Food and Things » Bagels

H & H Bagels is Closing: Upper West Side Loses Neighborhood Icon

Laura Weiss — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 12:17:48 +0000

H & H Bagels is closing. What’s next? Zabar’s? But fret not, dear readers. The Upper West Side is now are home to the same chain and big box stores, from the Gap to CVS, that the rest of America enjoys. What will go into the H & H Bagels space? I shudder to think of the possibilities. For continuing coverage of the H & H story, visit the West Side Rag.

H & H Bagel Owner Indicted for Tax Fraud; Broadway Shop Remains Open

Laura Weiss — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:07:03 +0000

Helmer Toro, the 59-year-old owner of H &H Bagel, pleaded not guilty yesterday to a variety of tax charges, a number of news outlets have reported. As of this afternoon, the Upper West Side bagel shop on Broadway was still open. “It’s not true,” said a woman who answered the phone when asked whether the shop might close due to Toro’s arrest for tax evasion.

NY Food Icons Are Center Stage at SF Serious Eats American Food Festival

Laura Weiss — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 20:41:44 +0000

Ed Levine of Serious Eats is giving the City by the Bay a bite out of the Big Apple, the San Francisco Chronicle reports today. Levine is bringing in iconic American foods, like Philadelphia cheese steak, from around the country. He’s striving for authenticity, so local is out, and the real deal is in.

For his Great American Food and Music Festival which takes place in Mountain View, CA, just south of San Francisco today, Levine is importing lox and cream cheese from Barney Greengrass and pastrami sandwiches from Katz’s. Other cities will be represented at the festival, too, including Cincinnati, which will contribute Graeter’s ice cream and Buffalo, which will be represented by the Anchor Bar’s famous wings.

This festival sounds like a terrific way to honor the diversity of American food. If you’re attending, what’s your take on the food?

H & H Bagels Closed Briefly on Friday

Laura Weiss — Sat, 30 May 2009 17:18:37 +0000

Oy! There was much bigger hole than any that was ever punched in a bagel when the much-loved H & H Bagels at Broadway and 80th Street was briefly shuttered Friday for non-payment of taxes, according to a story in The New York Times.

Taxes, schmaxes! We need our neighborhood bagel shop!

For my face-off between East Side and West Side bagels, go to East Side, West Side: Which Has Better Bagels?

East Side, West Side: Which Has Better Bagels?

Laura Weiss — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 01:40:55 +0000

Which New York neighborhood can lay claim to the best bagels?

There are East Siders who say Ess-a-Bagel on Third Ave and 52nd St (also on 21st Street at Third) produces the best bagels in the city. West Siders insist that Absolute Bagels on Broadway at 107th St has no equal. Some swear by H & H, the bagel maker with a store next to Zabar’s on Broadway at 80th.

By all rights, the Upper West Side, with its substantial Jewish population, should be the home to the very best bagels. But it’s the East Side, which skews goyish, that can claim boasting rights. Here’s the line-up.

1. Ess-a-Bagel. Why schlep to the East Side when there are perfectly fine bagels on the other side of the park? The reason is Ess-a-Bagel. These gigantic chewy orbs are tender, but not doughy, with almost a perfect crunch. A pumpernickel slathered with cream cheese is a meal to sigh over. Plus, you can’t beat the atmosphere. If you go before Rosh Hashanah, you’ll spy a couple of yentas kibbutzing at a table off to the side. There, they sell honey cake and just a little bit of gossip as they schmooze the day away with a steady stream of regulars.

2. Absolute Bagels. Lauded by some as the best bagels in the city, Absolute Bagels are smaller, breadier and sweeter than the ones at Ess-a-bagel. Absolute’s bagel makers are Thai, but they must have Jewish souls to produce this quality product, which has a nice chew, but at the end of the day, places second to Ess-a-Bagel.

3. H & H. This is the default bagel. If you don’t feel like trekking up to Absolute on the edge of Morningside Heights, H & H turns out a completely serviceable bagel. Way too doughy and not chewy enough, these bagels would be stars in any other part of the country. But in New York, there’s stiff competition, and H & H just doesn’t quite measure up.

Absolute Bagels

2788 Broadway (107th-108th Sts.)

212 932 2052

Ess-a-Bagel

359 1st Avenue

New York, NY 10010

Phone: 212 260 2252

831 3rd Avenue

New York, NY 10022

Phone: 212 980 1010

H & H Bagels

2239 Broadway

New York, NY

212 595 8000