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Is This The Best Bagel in New York City?

GQ anoints Absolute Bagels on the Upper West Side the city’s best

by
Stephanie Butnick
May 30, 2014
(Shutterstock)
(Shutterstock)

Bagels are really having a New York moment. Mile End’s new bagel joint, Black Seed Bagels, has a line down Elizabeth St. nearly every day of the week, and the newly opened Baz Bagels on Grand St. is doing its part to keep Jewish food trendy. Still, there’s something to be said for classics—at least according to a new GQ ranking of the best bagels in New York City.

Topping the list—and beating out Black Seed for the coveted number one spot—is Absolute Bagels on Broadway and 108th St. on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. “As basic as a bagel shop gets, and as beloved as any,” writes GQ’s Alan Richman.

Also on the list is the Action Bronson-approved Bagel Oasis in Queens, Kossar’s Bialys on the Lower East Side, Murray’s Bagels on 6th Avenue in Manhattan, and Bergen Bagels in Brooklyn.

What’s your favorite bagel, in New York City or elsewhere?

Stephanie Butnick is chief strategy officer of Tablet Magazine, co-founder of Tablet Studios, and a host of the Unorthodox podcast.