WHERE TO FINAGLE A Move over beignets, bagels are rolling into town.
Daily
By Steven Melendez
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Outdoor Fun | Where Y'at Magazine
New Orleans has plenty of local baked goods from king cake at Carnival to the city’s distinctive styles of French bread and bread pudding. But in recent years, bagels, a type of bread product not typically associated with Louisiana, have been increasingly available and increasingly desired. More than just rolls with holes or some kind of alternative donuts, bagels are a distinctive item all their own, typically boiled then baked and can be plain, savory, or sweet. And while local bagel vendors uniformly say the most popular topping option is “everything,” each offers some uncommon flavors and varieties to keep bagel shopping more exciting than just buying packaged bread in the supermarket. Here are a few places around New Orleans where you can grab them…after Passover! SMALL MART 2700 Chartres St. | 504-766-8740 instagram.com/smallmart Formerly a tiny convenience store in the French Quarter, Small Mart has become a restaurant in its own right in the Marigny, beloved for its array of vegetarian options and its rigorous safety protocols during the coronavirus pandemic. Along with curries and other dishes, Small Mart offers bagels that are boiled and partially baked in New York, where the water is often said to give them a distinctive flavor, then finished on arrival. Options include everything from sesame and pumpernickel to egg. The restaurant also has a variety of bagel sandwiches available like the traditional New Yorker (with cream cheese, salmon, tomato, red onion, and capers) and a vegan option (with avocado, vinaigrette, chili sauce, and an assortment of other options). Many enjoy pairing their bagel sandwiches with a Dr. Brown’s soft drink, often the company’s distinctive celery flavor, or a coconut water. HELL BENT BAGELS AT NEW ORLEANS TRAP KITCHEN 1043 Poland Ave. | 504-435-5983 facebook.com/HellBentBagels A newcomer to the New Orleans baked good world, Hell Bent Bagels was formed during the pandemic when bagels seemed hard to come by and now offers delivery or pickup orders at the New Orleans Trap Kitchen, a commissary kitchen in the Bywater. The offers range from the
ordinary, like everything and poppy seed, to more distinctive varieties, like a delicious jalapeño cheddar bagel. Watch Hell Bent’s Facebook and Instagram pages to see when more unusual varieties pop up, including rainbow bagels and distinctive spreads like bananas foster, espresso, chocolate. Orders can also be placed through Hell Bent Bagel’s social media. STEIN’S MARKET AND DELI 2207 Magazine St. | 504-527-0771 steinsdeli.com This normally bustling Uptown deli offers a variety of bagels from Davidovich Bakery in New York including garlic, everything, cinnamon raisin, egg, and even a gluten free option. Cream cheese flavors include chive, jalapeño cheddar, garlic and onion, and honey nut. The bagels are available plain with butter, jam, cream cheese, or whitefish salad as you prefer, and you can get a variety of sandwiches made with them including a classic lox or ham, egg and cheese. New Jerseyites should take note that Taylor pork roll, the distinctive pork product favored in the Garden State, is also available for your bagel-topping pleasure. HUMBLE BAGEL | 4716 Freret St. 504-355-3535 | humblebagel.com Run by a husband and wife team from the East Coast, Humble Bagels on Freret Street offers traditional boiled-and-baked bagels made with just a handful of ingredients and a distinctively crisp crust. Traditional varieties
