other, which I appreciated, I also enjoyed the light conversation with the owner, Lou, while she did so.

The everything bagel was mildly aromatic and a good size – a little larger than my palm. The flavor was hearty. The plain bagel had a nice firm outside and a soft, fluffy inside. Both were satisfying to pull apart. There was a good shmear of topping on both bagels, though the butter never melted.

The two bagels cost $5, which was an excellent price for a filling breakfast.
Sarah Heinonen

Alex's Bagel Shop
398 Longmeadow St.
Longmeadow

A modern, trendy bagelry, Alex’s Bagel Shop is a local favorite for many, although I had personally never tried it. I can now definitely say, Alex’s bagels eat like a meal.

The fresh bagels, made in-house, are dense and filling. The everything bagel was incredibly aromatic when I removed it from the bag. The outside of the bagels was slightly harder than I prefer, but the inside was still soft and chewy. The melted butter tasted great with the bagels. The cream cheese tasted fine too, there was just too much of it, overflowing the bagel and sticking to the wrapper. I love cream cheese, but this was just over the top.

At $9.95 for two bagels, I felt the price was a touch high, but the bagels were filling and I left with my stomach satisfied. Alex’s bagels are available for delivery via doordash.com
Sarah Heinonen

Benson’s Bagels
598 Sumner Ave.
Springfield

There were no plain bagels in the case when I walked into Benson’s Bagels, located at 598 Sumner Ave. in Springfield, but I quickly learned the popular choice was “in the oven, almost done,” from the man behind the counter. I’d have to wait a bit, but in the end, the few minutes I spent lounging by the coffee bar was well worth it.

I purchased a plain bagel just sliced – too warm to toast, I was told  - and an everything bagel, also just sliced, both with whipped cream cheese on the side, intending to take my snack home to toast when the plain bagel cooled a bit. The cashier told me I’d actually chosen the most affordable way to buy my bagels – they were $1.45 each just sliced, and the cream cheese was just 85 cents per side.

My entire bill came to $4.68.

Once home, I toasted the bagels and added my own schmear – which gave me the opportunity to control the amount of cream cheese - not too heavy, not too light.

Then it was time for the taste test.

The plain bagel, still slightly warm when I put it in my toaster oven,  provided  the perfect balance of slightly chewy exterior with a not-too-soft interior. Benson’s whipped cream cheese had just the right amount of tang, and was not overpowering. If you could describe a bagel as melt-in-your mouth, that would be it.

Benson’s everything bagel was well-coated with sesame seeds, and dusted lightly with both poppy seeds and crispy bits of garlic. Again, the bite provided a good blend of chewy exterior with a not-too-soft interior that didn’t get mushy when coated with cream cheese. The garlic flavoring was subtle, and not overpowering. It was a nice balance with the cream cheese, and a satisfying choice.
Debbie Gardner

Comfort Bagels
West Springfield
comfortbagel.com

I have high standards for bagels as a former New Yorker, and let me tell you Janet Blake’s cottage bakery, Comfort Bagels met all of those standards and then some.

Blake’s delivery radius is small, but well worth it if you live in West Springfield, parts of Holyoke, Agawam, Westfield and even Chicopee. Customers can only order a bagels by the dozen, but they come in variety of flavors including salted rosemary, cheddar jalapeño, everything, plain, orange cranberry and more.

I had high hopes for Blake’s bagels simply based on the photos on social media, they looked incredible and did not disappoint. One bite and I was hooked, both the plain and everything bagel tasted like artisan bread. One can tell Blake spends a lot of time and effort making the bagels, and it shows that she has mastered her craft.

Both bagels toasted really well and had the perfect amount of crunch, but weren’t too tough. They smelled like bread cooking while they toasted and the everything bagel was loaded with seasoning, which I’m always a fan of (or it’s just a plain bagel). While I tried both with cream cheese and butter, I preferred both with just butter as it let me appreciate the quality and flavor of the bread.?
Danielle Eaton

Dunkin’

Unfortunately for me, I happened to be out of town when our bagel quest began, so I could not travel out to one of our prized local bakeries. I offered to sample one chain location that is of easy access to most locals – Dunkin’. While Dunkin’ is synonymous with donuts, they do in fact sell several varieties of bagels including plain, everything, cinnamon raisin, multigrain, sesame seed and more.

Backtracking a bit: I had the pleasure of going out to Astoria, NY a couple of times to visit my boyfriend’s sister Alyssa and her husband Jason. Right outside New York City, Astoria is home to Brooklyn Bagel. One morning Jason ran out and picked up a baker’s dozen of bagels for us all. I was instantly hooked. Not only were the bagels amazing, but Brooklyn Bagel makes numerous specialty cream cheeses of the week. Alyssa shared with me that her favorite by far was their pizza cream cheese.

I was sent home with about six bagels. On my car ride home, I ate one plain, not toasted bagel. It was heavenly. Upon my arrival home, I toasted another. They were so delicious, and addicting. Fresh, doughy, soft, enormous. They were everything I’ve ever wanted in a bagel. Every single bagel I’ve ever had since then has had to live up to a classic New York bagel, and unfortunately, they always fall short. Understandably so, as Brooklyn Bagel has recently been named to the Best of Astoria (BOAST) list, as having the best bagels alongside New York City Bagel & Coffee House.

I hate to say it – but as I went to Dunkin’ to purchase a plain bagel and an everything bagel, I went in with low expectations. I didn’t order them toasted, and I ordered them with cream cheese spread on the side. When I’ve purchased bagels from the chain in the past, I’ve noticed they put more cream cheese on the bagels than I enjoy. Therefore, I took the bagels home to toast myself and add my own desired amount of cream cheese.

The bagels were average, as expected. I enjoyed the slices more with cream cheese than I did with the ones that had plain butter. I’m a big fan of everything bagels, but these everything bagels simply fell short to me. Perhaps it was just this batch, but the everything bagel I received was overwhelmingly covered in poppy seeds, with a scant amount of sesame seeds and dried onion thrown in. I was missing a bit of saltiness to this everything bagel, however that could be because of my affection toward Trader Joes’ brand “everything but the bagel” seasoning, which is amazing.

Overall, Dunkin’s bagels will be great if you need a bagel in a pinch. With that said, I definitely wished I had been home to try one of our local bagel shops and to see how they compared to my favorite Brooklyn Bagel.
Payton North